Working Dog Puppy Training – Ages 8 weeks to 20 weeks

This is a skills intensive course geared towards working dogs and requires a commitment to practice with your dog consistently on a daily basis. Your future therapy or service dog is at a stage of development where they can learn new skills quickly.  We teach you how to make it fun for you and your dog to be partners.  Socialization is also very important at this stage of growth.  We will teach you how to handle fearful or overly stimulating new environments and how to exercise your puppy safely.  

Instructors:  This course is taught by our senior-level, highly experienced service dog trainers.  

Skills Taught:  This course is designed to guide you through this critical stage of dog development.  In addition to teaching you how to teach your dog basic commands, we will also guide you on socializing, bonding, and handling during these formative months.  

For puppies who have already mastered some of these skills, we will guide you in teaching the next level of the skills by adding distance, duration, and distractions.  Skills and topics covered in this course:  

• Clicker or marker word
• Attention - name and watch me
• No jumping for attention
• Sit
• Down
• Leave it, drop it
• Recall - including collar grabs and leaning over the puppy
• Leash walking - includes a discussion on harnesses and leashes
• Stay
• Wait
• How to curb nipping and mouthing
• Greeting people
• Self-control and learning to settle
• Drop it
• Toys and enrichment activities
• Using treats as a reward - soft mouth and healthy treats
• Ways to safely exercise your puppy who is still growing
• Stages of puppy development
• The how, when, where, and why of puppy socialization
• Body language
• Service dog commands
• Special considerations when training service dogs
• Early retrieving skills
• Tug, drop it
• Stand
• Touch
• Tricks - spin, rollover, and shake
• Settling on a mat
• Self-control

Working Dog Classes include:

• Smaller class sizes for more individualized instruction
• Longer class sessions to allow additional training and handler education
• Specialized curriculum designed around the expectations of Service and Therapy Dog work
• More individual coaching for each dog-and-handler team
• Additional instruction on public behavior, distractions, handler awareness, and public-access skills

Age of Puppy: 16 weeks - 6 months

Working Dog Classes are designed primarily for dogs preparing for Service Dog or Therapy Dog work. Pet dogs are welcome to participate, but the curriculum is more intensive and places greater emphasis on the skills handlers need when working with a dog in public environments. You will need to practice outside of class.

Please Contact Us if you have any questions.

Successfully attending and completing this course or the entire series of service dog courses does not qualify you as a service/assistance dog trainer qualified to train dogs for others.  The purpose of our program is to guide you as you train your own dog to be your service dog.  The Dog Alliance is a fully accredited member of Assistance Dogs International.