Tag Archives: Training

Dog Training Clubs – A Great Way to Help Train and Socialize Your Dog

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Dog training clubs are a great way to get help with obedience training and continued socialization of your puppy or dog. There are many different dog training clubs, and with a little research you can find one close to your home.

The people you will meet who are involved in the Club are people like you, who are very fond and proud of their own dogs, and also want to make sure their pets are trained well enough to be sociable and well behaved in any situation-even among crowds of other people and their dogs.

Each club will have scheduled weekly or bi-weekly classes, and you should choose the class you want to sign up to, according to the level of training your dog has (or has not) already received. The trainers in the course will have lots of helpful advice and should be experienced themselves.

Many clubs are affiliated with the National Dog Owner’s association. The N.D.O.A. has occasional meetings and get together-which also offer a week of training qualification courses for dog owners who are interested in qualifying as obedience trainers.

There are several types of dog training clubs, but most of them offer a variety of classes ranging from the beginning obedience training class (teaching your pet to sit, stay, lay down, etc) on through intermediate training classes and finally to more advanced types of dog training. The more advanced courses may teach your dog how to do dog show competitions, protection training or tracking training, to name a few.

You can practice the exercises you and your dog learned during the previous lesson at home during the rest of the week-your puppy or dog’s homework-and be prepared to learn the next step the following lesson. In addition to learning obedience training, the socializing that your pet gets from being trained in a group setting, along with the interaction with other people and their pets, is a terrific way to keep your dog friendly. Often dogs that turn out aggressive are dogs that have had no chance to interact with other people or dogs and learn how much fun it can be to have canine as well as human friends to play with.

While the dog training clubs do have members who are interested in show dog competition, many of the members just enjoy having a well behaved pet, and the social aspects of the dog training clubs. For those interested in the dog show competitions, they should check with the American Kennel Club for dog show events schedules. The AKC dog shows are for pure bred dogs only, with each breed of dog competing with other dogs of breeds with similar characteristics.

If you have a special breed of dog, such as a German shepherd, often there may be a club of fellow German shepherd (or Labrador, etc.) enthusiasts near you. However, any well run dog training club will offer training course suitable for any breed of dog you may have. Any type of dog will respond favorably to correctly applied positive training techniques. It is a good idea to try to get some feedback from a friend or fellow dog owner about the particular club you are interested in joining in order to make sure it is right for you and your pet.

For dog owners who want to really push the limits of dog training, there are Schutzhund training clubs for dog owner’s of very specially trained dogs, usually( but not limited to) German shepherd dogs, that are trained to perform tracking, obedience, and protection trials in order to attain at rating of Schutzhund I, II, or III, depending on the level of difficulty of the trial. This is the highest level of dog training, and is not part of a regular dog training club’s itinerary. These dogs are suitably qualified to be police dogs or search and rescue dogs.

So, if you want to get started with training and socializing your dog, check out a dog training club near you and sign up. You and your dog will enjoy going, and the results of having a well behaved and thoroughly socialized dog make the classes well worth it.

For a Quality Collection, Many Choose Bachmann Model Trains

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Bachmann is a world-renowned brand name when it comes to making model trains. The company has been involved in the production of high quality trains for over 150 years. The company is centered in the United Kingdom of Great Britain but they market their trains to collectors all over the world. The collection of trains produced by the company is extremely diverse and it is lauded for having some of the most interesting varieties for hard-core model railroading enthusiasts. Collectors of Bachmann model trains include the young, the old, beginners and professional collectors.

Today you will be able to find Bachmann trains in a five different scales. The HO Scale, N Scale, O Scale, On30 Scale and what they call the Large Scale. They also produce a membership model called “The Williams by Bachmann” which is only available to Platinum Club members. These cars are limited additions and are part of the membership package for the Platinum Club. The limited addition “The Williams by Bachmann” cars come in the affordable O-gauge. The annual membership cost $35 and other benefits include:

o Limited Edition Platinum Club Car
o 2009 Williams by Bachmann catalog
o Quarterly e-mail newsletter
o New product announcements by email

The Large Scale includes the world known “Thomas & Friends” model train collection. The faceplates for all the characters in “Thomas & Friends” are available as an individual purchase or as part of a package set. The “Thomas & Friends” train collection is a great way to get your kids or grand kids involved in model trains. Bachmann has “Thomas & Friends” as their featured product this month. A starter set will run you about $385.00.

The price of acquiring Bachmann model trains varies considerably. The least expensive of these train sets will cost you about $59.00 whereas the more detailed steam engine trains will set you back more than $900.00. The steam engine trains come in every scale except the O. You need to understand that this is just for a basic track, a locomotive and a few basic cars. The real cost of collecting and building a model railroad train collection is in the elaborate detail of your bench work.

Bachmann has been building model trains since before World War II and it is the pre-war lines that are of the highest quality of craftsmanship and therefore of the highest value in collector circles. The postwar lines, although still well built and with nice detailing, pale in comparison to the pre-war line in their value. However, for someone just starting out in collection of model trains the economical value of the post-war line will make a beginners collection much more affordable. Although the older trains have more collector value one is required to put in a considerable amount of time and effort in order to restore their appearance. This is why beginners are advised to stick with the more recent models. Leave the restoration to the more experienced model railroading enthusiasts.

The pre-war model toy trains by Bachmann are considered to be vintage items since they date back to before World War II. In fact World War II is considered to be the turning point when it comes to model train collecting. Experience model train collectors solely seek to acquire pre-war trains. The design material, attention to detail and just the pure age of the items are why experienced collectors seek out these vintage trains. A hardcore collector will tell you that there is no substitute for the look and feel of a vintage train. The sound and spirit of the real-world train is truly captured in the Bachmann pre-war trains.

Although the Bachmann post-war model trains are built with superior technology and are still very authentic in nature they do not hold the sentimental value and the collectible value of the vintage age. However, the new trains are extremely popular with children and new collectors. Either way, Bachmann has been an integral part of model train history and will continue to lead the way in the future. Happy collecting.