Manners & Behavior Classes

Basic Manners:

Teach your dog the skills he needs to be a well-mannered family member, indoors and out. This six-week class will teach multiple levels of Sit, Down, Leash Walking, Come, Stay, Leave It, Drop It, and more. Basic Manners will give you the tools to build effective communication with your dog, regardless of his age or breed.

Basic Manners Bootcamp:

This course jam packs the most important elements of our manners classes into two comprehensive two-hour classes. You will learn to teach your dog impulse control around distractions like food and guests, how to walk politely on leash, and how to come when called. There will be a potty break between the first and second hour.

Do you think your dog has the potential to be an AKC Canine Good Citizen? The CGC program was created to reward dogs that have good manners in the home & in the community. This class prepares dogs to pass each of the 10 test items and culminates with the opportunity to pass the test and earn the CGC title.

CGCA Community Canine Workshop:

AKC Community Canine (CGCA) is the advanced level of AKC’s Canine Good Citizen (CGC) program. CGCA has a 10-step test of skills that dogs must pass to earn the official AKC Community Canine title. This four-week class consists of three sessions to prepare for the test, with the test on the final session. CGCA is for dogs that have earned their CGC title and have an AKC registration number, PAL number, or AKC Canine Partners number. (All dogs, including mixed breeds, can get an AKC number.) Visit akc.org/dog-owners/training/akc-community-canine/ for more information.

Curb Your Dog’s Enthusiasm:

This workshop is appropriate for dogs of all training levels. If your dog needs to learn some self-control especially around food, doors, dogs and/or greeting people then this is the class for you!

Play Your Way to Good Manners: Using Sports, Games, and Tricks to Teach Manners

Dogs learn best when they enjoy the task at hand. Play Your Way to Good Manners approaches your dog’s manners training as a collection of cool tricks, exciting sports moves, and interactive games. This four-week class is based on the Play Your Way to Good Manners book by our certified trainers Kate Naito and Sarah Westcott. In class, we’ll apply techniques from canine sports, games, and trick training to a positive-reinforcement manners program that you and your dog can easily follow. The class covers:

• impulse control indoors, outdoors, and around distractions
• coming to you, even in the park
• polite leash walking
• tricks and games to encourage good manners

All participants will receive a copy of the book.

Recall and Leash Walking Workshop:

Does your dog blow you off on leash? Have selective hearing when you call him? This two-week workshop will teach you how to get your dog’s attention indoors, on walks, and at the dog park. By teaching your dog to listen to you, you will find his behavior automatically improves.

Solutions for Sidewalk Snackers:

This one-hour workshop is for dogs who consider the sidewalk to be a buffet of delicious garbage and debris. You will teach your dog how to resist the temptation of sidewalk “snacks,” as well as practice what to do if your dog already has an item like a chicken bone in his mouth. Prerequisites: None.

Urban Leash Walking:

This two-week workshop will teach you how to get — and keep — your dog’s attention while walking on leash. We will cover loose leash walking and heeling techniques, and address ways to prevent your dog from getting distracted by garbage, other dogs, skateboards, etc.