Class update and help with collar, please?

[jesuschick]

Okay. Found a GREAT training/behavior/agility place a town or so over from me.

Spoke to one of the owners. I asked questions, she asked even more and believes that Ruby's issues are confidence, not aggression as we suspected.

They have a class that starts this Saturday that I am trying to get her in. It is a basic class but one of the foundation classes for others. It is for dogs over 9 months but still beginner.

The lady really wants to talk after each of the first 2 classes and if we think it is less than what she needs, we will drop the class or she will move us to another. No chains, choke collars, etc. All praise and treat reward which we are comfortable with.

She said she has a good feeling about agility (non-competitive) for building her confidence. If so, would then be able to go to open practice sessions which would be so great for her responding poorly (not a biter, just a barker) to other dogs.

So, they have asked that we get a non-retractable leash and a buckle collar. Went to Petsmart and buckle collars are hard to find and they are all big. 10" is a small.

Got half the way home and remembered that someone mentioned cat collars. Is that what we should get?

Just measured her neck and it is 7". What size would you get for that neck size?

I sure wish that I could use the decorative park Avenue collar that I got her. It snaps closed, though so I will not even ask.

I just have to try to get something this week rather than online since it would not arrive in time for the Saturday class.

I appreciate your help!

[Sarah]

Karen for a collar you want to fit two fingers under it for a good fit.

Sounds fab about the training. Agility is amazing bit what I will say is get her knees checked out first to make sure they are solid enough. It can put strain on them (all the running and jumping etc) so I would make sure everything is good in the first place!

[tallulahcouture]

Hello..I may be able to help...If its a tiny collar you would like. I make leather collars to measure...I can make 7", 8" or what ever your little ones size is.
i have made to measure collars on my site from £10. Have a look and see if its what you might need
www.tallulahcouturedogcollars.co.uk
if you order today or tomorrow, i should be able to get it to you by friday.

just realised you might not be in UK... if abroad, may have trouble getting to you by friday xxxxx

[Kristi]

A cat collar is not appropriate for training because they have the quick release buckles - basically they come off if the dog or cat pulls past a certain amount of pressure, so your dog isn't really attached to you I know Petsmart carries the "Lil Pals" line of collars that come in super teeny tiny sizes. 7" is about average for a chihuahua neck, not small and not big, there are a ton of collar options out there If you want something really pretty you can get a leather one with rhinestones on it at topdogsupplies.com, like this one:

topdogsupplies.com/store/mcart.php?ID=869

The 10" will fit up to an 8" neck and down to a 5" neck. They are really nicely made and I love them:) The pink is more of a bright sunset pink than it is the bubblegum pink in the pictures...and the purple is too dark to be pretty IMO

There also are little rolled leather collars that are nice and will not damage coat...http://www.dogcollarsboutique.com/Round-Rolled-Dog-Collars-11-colors-p-74.html these are favorites around here as well and OMG I just saw they got purple and green...*slinks off...*

[jesuschick]

Thank you all very much!! I appreciate the kitten collar info.

I just spoke with the training center and they are fine with her Park Avenue collar. They just do not want chain or metal collars. It does not have to be an actual buckle. The nylon collars that close with the black clasp are apparently also fine. It is not like she will bolt for the door dragging me behind her! haha! I think I will get one of the 8"-10" nylon ones just in case. Now I have to just get a 6 foot, non-retractable leash and she is ready for class.

I am to bring soft treats cut into pea sized pieces (no biscuits). I think that I will just cut ZP into 4 squares. That is what I use as trick reward at home. I am afraid carnivore crunch would disintegrate into powder!

I wish I had someone other than the Vet to check her knees. Like one of you who would know better than him. I may just move her to the next class in this series just to be safe rather than beginner's non-competitive agility. She is my best bred dog and her breeder (show) does all health checks on her dogs but I know that is no guarantee.

I so hope that she is as excited about the class as I!

[Kristi]

Karen why are you worried about her knees? Did I miss something?

[jesuschick]

Oh, Sarah just mentioned that before I got her into agility to be certain to get her knees checked just to be safe since agility could be hard on them.

[Kristi]

Oh gotcha. Has your vet ever checked them before?