Our Classes

This course focuses on dogs learning basic obedience techniques, such as sit, down, stay, going for a walk without pulling, and coming to you reliably when called. Plus, you will receive effective methods for establishing proper household manners. Techniques will be provided to help stop your dog from jumping up on people, rushing through doors, excessive barking, and launching at other people and dogs. If you need additional help with a specific problem, we will work with you to resolve the issue. The maximum class size is 6 dogs.

All fees are non-refundable. Consideration may be given to rescheduling the customer to another class, but it is at the discretion of Black Dog Training. If a class has to be canceled due to inclement weather or hazardous road conditions, a makeup class will be scheduled.

Dogs should be 5 months or older and be comfortable being in a crate.

All dogs are required to be up-to-date with their vaccinations. A certificate from your veterinarian is required and will be checked on the first day of class.

Dogs in season will be permitted to attend classes, but the dog must wear a diaper.

If your dog is coughing, sneezing, vomiting, or having diarrhea, please abstain from coming to class. You are encouraged to attend class without your dog to observe the training that day.

Aggressive dogs are not permitted in group classes. Instead, dog owners are encouraged to enroll in a private training series to resolve the behavioral issue prior to signing up for any group class.

*** Note: Group classes are not suitable for all dogs. If your dog is really shy or suffers from severe anxiety, private training might be a better choice. ***

Emphasis will be on perfecting your dog's basic obedience skills by increasing distance, distractions, and duration of the exercises, plus an introduction of more complex exercises. Focus will be on group heeling, stays, expansion of the place, leave-it, and watch exercises, plus recalls with finishes. If time permits, a few introductory level tricks may be presented. The maximum class size is 6 dogs.

All fees are non-refundable. Consideration may be given to rescheduling the customer to another class, but it is at the discretion of Black Dog Training. If a class has to be canceled due to inclement weather or hazardous road conditions, a makeup class will be scheduled.

Dogs & owners must have completed the Beginner Obedience course at Black Dog Training. Note: a dog & owner may still enroll in the course if they have taken a basic obedience course elsewhere, but they will need to contact the owner to schedule an evaluation, at no charge, prior to enrolling into the class.

Dogs need to be older than 6 months and comfortable in a crate.

All dogs are required to be up-to-date with their vaccinations. A certificate from your veterinarian is required and will be checked on the first day of class.

Dogs in season will be permitted to attend classes, but the dog must wear a diaper.

If your dog is coughing, sneezing, vomiting, or having diarrhea, please abstain from coming to class. You are encouraged to attend class without your dog to observe the training that day.

Aggressive dogs are not permitted in group classes. Instead, dog owners are encouraged to enroll in a private training series to resolve the behavioral issue prior to signing up for any group class.

*** Note: Group classes are not suitable for all dogs. If your dog is really shy or suffers from severe anxiety, private training might be a better choice. ***

In this class, dogs are expected to be at a higher level of obedience. Review and proofing of group heeling, stays, rocket recalls with finishes, plus preparation for the AKC Canine Good Citizen (CGC) test. Novice Rally exercises will be presented and teams will have a chance to try their new found skills out by running their dogs through a simple Novice Rally course. During the last class, teams will have an opportunity to take the Canine Good Citizen test. The maximum class size is 6 dogs.

All fees are non-refundable. Consideration may be given to rescheduling the customer to another class, but it is at the discretion of Black Dog Training. If a class has to be canceled due to inclement weather or hazardous road conditions, a makeup class will be scheduled.

Dogs & owners must have completed the Beginner Obedience course at Black Dog Training. Note: a dog & owner may still enroll in the course if they have taken a basic obedience course elsewhere, but they will need to contact the owner to schedule an evaluation, at no charge, prior to enrolling into the class.

Dogs need to be older than 6 months and comfortable in a crate.

All dogs are required to be up-to-date with their vaccinations. A certificate from your veterinarian is required and will be checked on the first day of class.

Dogs in season will be permitted to attend classes, but the dog must wear a diaper.

If your dog is coughing, sneezing, vomiting, or having diarrhea, please abstain from coming to class. You are encouraged to attend class without your dog to observe the training that day.

Aggressive dogs are not permitted in group classes. Instead, dog owners are encouraged to enroll in a private training series to resolve the behavioral issue prior to signing up for any group class.

*** Note: Group classes are not suitable for all dogs. If your dog is really shy or suffers from severe anxiety, consider doing other one-on-one activities with your dog. ***

Rally Obedience differs from competition obedience in that it is more relaxed, and the scoring is less stringent. The handler and dog are allowed to interact more with each other and are encouraged to correct mistakes along the way, especially when competing at the Novice or Intermediate level.

In this class, students will learn various levels (Novice, Intermediate, Advanced, Masters) of Rally Obedience stations/techniques every other week. Dogs will typically remain on-leash. In the alternating weeks, teams will have an opportunity to perform two different rally courses to test out their new skills. Students will receive maps, walk the courses and then perform each course with their dogs.

During the final class, the students are given an opportunity to compete in a final Rally competition, where time and accuracy are important.

All fees are non-refundable. Consideration may be given to rescheduling the customer to another class, but it is at the discretion of Black Dog Training. If a class has to be canceled due to inclement weather or hazardous road conditions, a makeup class will be scheduled.

Teams are required to have basic obedience skills to participate. Students should have taken a beginner obedience class somewhere (Black Dog Training or elsewhere) prior to signing up.

Dogs need to be up-to-date with vaccinations.

Dogs in season will be permitted to attend classes, but the dog must wear a diaper.

If your dog is coughing, sneezing, vomiting, or having diarrhea, please abstain from coming to class. You are encouraged to attend class without your dog to observe the training that day.

Note: Dogs may be in crates at times, so it is important that they are comfortable being in a crate.

*** Note: Group classes are not suitable for all dogs. If your dog is really shy or suffers from severe anxiety, a rally group class is not an ideal choice. ***

What can a Canine Good Citizen (CGC) title do for you? Besides bonding with your dog, acquiring a CGC title also has practical benefits:

Dog owners will be confident that their canines can handle being in crowds. Some homeowner insurance programs offer discounts for CGC dogs, and many apartment/condo associations consider it a bonus if a resident has a CGC dog. Additionally, CGC dogs are a welcome sight at the groomer or veterinarian, and if your goal is to have a therapy dog, the title is a prerequisite for most therapy dog programs.

The CGC program is a 10-step test that certifies dogs who have good manners at home and in their communities. The test items are taught and practiced during the Intermediate Obedience class at Black Dog Training, and the CGC exam is offered to students during the last class.

However, dog owners are not required to take the Intermediate Obedience class at Black Dog Training to be eligible to take the CGC exam. You can teach and practice the test items with your dog and later take the test at a scheduled event at Black Dog Training.

Dogs must be dog and people-friendly.

Must have 5-6 teams interested and signed up to hold the CGC testing event.

Age Requirements
Dogs must be old enough to have completed all vaccinations.

Note: If a dog owner plans to use the dog as a therapy dog, some test-giving agencies, at the direction of therapy dog groups, might require that dogs be at least 1 year of age to be evaluated.

Additionally, if a dog is a puppy when tested and passes, it is important for the owners to have the dog re-tested as an adult, typically age 2 or older.

AKC Requirements
Dogs must have an AKC number, PAL number, or AKC Canine Partners number to apply for the title.

If you don’t have a number, there is an option to receive the certificate only, but this does not go on-record as a title for the dog.

Owners are responsible for submitting paperwork and an additional payment to AKC for the title or certificate.