Yesterday while at petsmart I ran into the dog trainer there, I was hesitant about the training classes since I have heard horrible stories about it. Anyways, the trainer actually seemed to know about huskies right away he told me that what most people have to remember is that "huskies are independent thinkers, so although they might obey and sit and listen to some commands that after a while they will start saying to themselves "okay whats the point of this I'm not going to do it." He told me a few things about huskies and he seemed to know what he was talking about after talking to him for a while and seeing what they were going to teach saya I decided to sign her up for it. Now my question is has anybody ever ran into good petsmart trainers before?

I did two classes at Petsmart with Embry, I hated all of them. The trainers are so not certified, they knew as much as I did and was just very disappointed.

Jeffry, we had the same (positive) experience as you on our first trip into PetSmart. I actually was in there shopping for supplies a few weeks before I got my pup. The store manager asked if she could help find anything and started up conversation about my new pup. She raved in the trainer and how much one of them (especially) liked huskies -- she had grown up with them as a child.

I get the same reaction every time I go into my local store. I have seen the horror stories on here too, but for some reason... everyone in my store LOVES my husky.

As for the training... don't expect top notch training. In 6 classes, it was definitely worth the $89 I paid (puppy class). We only worked basic skills like sit, down, stay, come, and basic leash training. I didn't really learn any new skills that I wasn't already working at home (via YouTube learning), but the trainer was able to help tweak my training techniques. Plus the socialization -- both with other dogs and other people in the store -- was a positive for me. I'm going to a 1-on-1 trainer for my next series, but I wouldn't hesitate to try my local PetSmart again.

One thing to try if you are still hesitant. Get a copy of their schedule and drop by to watch a class. I think you can get a pretty good feel for a trainer by watching them in a session.

Our trainer at Petsmart was excellent. We were in the beginner class, Kane had just turned 2. He has done much better since his class. We have, too, since part of what they teach is teaching the owners how to handle and train the dogs. You have to make sure you take time to work on whatever skills they taught that week before your next class. We went back over what we had done the week before at the beginning of each class, and you could definitely tell who worked with the dog during the week and who didn't. Kane graduated top of his class, and we will most likely take Halligan there when we get a chance. I would recommend it personally, but like Kevin said, go observe a class and see how the trainer acts. If you don't think it would work for you, then you can save your money and look elsewhere. But we were very pleased with it.

It really does vary. 2 girls who used to run the training near my moms house at PETsMART quit and opened up their own place with a third girl. They're really awesome and compete in OB, rally, flyball, agility ect ect.

The classes are fantastic.

This is something im really unsure about doing with my pup. And its been bothering me.. I dont wanna waste my money for lessons if all they teach is stuff like sit and stay.. I can do that on my own.. Maybe i am jjst over confident.. But i was able to teach previous dogs that stuff very easy... I keep hearing that i should go to classes.. But i dont wanna pay for a trainer that knows as much as me or maybe a little more.. Im not trying to sound like im a hot shot.. Im not this is my first husky and i am a little nervous lol.. But i dont know what to do..

We took our dogs to Petsmart for some training.. I feel pretty good about the trainer we got I really liked.. I am not sure about the other trainer at the local petsmart if she would been as much help.

We did sit, stay, lay down, leave it, drop it, come, loose leash walking, sitting for greetings (which was major for us because Kane's a jumper) and I think that was it. My boyfriend had huskies before and was able to teach them some commands, but Kane wasn't having it. The class was very beneficial for us, and he has really retained his knowledge and we have added to it. They loved having Kane in the store because he was VERY talkative, he wasn't a big fan of sitting and being still while we were instructed and the other dogs were having their moment. It was also summertime and the store was very hot, so he didn't like that much either, and let everyone know about it.

Ericobeasto wrote:

This is something im really unsure about doing with my pup. And its been bothering me.. I dont wanna waste my money for lessons if all they teach is stuff like sit and stay.. I can do that on my own.. Maybe i am jjst over confident.. But i was able to teach previous dogs that stuff very easy... I keep hearing that i should go to classes.. But i dont wanna pay for a trainer that knows as much as me or maybe a little more.. Im not trying to sound like im a hot shot.. Im not this is my first husky and i am a little nervous lol.. But i dont know what to do..

I get what you're saying, and we debated the same thing with Ghost, but ultimately decided to take the classes. It's not just teaching the dog commands, but also very good socialization with other dogs. That one was key for us, we didn't want Ghost to come out with the same socialization problems that our Cocker has. The people who had her before Aaron got her taught her some stuff, but she never interacted with other dogs and now she's a total pain in the ass. FWIW, we had a wonderful training experience at our local PetSmart, and I would absolutely consider doing it again if we get another dog.

I think when it comes to Petsmart classes its all about the trainer. We have an awesome trainer and have been using the same one since puppy class, we are now in advanced. Puppy level classes aren't very high profile stuff, we did sit, lay, leave it, wait, release, and sit while greeting. Then we moved on to intermediate and did things like park it, stay, front, finish/swing, and a few other simple moves. Now we are into advanced, which is a 6 week program, but our trainer told us we are not graduating until all 5 dogs pass the CGC and TDI certification. We will have a bona fide therapy dog after this class, but our trainer is very committed and truly enjoys the animals. She has never had a husky come through the advanced class before but our boy is clearly her favorite, has been ever since puppy class.

I think more or less I would go into the store during the training sessions and just watch and observe.

How much are the weekly training classes for petsmart?

We paid I think $90 for a 6 week class.

If you're on the edge about petsmart you can try doing a search on google for trainers in your area. That's why I did and I found a highly regarded training service. It's a little bit more money than petsmart, but in the end it may be worth it if you're not comfortable with the trainers at the store. The trainers that I'm using I would take in a heartbeat over petsmart, no matter the price.

Ok thanks

Garebear wrote:

If you're on the edge about petsmart you can try doing a search on google for trainers in your area. That's why I did and I found a highly regarded training service. It's a little bit more money than petsmart, but in the end it may be worth it if you're not comfortable with the trainers at the store. The trainers that I'm using I would take in a heartbeat over petsmart, no matter the price.

Ive been trying to find some.. Most are like a hour plus away... I think what i am going to do is when i take my pup to my vet ask him if he knows of anywhere

We paid $110 for an 8 week class. Our class was just horrible, we had two aggressive 1-2 year old labs in it, then Embry, a 4 month old GSD and some little teddybear puppy. The only socialization Embry got was from playing with the GSD. I hated that we spent a lot of time walking around the store training because then Petsmart customers were constantly coming up to us wanting to play with Embry, I was paying for people to pet my dog IMO.

I posted earlier, but for some reason it isn't showing up. Anyway, I was going to suggest looking around for a local all breed club that does obedience classes. They are usually more knowledgeable and very helpful and often less expensive. A lot of them have an optional CGC test at "graduation" too.

I was not impressed with Petsmart classes at all. I taught her more than the trainer did, I ended up having to go to a private trainer and feel like I am getting much more out of it. HOWEVER, when I first got her in California I thought the trainer at Petco was amazing, very experienced and knowledgeable. So it's really hit or miss I guess.

I have not had any luck finding good trainers online lol Google has not shown any results. Only one or two which I am trying to find out more about

I enrolled Suka in the 'beginner' class when I first got him. Turns out he knew everything they were teaching (and more) but it was a great bonding experience for us and, because he was my first dog, I learned how to teach them commands.

PetSmart trainers work on commission, so some of the bad ones (thankfully I got a good one!) might only tell you what you want to hear. Be careful with that.

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This is something im really unsure about doing with my pup. And its been bothering me.. I dont wanna waste my money for lessons if all they teach is stuff like sit and stay.. I can do that on my own.. Maybe i am jjst over confident.. But i was able to teach previous dogs that stuff very easy... I keep hearing that i should go to classes.. But i dont wanna pay for a trainer that knows as much as me or maybe a little more.. Im not trying to sound like im a hot shot.. Im not this is my first husky and i am a little nervous lol.. But i dont know what to do..

I was feeling the same way but then what occurred to me was that we can teach them all we want at home, but what about in public with distractions? That's what I think Karli would benefit from one of those classes, learning to obey even with all the distractions around her. She's good on our walks, I make her sit before we cross streets (used treats to do this at first) but I know it would be harder with other dogs around.

Also, taking puppies to training classes is an excellent and easy to socialize them with different people, places, and dogs.

I have had a lot of experience with PetSmart training classes. When I got Nikko I enrolled him at PetSmart for the puppy classes when he was 10 weeks old. I really liked the puppy class, and being a first time dog owner it taught me A LOT! I noticed a very big improvement week by week in Nikko. I went on to the Advanced class, and I think this one was the most helpful. By the 2nd week Nikko was loose leash walking and he would sit when I stopped. He became such a great dog to walk during that class.

I liked all of the other classes so much I signed up for the Advanced class. Word of advice, skip it unless you really want the Canine Good Citizenship award. We learned nothing new, it was just practice of what we already learned in the other classes just to get the certificate. I feel like it was a waste of 100 bucks.

When I got Yukon I wanted to try something different so I found a local dog trainer in the area and signed up. I did not like the classes at all. I thought that the class time was not structured at all, and it was only 30 minutes. I don’t think that was enough time. Also she spent a whole class on grooming! We went back to PetSmart after that and we are in week 3.

Some advice…Each PetSmart varies – I went to a different PetSmart location nearby and the trainers seemed a little aggressive with the dogs and it rubbed me the wrong way. My trainer was AKC Certified so you would have to ask what training they have.

The best thing about any training is going to be the socialization, especially with the puppies. Even if you know everything already it is beneficial to get them properly socialized. Even though I know all of the training that I need to do, and have all of the handouts, I still put Yukon in the classes.

Also, PetSmart will offer $20.00 off training coupons too. Most of my classes were $99 instead of the $119 they charge here.

We just enrolled our 1 1/2 year old boxer mix for Petsmart training. We both vowed we didn't need it when we first got her because we'd both had dogs before. And we were partially right--at home with just my husband and me, she is a wonderful dog and obeys commands, etc., but she's crazy excited to meet other people whether in our home or out and about. In short, she's a jumper, and at 55lbs that's not very fun or polite. We've tried pretty much everything: removing her from the room, ignoring her, moving her out of the way etc. So, we hope that perhaps doing the Petsmart thing will help, seeing as we'll be around other people, dogs, and distractions.

If we like the training, and it helps with the excitableness, we'll definitely sign Kiba up. We don't want him to follow his sister's bad example!

I talked with the head trainer today and asked lots of questions. She seemed pretty knowledgable, and the trainer that we'll be having for our boxer mix deals with huskies a lot (so we'll get a glimpse of how she works with them during our sessions for Monroe). I'll let you guys know how it goes. We start the beginning of January. I'm in TN, so I'm not sure how helpful it'll be, but there you go!