It’s not so much the kind of obedience training you do with your dog, but actually doing any training. Most of the dogs in your neighborhood or the dogs owned by your family and friends are probably not trained well, if at all. Isn’t that alone a reason to train your dog better?
There are four basic options for training your dog: enrolling in a class, sending the dog away to be trained, training on your own or working individually with a trainer.
The first option is to take a class with your dog. A vet might recommend a professional trainer near you. I take my mutt to an obedience class with about ten other people and dogs. I think it is a lot of fun and so does he. These classes run many times a year and last for about seven weeks. In this setting, a trainer works with the group on things like sit, stay and walking on a lose leash. The setting is a good way for dogs to get used to listening to their humans when there are a lot of distractions. Most instructors offer four or five levels of obedience, starting with puppy preschool through preparation for the show ring.
For a second option, you can take your dog to a training facility either...