Why is training so important?
Our dog trainers understand how difficult it can be to manage a misbehaving dog. Whether you have a well behaved dog that needs to learn a few more manners or a tough dog that likes to get into trouble your dog can always benefit from dog training.
A closer bond with your dog
Statistics show that owners with well behaved pets have a stronger bond with them. In our classes we don't just tell you how to train a dog, we teach how a dog's brain works and how you can motivate your dog by using science based dog training techniques through positive reinforcement and relationship building skills. Our techniques will lead to a life with a furry companion that is obedient, happy and more relaxed at the end of the day.
Easy management
Our classes teach all of the basic commands (e.g. sit, drop, stay) and enable you to manage your dog more easily. Better management means they can become a part of the family and be by your side at events and outings instead of having to be left at home due to behavior issues. Behavior skills such as polite greetings, good recall, and loose leash walking skills are also all covered in our classes.
Social, friendly dogs
Socialization is a very important aspect of a dog’s life. Learning appropriate play 
around other dogs is an essential part of ensuring that your dog can coexist with others. If your dog is an "only pet" this is a great opportunity for them to learn these skills in a supervised environment. Your dog will encounter other dogs on everyday occasions such as walks, appointments at the veterinary clinic and if they go into a kennel or boarding.
Fun and knowledge
Obedience classes are fun for both you and your dog! Whether you have had your dog for years or you are new to being a "puppy parent" there is always room for new skills and training opportunities. "Puppy school" is a great opportunity to meet other dog owners who understand what you are going through and may have excellent tips and suggestions.
Safety
A well-trained dog is at a lower risk of injury to themselves or others than an uncontrollable dog. At the end of the day dogs are still animals and they can sometimes be unpredictable. An obedient dog is safer at home, in public, with people, and with other dogs.
(Source: VetWest Animal Hospitals)
Dog Training Classes offered at Dakotah's
Obedience and Socialization level one
This is an entry level course in the fundamentals of canine learning theory and psychology tailored just for puppies! The course sets the dog up on a track to receive S.T.A.R. Puppy recognition, a title recognized by the American Kennel Club (AKC). S.T.A.R. Puppy training is a prerequisite for receiving a Canine Good Citizen Title, and sets you up with all the fundamentals for a well behaved dog. All dogs can take the class. Only puppies under one year are eligible for the S.T.A.R. Puppy test, but adult dogs can still participate - which will built all the training skills necessary for CGC testing - and receive the certificate. This class is five sessions long.
Obedience and Socialization Level Two
This class is a continuation of S.T.A.R. Puppy level one. In level one we learn all the basic cues and foundational skills for a well behaved dog. In level two, we learn how to apply those skills to everyday life. In this class your puppy will learn how to walk nicely on a leash, how to keep four paws on the floor at all times, and how to accept a friendly stranger, stay until called, and politely greet another dog. This class ends with the STAR Puppy exam. All dogs can take the class. Only puppies under one year are eligible for the S.T.A.R. Puppy test, but adult dogs can still participate - which will built all the training skills necessary for CGC testing - and receive the certificate. This class is five sessions long.
PREREQUISITE: Obedience and Socialization Level One
Obedience and Socialization Level Three
This class takes the skills and the manners we have learned and begins to add distance and duration. We learn how to hold a down stay while you leave the room, how to follow basic obedience cues from a distance and with distractions, and how we learn how to retrieve objects. We continue learning how to walk nicely on a leash and how to recall from several feet away. We learn to begin to follow the basic obedience cues off leash around other dogs. All dogs can take the class. Only puppies under one year are eligible for the S.T.A.R. Puppy test, but adult dogs can still participate - which will built all the training skills necessary for CGC testing - and receive the certificate. This class is five sessions long.
PREREQUISITE: Obedience and Socialization Level Two
Canine Good Citizen Certification
The CGC Test costs can be taken on request and will be offered at the end of level three obedience. It does not cost anything to take the test. The test can be repeated every 30 days. Once you pass the exam, there is a $25 registration fee with the AKC.
TRICKS FOR TREATS
Tricks for Treats (Novice)
In this class we learn a series of fun tricks that work toward becoming a novice AKC Trick dog. In this class your dog will master fun tricks such as crawl, get in a box, high five, jump through a hoop, shake and more.
Tricks for Treats (Intermediate)
In this class we learn a series of fun tricks to earn an AKC intermediate trick dog title. In this class, dogs are taught to waive hello and goodbye, weave through poles, jump through your arms, sit pretty, rollover and much more.
Tricks for Treats (Advanced)
In this advanced class we learn ten advanced tricks to earn the AKC Advanced Trick dog title. Here, your dog will learn how to back up, pick a pocket, retreat, say a prayer, bring you a tissue, sneeze on cue, play dead (bang!), cover their eyes, and more.
PREREQUISITE: Tricks for Treats (Intermediate)
Tricks for Treats (Performer)
This class is for the show offs! In this class we perfect 10 tricks learned in the previous classes and add an additional three tricks to receive the performance AKC Title. This class lasts for 4 weeks.
PREREQUISITE: Tricks for Treats (Advanced)
Tricks for Treats (Elite Performer) - 3 weeks of training. Testing happens the last week.
To recieve an AKC Elite Performer Trick Dog title, A TOTAL OF 10 TRICKS from the Advanced or Performer levels ARE REQUIRED.
• The dog/handler must perform 10 Tricks that include at least 5 tricks from Performer.
• At least 5 tricks must have props.
• No agility or obedience equipment may be used. May include handler-designed props including jumps, etc. No lures in Elite Performer.
AGILITY
Agility Level 1
This course is an entry level agility event designed to introduce and welcome beginning dogs and their handlers to the AKC sport of agility. Six sessions.
Agility Level 2
This course continues building on the agility skills learned in Level 1. The courses follow AKC Agility criteria. Six sessions.
ELECTIVES
Canine Neurobics (Brain Games)
Canine problem behavior can stem from issues related to anxiety, impulse control, and boredom. Applied animal behaviorists often prescribe mental stimulation exercises for dogs to treat some of these problems.
Canine Neurobics are mental exercises designed to create new neural pathways in the brain by using the senses in unconventional ways. Aerobic exercises emphasized different muscle groups, while neurobics increased “range of motion” in the brain. In humans, routine actions are hard-wired in the brain, but changing these patterns can increase cognitive function.
This class lasts for 6 weeks. Each week opens with a series of games to stimulate learning in different parts of the brain - tactile, visual, olafactory, auditory, gustatory, and cognitive - and closes with a series of exercises to help your dog learn to focus on you and learn to relax.
Loose Leash Walking
This 5 week course will teach you and your dog to enjoy walking together without pulling, jumping or dragging you down the street. In this class we learn to walk politely past distractions, such as another dog, a cat, and even a pile of treats on the ground. This class lasts five sessions.
Introduction to Nosework
Competition scent detection is different than other canine sports. Dogs already knows how to sniff and to some degree, search. Dogs are born as Harvard graduates in sniffing. However by using what we know about air flow and scent we can help mold them into Rocket Scientists in sniffing. The focus for this class will be to build value/history on odor detection, introduce and build a dogs drive for hunting, and emphasize the importance of staying at the source of the scent. Many fun games are used to progress the dog and human team at their own pace. The dog learns to hunt down and scent and track it from across the room. This class lasts for six sessions.
Reactive Dog Rehab
This training is specially designed for dogs that are reactive or aggressive toward other dogs. These are the dogs don't do well in daycare or social settings. Dogs can become reactive for a variety of reasons, from poor socialization or trauma to genetic and mental health issues. This class teaches owners how to interpret their dog's body language and intervene before a confrontations with another dog arises. We learn focus exercises and work on systematic desensitization using decoy dogs to overcome overstimulated reactions so your dog can learn to coexist with others instead of spending life in isolation. Reactive dog training is held one-on-one in the owner's home.
Reactive dog classes are now available for up to 4 dogs at a time depending on availability.
PRIVATE SESSIONS:
Private Training
Private Training appointments can be scheduled at your home at a time that is convenient for you. Private Training is a great option if you just want to work on a specific issue, or if you have a reactive dog who can not work around other dogs. Available on request.
Reactive Rehab
For dogs that are reactive and/or aggressive we offer private sessions in your home to help you find solutions from management to desensitization and counter conditioning exercises. Reactivity is always a puzzle and can happen for a slew of reasons. Our goal is to help you put the pieces together and figure out where the reactivity started and how to fix it.**
Separation Anxiety
This is a one-on-one private treatment program that takes place in the your home. Separation anxiety is not a behavior. It is an anxiety disorder. Dogs suffering from separation anxiety might urinate, defecate, bark, howl, chew, dig or try to escape. Some may even injure themselves tearing through walls or furniture. Crate training can make it worse by trigger stacking confinement anxiety on top of SA. The university of the world wide web may offer all kinds of pseudo scientific "solutions" that will lead you in circles and may even make the situation worse. The only proven, science based way to resolve separation anxiety is through systematic desensitization and counter conditioning. We will set up a webcam in your home so you can monitor what happens when you are gone and work at a pace the is tolerable to the dog. This ongoing treatment program helps your dog learn over time that you will always come back and helps build a safer and healthier relationship between you and your fur kid. Based on the work of science based applied animal behavior experts such as Patricia McConnell Ph.D. (Author of I'll be home soon) and Malena DeMartini-Price (author of Treating Separation Anxiety for Dogs) our fool proof training program has helped hundreds of dogs learn to be alone and so their owners can feel calmer and more confident about leaving them for long periods of time.
**With dogs that are extremely reactive/aggressive, there is no guaranteed prognosis as the reasons can vary so much from trauma to genetic issues to mental illness. Much like people, we have solutions that work most of the time but unfortunately there are situations in which there are no solutions and the best thing we can do is refer you to the Veterinary Behavior Specialists of Minnesota.
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