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When we began taking interest in a Sighthound as a "Companion" for our Rhodesian Ridgeback, we naturally also visited some corresponding performances to see the live dogs. There it looked like some Sighthound-Owners thought "it's impossible a Sighthound could be trained" so they wouldn't take up such activities.. Later on we met together with our five-month-old Sloughi such an Owner of a nine-year-old Sloughi, who was rather astonished to see our little one sit just seeing my hand-signal - "Our doesn't do it yet?!!"
When you go through the virtual Sighthound-Tribunals there it is also reported of Sighthounds which had passed the Companion-Dog-Trials do dog-sports enthusiastically such as Agility. Points of training and raising and first of all repeatedly the topic "Is the following off the lead for a Sighthound possible" are also discussed especially by members of the younger generation. As we are members of a charitable Dog-Club (Team Dog Man 2000 reg.Club), it was at least no question to us: naturally, Yuri, as well as Samba thre years before him, will attend the Obedience School together with us. Why do all Novice-Owners with their whelps want to go to a Race Club just to sniff the atmosphere there instead of going e.g. to a "mixed" playing group of whelps or even to a following-off-the-lead zone downtown? Socialization is the "magic-word". A dog led positively from its youth on to the different irritations of the environment, it will meet in its life, will more playfully and easier learn how to deal with them. Cars, playing children, other dogs, bikes, restaurants, Jogger, noise, elderly people with sticks ... there are very many strange things that are not "normal" for a young dog, but often threatening.
Also, anybody who has owned dogs all his life long can still learn some more at the Obedince School, for who thinks only the dog learns something, is very, very wrong. Actually, the owner is the one who learns in the first place! In a good Obedience School the respective dog-man-team is taken care of to their requirements - respectively, the owner is energeticly supported with this so important socializing of the dog. The trainers should work according to the latest findings of the Behaviour-Psychology, teach the dogowner the foreign language "Dogish" so he could learn to understand his dog better and to communicate justly and accordingly to the species. For raising only positive trainingmethods should be used. The dogs learn in a group (to which also grown up dogs should belong) by contact and the free play with their species the important dog-codex of behaviour, that we humans couldn't or only with di difficulty are able to provide for. Is such a "normal" group of whelps also suitable for a Sloughi? We remembered the words of Yuri's breeder Liz: "Sighthounds play differently..."Meanwhile we know that at least our little Sloughi is flexible in seeing this and that he can differentiate very well between his playing partners: anything that looks "windy" he will run after it, so that the grass lumps fly around. And with anything that is built robustly one can refine his own "wrestling arts", including throwing over his shoulder elegantly and everything that goes with it ... At his first visit to the group of whelps (in the age of 11 weeks) Yuri was shocked for about 10 minutes: "Aaaaarrrghh, what do these funny animals want? Are they also dogs? But they look very different and they move differently, they growl and bark and follow me - iiiigittt mummy save me!" Little later though couriosity won, and he raged with Jack Russel, Australian Shepherd & Co ... Longhair dogs, you can pull their ears or their tousled tails, and they still are the favourit ;o)
If you start looking for a suitable Obedince School, you should take care of some points mentioned above and in any case , without the dog, watch one of the lessons. If the intercourse happens loudly, impatiently or if the dogs are roughly treated, you better leave immediately. It is also important to pay attention that the groups of whelps are not too large (about 6 dogs/Trainer). The dogs should never be left withc out supervision. In any case a competent control of dog and owner has to take place. Here the original voice of our Trainer who is heard meanwhile all over the TV "Supernanny" & Co.: there are also some very good hints ... Buuut: for our whelp-and young dog-raising things like a rattle-box, spray collar etc. are not at all necessary and not suitable either!!!" And last but not least two Links which will help when looking for a suitable Obedience School: On both pages you can find the Course & Seminar offer of the respective "House" but also Links to Trainers, who were trained there themselves.
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