Trainers and instructors should treat clients and dogs with respect. They should have or acquire the communication skills necessary to educate owners.
Trainers teach dogs, but instructors teach both dogs and people. By necessity, dog trainers are almost always instructors as well. The instruction part of the job requires additional communication and teaching skills. To maintain the field's credibility, instructors should endeavor to treat all clients with consideration and courtesy. Humane treatment is important at both ends of the leash.
5.1 Teaching Practices
Instructors should plan their curriculum with a range of learning styles and goals in mind. They should also be conscious of the fact that students differ in age, physical strength, and possibly, language and cultural background. Flexibility in teaching gives students a better chance of success at reaching their training goals.
Trainers should:
- Adapt their instruction to clients' learning needs. If not able to address these needs, refer clients to other resources.
- Design and use standard curriculum elements such as lesson plans.
- Help clients set personal, achievable training goals, and monitor their progress. Offer remedial instruction as appropriate.
- Support lessons as much as possible with a variety of teaching aids, demonstrations, and opportunities for hands-on practice.
- Break training into incremental tasks, beginning with simple steps and gradually moving on to more difficult steps.
- Encourage feedback from students, receive the feedback courteously, and modify instruction as appropriate in response.
5.2 Human Communication
Instructors should be able to communicate clearly both what is being taught and why. Adding to clients' knowledge about canine behavior will enhance their bonds with their dogs and result in more effective and humane training.
Trainers should:
- Speak to the level of the listener. Use interviewing techniques that elicit information without passing judgment.
- Use written materials that are clear, concise, and easily understood.
- Recognize clients' stress in the training setting, and do their best to lessen it.
- Be aware of how human family dynamics can affect training. Involve family members in training or management plans as appropriate.
5.3 Additional Instructor Skills
Practical skills:
Trainers and instructors should have the physical and mental abilities needed to perform their job in a manner that is safe, satisfactory, and humane.
Experience:
Trainers and instructors should have experience handling a variety of dogs with different temperaments and backgrounds. They should also have practical, direct experience in the category of activity that they are teaching.
Professional feedback:
When possible, trainers and instructors should seek meaningful input from peers, mentors, administrators and professional groups to help them honestly evaluate their own performance.
Two national organizations of dog trainers - APDT and NADOI - offer credentialing programs and some continuing education programs. The Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT), founded in 1993, holds an annual conference and offers certification exams.
APDT's mission is:
- To educate trainers and the public.
- To promote interaction among dog trainers and other animal care professionals.
- To encourage members to use their knowledge, skills, and experience to create more harmonious relationships between people and dogs.
- To encourage the use of positive reinforcement in dog training and to minimize the use of aversive techniques.
APDT can be contacted at 1-800-PET-DOGS or http://www.apdt.com.
The National Association of Dog Obedience Instructors (NADOI), founded in 1965, is both an endorsing body and an educational resource. To become a NADOI member, an applicant must meet endorsement criteria. NADOI's broader goal is to improve obedience training in general and obedience instructing in particular. NADOI can be contacted at http://www.nadoi.org, or through their corresponding secretary at:
729 Grapevine Highway
PMB #369
Hurst, TX 76054.
