Whether past or present, what in your personal opinion were/are the positive and negative experiences of attending an Obedience Club with your dog?

Depends on what sort of club it is ie Pet or Competition & on the skills of the trainers

I've been a member of a few clubs over the country & I do believe that you get as much out clubs as you are willing to put in

Their function is really to teach the owners how to train their dogs & not to train the dogs, but the interaction with other dogs at the club is good & part of Life training

I always advise people to go to a club without their dog to see how the trainers handle their pupils & what methods are used, without having to watch their own dogs are the same time, all good clubs will never object to visitors who attend to see what goes on

Might as well kick off as nobody else has done yet :)

Most instructors will say that they are training the owners to train their dogs. Most 'new' dog owners haven't got much idea of how or why to train a dog and make mistakes which can be very difficult to overcome later in the dog's life. So help from early in the pup's life is very important.

Good obedience clubs should be lots of fun for both dogs and owners - I've been going to mine with both my dogs for nearly 5 years. Classes should be organised so that you can progress to different levels.

It's good to share your experiences with other owners and it's a very good place to socialise a young dog.

Negative points - well not all dogs or owners are easy to get on with, so sometimes the evening may get a little fraught.

Daisy

hi! sort of depends on the club,some are good & effective,some are bad but effective, some are a total waste of time & money!

ive always enjoyed them for the social side more than anything,but also (& this depends on the club) the opportunity to get some good instruction

imo,
you must be, happy with ALL methods used,,be in a class that suits you & your needs (obedience comp-pet etc) & to be able to attend alot-as if you start missing weeks i dont think it is consistent enough

you get to meet lots of doggy minded people which is great so both you & your dog can make some good friends