Our training programs are offered at your home or Responsible Dogs training location. Home visits are often helpful for working on specific training needs and during early stages of training. When deciding on your dog trainer it is important you evaluate the professionals background, education, training methodology, where they received their education in dog training, do they have a working resume, do they have proof of continuing educational units (CEU's). If you are looking for a behaviorist or behavioral specialist, you will want to ensure the individual has the appropriate behavioral background specializing in canine and/or feline behavior.
Please take the time to look over my resume, education, and credentials. Read some of my articles, essays, visit my blogs for more information and/or currently published articles. Try the behavior quiz. . You might be surprised how well mannered your dog already is or you may discover a few things that might improve your dog's behavior, improving your relationship, and bond while furthering your dog's welfare and your commitment.
Puppy Classes
PUPPY Training Essentials One - For 10-18 week old puppiesOur Puppy Training Essentials puppy courses are taught off lead to maximize dog-dog play (learning bite inhibition) and socialization. Off lead training teaches 1) owners how to be calm (cool, calm and collected) and control their puppies when excited and distracted and 2) the opportunity to play is used as the ultimate reward for each short training session.
Early puppy training is essential to ensure puppies develop bite inhibition, people-friendly, dog-friendly and communication skills with both humans and dogs. Learning bite inhibition and socialization are easy puppyhood, but extremely developmentally time-sensitive. If your puppy does not acquire reliable bite inhibition during this critical time, he will become potentially dangerous as an adult. If your puppy is not socialized, remedial socialization later can take months (even years); your dog will never be the relaxed confident dog that s/he could have been.
Most of the training essentials are teaching basic manners in distracting environments. We use lure/reward training that is simple, even children can easily learn how to train the puppy. It's effective for training young puppies beginning during your first training session. During the course of training, you learn how to phase out food rewards by replacing good puppy behavior with play and life rewards. Puppy Training Essentials lays the groundwork for reliable verbal, hand signal and off lead control that you and your puppy master in Puppy Training Essentials Two.
We continue to promote the use of food and play rewards forming positive associations (classical conditioning) teaching dogs to thoroughly enjoy being with you, others and dogs. We suggest every visitor to your house reward your puppy with a treat, and encourage anyone asking to pet your puppy on walks to reward your puppy with a treat (encourages your dog to feel comfortable and confident around people).
As part of your enrollment you will be provided with training support to ensure that you learn how to prevent the development of (or resolve) predictable, common, normal puppy and adolescent behavior and temperament problems. We help you resolve preventable behavior problems, such as house-soiling, destructive chewing, excessive barking and separation anxiety and aggression all common illnesses for adolescent dogs - often causing confinement to kennels and/or the yard, basement and finally a cage in an animal shelter.
Puppyhood is the time to rescue through prevention and unwanted adult shelter dogs. Take advantage of all our free educational puppy training handouts and resources to ensure your puppy has the opportunity to live in your home for the rest of their life.
To facilitate learning, owners are provided handouts and training booklets. Requirements: Puppies must be between 10 and 18 weeks of age at the start date of class with 2 DHLPP vaccinations, one of which must have been administered after 8 weeks of age but at least 7 days prior to the first session.
Registration Fee for Six Weeks: $159.00
Pay Fee:Contact to register for available times
Now it's time to really have fun with your dog! Puppy Training Essentials Part 2 is an extremely rewarding course to take and greatly improves your dog's quality of life and will improve your quality of life with your dog. Puppy Training Essentials Part 2 builds on what you learned in Part 1, but designed to guide you through your puppies transition from puppyhood and adolescence into adulthood continuing to focus on bite inhibition, social skills, jumping and reliable off lead control.
It's essential your dog remains social with both humans and other dogs. Socially intelligent dogs are relaxed, less reactive, confident, and responsive to their owners.
Early puppy training should be easy and fun. Ensuring your puppy maintains bite inhibition, remains socially confident and friendly to other dogs and people, and continues to follow your instructions eases their transition through the difficulties of adolescence.
When bite inhibition, socialization, and basic manners go untrained during this developmental period, on and off lead walks and dog park visits often end jeopardizing your dog's welfare. Unfriendly, chasing, nipping, and biting dogs are unwelcome and owners become frustrated when dogs fail to respond to them appropriately. Untrained dogs are seldom walked, often confined to the house and/or yard, often the next step is the local shelter. Off lead control improves the quality of life for dogs and their owners.
Puppy Essentials Part 2 continues previous lessons but we will work on proofing verbal cues and hand signals, fading lures and treat rewards. Your dog's good behavior is replaced using life rewards and eventually your young adolescent wants to do what you want him to do. Make the Right Choices!
Exercises include emergency sits during play (for home, yard, dog parks and off-lead walks), calm attentive behavior, reliable stays, and both off and on lead walking and heeling. Puppy Essentials Part 2 will help you teach your adolescent puppy calm, attentive, and responsive behavior, willingly and happily, even when distracted, off lead and at a distance.
Requirements: completion of Puppy Essentials Part 1; under 18 months of age; proof of rabies vaccine.
Registration Fee for Six Weeks: $159.00
Pay Fee:Contact to register for available times
Our Puppy Essential Courses are taught privately. We feel owners do better and more successful when they begin training young puppies using private instruction first, this prevents the distractions often found in a class environment, reactive dogs, and generally a chaotic environment. We may charge more, but you are guaranteed your trainer has the highest academic qualifications as a professional dog trainer and dog behavior specialist.
All puppies currently enrolled in Complete Puppy Essentials One and/or Two are eligible and encouraged to attend free play sessions every Saturday morning to help further their dogs social skills. Through offering this free puppy and adolescent play you can be assured your dog gets ample socialization not only with young puppies and adolescents but also savvy adult dogs with good bite inhibition and social communication skills that help teach young puppies how to communicate effectively with all types of dogs, both small, medium and large! This is essential for dogs as part of their ongoing socialization process, otherwise many small dogs grow up fearful of large dogs, and large dogs don't learn how to behave around small dogs, dogs don't learn recognition of differences in appearance and communication quality. Additionally, you and your dog have the assurance of supervised play sessions conducted by an educated dog professional. Dog parks are often risky ventures for not only contraction of disease and parasites but also the risk of unknowledgeable owners and dogs with little or no training and socialization.
Optional - enroll in Complete Puppy Essentials for 12 full weeks of complete puppy training, registration fee $300.00. We offer a mid-term break between classes.
Training Wellness Program - training exclusively for shelter and rescue dogs (or missed early puppy/adolescent training)!
The Dog Training Wellness Program is private training for dogs adopted, rescued, and/or missed early puppy and adolescent training and not suited for group class instruction. If your dog is reactive toward dogs and people, has social and communication deficits, is generally unmanageable, excessive barking, lacks impulse control, subjecting your dog to group classes is both inappropriate for others attending and will make training and changing any behavior problems ineffective and more difficult. The idea is to set your dog up to succeed, don't risk their quality of life, welfare and your relationship and bond.
We begin with foundation behavior and training skills, general manners, as well as educating you how to problem solve and prevent unwanted behavior that may already be learned. We teach you how and when your dog is doing something right so you can reward them appropriately. Set yourself and dog up to succeed by hiring a professional trainer with a behavioral background, this is what you need, be careful whom you choose. Not all dog trainers and/or behavior specialists are qualified, it's an unregulated industry, ask to see their resume, certificates of continuing education (CEU's), where they received their education, what type of training methods they suggest and how do they address punishment.
A sample of what our Wellness Training program can offer- You will have the opportunity to learn dog friendly training methods including, luring, shaping, capturing and targeting
- You will learn the ABC's of training and how to apply reward and non-reward markers
- How to use games that are helpful in training
- Lessons include foundation behaviors and skills i.e. orienting and attending responses, sit-stay, down-stay, controlled walking and reliable recalls
- Manners at the door
- How to greet strangers and other dogs
- How to control incentives and reinforcement
- Understanding how to effectively communicate with your dog
- How to understand what your dog is communicating
- Understanding prediction control expectancies and how this is helpful in understanding how your dog thinks and views their world
- Tools that are helpful in managing your dog during training
- Management strategies that are useful in controlling the training environment
- How to be pro-active and prevent unwanted behavior
This is an 8-week program, we expect you to schedule your private sessions weekly to ensure you and your dog make the necessary advancements, appropriate handouts, training demonstrations and/or equipment recommendations will be provided. This course can be used in conjunction with boarding and/or as a board and train program, cost for that service is estimated when arranging your board and training course, and is based on your dog's present behavior. A behavior consult may be required to evaluate your dog's behavior.
Training Wellness Program Cost $750.00
Discount 10% with Valid Proof of Rescue and/or Shelter Dog Adoption
Contact to register for available times
Rehabilitating the Discourteous Dog ~ Private training
Rehabilitating the Discourteous Dog program is for dogs lacking socialization skills that enable them to interact confidently with other dogs. If you are interested and want to improve your dog's social skills that will provide both you and your dog a better relationship, enriched life, improving their welfare and you're up to meeting this challenging opportunity this dog training course is meant for you.
This is a private six-week course, cost $500.00. An initial behavior consult is mandatory to participate in this training program, see Behavior Consultations for more information.Pay Fee:
Contact to register for available times
Behavior Consultations
| Initial consult 2.5 hours, review behavior history, assess problem | Contact for pricing |
| Initial consult 2.5 hours, review behavior history, assess problem, includes two follow-up sessions | Contact for pricing |
| Initial consult 2.5 hours, review behavior history, assess problem, includes one follow-up | Contact for pricing |
| Additional follow-ups per hour | Contact for pricing |
| Telephone Consult - reserve appointment 1 hour non-refundable | $ 75.00 |
| Deposit to reserve a behavior consultation appointment, non-refundable, rescheduling permitted | $100.00 |
Included you receive eight weeks of telephone and email support, you are provided with a written assessment outlining the problem complaint, assessment, recommendations and/or behavior modification plan.
Any video you may have can be submitted for review prior to the consultation, however to purposely provoke your dog to video an aggressive response is not recommended.
What you can expect:
First consult: At your first consult, we review your dog's behavior history, the problem is assessed, and you are advised what steps would be necessary to change undesirable behavior; we agree and move on to the modification process. Any initial training demonstrations, if necessary can be done at that time. This is dependent on the complexity of the problem. The number of sessions are based on the severity of the problem and your need for assistance.
Your next step: Before you can modify your pet's behavior, you will first need to modify your own, so you do not continue reinforcing undesirable behavior. Depending on the complexity of the problem, your ability, consistency, and follow through will make the difference between success and failure. You don't want to fail. You need to keep in mind your goal is improving your relationship with your pet; this in turn increases the bond ensuring quality of life and welfare of your dog.
It's up to you: How well you do will depend on how much you rely on my help. Behavior modification plans are never set in stone, we adjust, if necessary as we go so open communication between you and I increase your chance of success.
Payment for in-office behavior consultation deposit should be made with Paypal. Upon receipt of payment, you will be redirected to complete the behavior history questionnaire. Please fill out the questionnaire and submit within 48 hours prior to your scheduled appointment.
Sarasota FL Boarding
Dogs who board at Responsible Dog enjoy unique care including supervised dog day care (socialization & playtime) and minimum four outside potty opportunities on a natural surface. We also provide a clean environment with a large securely fenced area.
A minimum 4-hour daycare evaluation ($30.00) prior to boarding with us is mandatory for all new client pets. Only well behaved and social dogs with good handling skills are allowed to board at Responsible Dog. I make exceptions, depending on a dog's behavior problem, if any, and our ability to keep everyone safe and stress free. Exceptions are made for dogs that have completed our training and/or a behavior consultation and it has been determined your dog is ready for this type of care.
You are assured your dog is cared for and supervised by the very best trained individual. Being certified in dog behavior and a professional dog trainer guarantees your dog is getting the best supervision available in Sarasota County. Responsible Dog promotes good dog behavior and manners, we try to ensure; your dog does not learn bad habits while in our care. We also notify you of anything that might improve your dog's behavior, welfare, and quality of life. We have written materials helpful for many common behavior problems.
Read more details about our Sarasota FL dog boardingEvaluation Fee: Schedule your evaluation
Non-refundable deposit for reservation, maybe rescheduled if your plans change $ 50.00
Reservation Fee:
Dog Daycare
Responsible Dog offers this service for dog owners whose pet may need or benefit from continued socialization opportunities. We understand what it is like raising a new puppy so we provide help during those critical weeks and/or months when you are trying to establish good housetraining by meeting critical demands in establishing location and substrate preferences. Your new puppy, rescue and/or shelter dog may also need close supervision to help during a training process to avoid destructive chewing, separation and attachment problems, excessive barking, and destructive behavior. This may be arranged and/or suggested as part of working on a specific behavior problem/s as part of a behavior modification program.
We are happy to discount your daycare cost for 10-day incremental visits paid in advance. Dog Daycare days can be scheduled according to your needs and schedule. Daycare hours are from 7:00 A.M. until 6:00 P.M. If you need to pick up your pet later or drop off earlier, an additional fee may be applied.
Read more details about our Sarasota Florida dog daycareDog Daycare per day $ 25.00
10 day increments paid in advance $200.00
Dog Daycare Fee:Training and behavior assessments are not guaranteed. It is ethically ineffective and inappropriate to guarantee or profess an ability to predict future behavior of any living animal. Behavior is not static but is always under the influence of one's environment and environmental conditions are always subject to change. It is for this condition that we cannot guarantee any training or behavior outcomes. We carry general liability insurance to protect the public and us.