# Anxiety in Obedience Class



## HoBoJoe (Dec 28, 2010)

I was looking for advice for my 6 month old vizsla. We first enrolled him in a puppy head start and he did really well, so we enrolled him in gateway obedience which is a step up from puppy head start. The dogs in the class are a lot older, and they whine and bark a lot. Our puppy has been reacting very poorly to this. He spends the entire hour whining, visibly shaking and shuddering, yanking me around trying to escape his collar, and not listening to a single command he is given. Treats don't entice him in this state of mind. He does all of his commands wonderfully at home, but I can never show the trainer because he is too upset at class to perform. We never had this problem in puppy class, and we are thinking the loud, deep barks and whining of older dogs are upsetting to him. Even when the class is silent he won't settle down. I keep hoping that the exposure will calm him because he will see nothing bad is happening, or that after half an hour or so he will exhaust himself and settle. I try to do a leash correction and a disagreement noise when he is upset, I never pet him or comfort him. Any advice on what else I can do?


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## Mischa (Feb 17, 2010)

He may be going through a fear stage. It's probably best to stop going to this particular course, for now. 

Work on being around other dogs and praise like crazy when he is socializing and happy. 

When he is freaked out, gently lift his tail, and massage his neck. 
A quiet, loving voice usually snaps mine out of her moments of fear. 

Another thing that seemed to help while she was in her fear stage, was getting her to jump objects like short fences or logs or rocks. It got her confidence up cause she saw how pleased it made me. (we're up to 4' fences now...) ;D


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## steph323 (Nov 14, 2011)

My vizsla always has had issues with listening during times of stress. I am new to this forum so someone will probably anwser your question better. but I have noticed that if you dont give your vizsla ANY attention during these times it works as a punnishment. They or at least mine doesnt work for treats, she works for me being happy. She is honestly learning what is ok and what I want as well as how to get what she wants. And that coddling her when she gets stressed out leads to issues later in life. I coddled Matches (my vizsla) and she has social issues to this day, she is ok if I am comfortable with the person and dog usually. but in public settings if the dog is off leash she gets defensive. I blame myself because during her teenage years, past the puppy, I coddled her during park interactions and training periods. I love her still but she doesnt like dogs usually unless they are already here. Talk to your trainer, they should have a solution to keep their attention on you rather than other dogs. Your dog also might be noticing your fear before you.


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## dfnagy (Sep 30, 2011)

When we took our V to obedience classes. She enjoyed just playing and running around with all of the other dogs. Even as a puppy when sone of the older dogs were 3 times the size she dodn't show any fear. When it cam to the actual classes she was a bit restless particularly where the instructer spent too long in explaning what to do. I think she just got bored with just sitting and wanted to play. 

V's don't like sitting in one place they like to work and do stuff. 

I found some good dog training vidoes on you tube where can not only teach you dog the usual stuff like sit and stay, you can also teach the trick like roll over, spin, figure of 8 through the legs, dead dog........

I did these at home and then at other places where there are distractions. All you is about 10-15 minutes day.


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## gunnr (Aug 14, 2009)

HoBoJoe

You are very close to losing your pup. By that I mean the trust aspect of your relationship with him. 
Work with him at home. You don't always need the trainer, and shouldn't feel the need to quantify his progress with anyone other than yourself. 
Take a step back and "re"-develop your relationship based on trust and respect with him and he will thrive. 
A Vizsla gets a lot of his confidence from his owner/handler. In new and uncertain situations he is looking to you for guidance, support and a "safety net". Don't leave him hanging, or put him in a position to make his own decisions this early in his development.
It also sounds like there is too much pressure for him at this point. Back it down, before he shuts down on you. Bring him back later, a few months, when he is more mentally ready.
I would immediately get him out of the class. 

PS.
There is nothing wrong with comforting your dog when he is distressed to calm him down. I've had some incredibly strong, tough, V's through the years,and all of them "needed a hug now and then".


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## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

I 100% agree with *Gunnr*. Do not force your puppy to stay in the class and participate. Our V. Sophie only did puppy kindergarten. It worked out fine once we discovered the right treats for her and made sure she came to class right after a nice, long walk. However, we didn’t enroll her in any other classes because we felt the small space with so many other dogs was making her nervous. Instead, we looked up different training videos online and did the training we thought was necessary on our own. I am not saying that dog training classes are bad for your puppy – no, not at all! But there is plenty of time to teach your V. everything he’ll need to know, and they learn so fast! I can’t say that Sophie is the best “heeler”, but I also can’t say that I spent much time on teaching “heel” command. However, she does pretty much everything we ask her to do. The key is to have fun and enjoy your V 

I finally decided to enroll Sophie in a beginner agility class (she’s almost 1.5yrs old). Before the class, I took her to four drop-in obedience classes just to see how well Sophie behaved. She did very good for the most part and picked up really quick on things she didn’t know. I was actually quite amazed how fast she learned! And that’s the one thing that I absolutely love about my Sophie (and I imagine many other Vizslas) – she never stops surprising me! 8)


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## datacan (May 15, 2011)

I totally agree with the hug Gunnr mentioned. It's the only way I can calm Sam. Amazing how it works.


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## sarahaf (Aug 17, 2009)

Your pup may be better off with a puppy socialization class, and doing the obedience part of things one-on-one, or as others have suggested, using a training book or video. I personally like Jean Donaldson's Perfect Paws in 5 Days DVD (very inexpensive, too). Ask your obedience instructor if there's a low key puppy socialization class you could switch to, where the focus is just on getting used to being in the room with other dogs and people.

Edit: just realized you did say he did well in puppy head start--still, if he's fearful now, it might be good to repeat a similar experience.


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## HoBoJoe (Dec 28, 2010)

Thanks to all of the replies! I took him out of the class and decided to take a break for awhile. Maybe when he is older I will continue on. I was hoping to continue through the class in order to do agility with him. But at this point he can't handle it.


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## AfroViz (Jun 26, 2011)

Is it not possible to just lessen the pressure on the the pup? If it's quite a large training facility you could walk your dog around the periphery letting him process the sights/smells/sounds far away from the action. Maybe play some catch, or some tug...whatever the pup enjoys. No obedience work, just keep him engaged and in a good frame of mind. Rebuild your trust and create positive associations closer, and closer and closer to the class. When you trigger a fear response just back away again. No pressure. 

You can't deal with fear issues by running away from them IMO. I'd want to attack this.



> I keep hoping that the exposure will calm him because he will see nothing bad is happening,


The reason that's not working is because from the dog's perspective something bad _is_ happening -- he's terrified to be in class because in class he's terrified. Fear is self-reinforcing.


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## Mischa (Feb 17, 2010)

^excellent post!


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## Vizsla Baby (Nov 4, 2011)

How long has he been going? It took my puppy about 3-4 visits to really get into it. She was afraid before. Especially of the big, out of control adult dogs.

Once she was over her fear, she kept trying to play with all the dogs. 

Talk to your trainer. My trainer would love Sadie up before each class (we showed up early). She loved her brief visits with her.


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## Ozkar (Jul 4, 2011)

I think complete removal is perhaps a little drastic. Perhaps just go to classes and hang around the outside of the group and focus attention on puppy and not worry about the trainer. This may ease puppy into the social aspect and allow it to become more comfortable. When pup is ready you can then recommence the training aspect. I think one or two sessions where pup is anxious is OK as long as they are not getting panicked. Your call.


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## HoBoJoe (Dec 28, 2010)

It would really be difficult to hang around outside of the group or hang out too far from the action. The area is set-up with smaller fenced in arenas , and the training takes place inside each smaller fenced area. So outside the fenced areas are high traffic areas and other fenced classes. I think it would help him if he were able to approach the other dogs and greet them, but we don't have that opportunity in class. We went for 4 sessions without seeing any improvement in his anxiety. I think it was getting worse. He loves the dog park and other dogs, but the leashed dogs kept separate in class seems to upset him.


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## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

*HoBoJoe*, does the school offer playgroups, drop-in classes? Before I signed up Sophie for her agility class, I took her few times to a playgroup in the same training school so she can get familiar with the place and associate it with fun. I also did few obedience drop-in classes to observe her attention span as well as to assess her obedience level. What a change! She does get a little antsy while other dogs are taking their turns with the different obstacles, but most of the time she's just standing (won't sit too much) and begging for her special agility chicken treats haha


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## luv2laugh (Oct 6, 2011)

Hi HoBoJo,

My little guy had the same reaction as dfnagy, with wanting to play with the other dogs and being restless during the instruction part. Restless, however, is an understatement. He is on/off all out yelping, pulling, etc. 

I know it is a different situation, but I found a different obedience class that had a structure which works better for us. He is able to relax and we both enjoy the class so much better. The first class wasn't right for Oso. If you are in an area with different options, you may want to see if another class will fit better. Even if it is just a class with different dogs that are less rowdy, that could help break him in. In fact, maybe you could ask to sit in on a class with dogs which are calmer (maybe at a higher level). Just work on treating him throughout the class (he wouldn't have any expectations on him to do tricks. His only job would be to be calm). You could also leave at any time without any pressure to stay (because you paid for it or want to learn). 

When I was in the first class with Oso, he could have done well with 10 minutes of it, but the lecture part was just too long and he is too young. If I could have planned my own breaks it would have been better. Since I wanted to get the information, I felt I had to stay. Talk to the trainers, see if they have any suggestions...


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## Vizsla Baby (Nov 4, 2011)

HoboJoe, I'd try a different training class if it doesn't improve. You are wasting your time going over there. Try to get your money back.

We took a class through the local humane society. You train your dog and they teach you how to do it. They are very loving. Our class was cheap too - $50 for 9 weeks of training.


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## HoBoJoe (Dec 28, 2010)

My training facility was not set-up to allow any playgroups or drop in classes. It is very structured and has intervals where you must take one class before taking another. Also, when you pay you have to purchase the entire 8 week course, and if you miss more than a certain amount of sessions you don't "graduate." I think I need to find another facility. Right now we have an in home trainer coming to the house instead. I've also noticed similar anxiety whenever we stop on the street during a walk. It is similar to his obedience class anxiety. He starts shaking visibly and whimpering. Maybe the class structure just wasn't right for him. He seems to always want to be moving forward, and and shows anxiety when we are standing still, even on a walk.


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## Ozkar (Jul 4, 2011)

Shaking and whimpering in that context sounds more like excitement to me. Both my boys went through that stage. The older one still does this in the car and I can assure you, with him it's excitement.. not anxiety. He's just chomping at the bit to get out there is all...... 

Are you 100% sure it's anxiety and not just a normal exuberant Vizsla???


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## DougAndKate (Sep 16, 2011)

HoBoJoe, we went through the same thing. We only lasted 2 classes during our first puppy training experience. Elroy whined and barked the entire class wanting to go play with the other dogs. It was quite embarrassing, and honestly, the trainer was not much help. 

We then found a new trainer, and started one-on-one sessions first. Each class, she slowly introduced more dogs into the training, until eventually he was calm enough to focus on his training. We just finished an 8 week obedience class, and by the last week, Elroy barely whined at all, was able to stay off leash with the other dogs around, and was more focused on us. Outside of class, it's still a work in progress, as he still gets extremely excited when we see other dogs at the park or around the neighborhood, so we're going to focus on that with the trainer next. Stay with it, and good luck!


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## HoBoJoe (Dec 28, 2010)

I'm not positive it's anxiety, but it certainly seems that way. I didn't expect excitement to show such visible shuddering and shaking.


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