Good Trainers

There have been lots of blogs lately talking about good students and good/ bad teachers. I have been having a think about this and wondered what I think makes a good trainer...

I have gone away from training sessions feeling negative sometimes and always assumed it was more about me than the trainer but i dont actually think thats always the case. Flip comments from a trainer can really affect a student, comments like... 'he's jumping badly', 'that turn was wide' or 'his contacts are a bit dodgy tonight', 'he is sniffing a lot today' are all damaging... WHEN NOT followed by a solution or suggestion. If the trainer said... 'he is sniffing a lot today, why dont you crate him during class next week so he cant rehearse this while waiting for his turn'. then even if you leave training with a less than perfect performance you can at least feel positive in a plan to move forward.

I also find some trainers don't like to share failures. Showing everyone your awesome contact performance is all fair and well, but it is actually much more helpful to share your problems and progression along the way. It also makes you more 'human' and attainable.

Finally don't ask too much of your students, if they are stuggling to grasp the basics, dont throw too much at them... it just makes them feel that they can never reach the standard expected.

Enjoy training and look for the dogs/ handlers good points, they all have them and sometimes a little praise goes a long way!