If your dog drags you down the street, tunes you out the second something more interesting shows up, or jumps all over every guest who comes through the door, you’re in good company. Our Basic Obedience Course is a great place to start. It’s built for owners who want a dog they can take places and enjoy.
The course runs for eight weeks. You come out one evening a week for about an hour, so it fits around work and school.
Over those weeks, you and your dog work on the commands that make daily life easier: sit, down, heeling and recall. In real life, that looks like walks where your dog stays beside you, a dog who sits and waits when you ask, and a dog who comes back when you call.
A dog who sits perfectly in the kitchen can fall apart the moment another dog walks by. That’s why every class includes problem solving with real distractions. You practice with other dogs and people around, and Joel is right there to help you through it. That way your dog listens at the park and on walks, too, and not only at home.
Each class is limited to 5 dogs. With a group that small, Joel can see what you and your dog are doing and help you when you get stuck. You won’t be lost in a crowd.
Joel Monroe is a former school teacher, an active dog sport judge and a competitor with more than 30 years of working with dogs. He’s been training dogs for Central Valley families since 2019. His teaching background shows in how he explains things, and that matters, because you’re the one who lives with your dog every day.
To pass the class, your dog takes an off-leash final. It gives you a real goal to work toward, and getting there feels great. Families who pass head home with a certificate of completion and a dog they can trust a lot more than they could eight weeks earlier.
We start formal obedience when dogs are 7 months old. Younger puppies need time to grow up and enjoy being a puppy first. If you have a puppy right now, a private session with Joel is the place to start. He’ll help you with crate training, potty training, feeding and those first behaviors, so your puppy is ready when class time comes.
Puppy owners can see how private sessions work on our Private Dog Training page.
"My dog went from a crazy puppy to a well-mannered companion. I love the environment at BVDT. It's welcoming, there's room for error, and it actually works. We will be taking more classes soon!"
It runs for eight weeks. Classes meet one evening a week for about an hour.
Your dog needs to be at least 7 months old for formal obedience. If your dog is younger, we offer one-on-one puppy sessions to get you started.
No more than 5, so you get plenty of help from Joel.
At the end of the course, your dog takes an off-leash final. Passing it means you finish the class.
Tell us a little about your dog and what’s been hard lately. We’ll let you know if the Basic Obedience Course is a good fit and when the next class starts.
