Dog trainer cost

[wildrice]

If you have hired a trainer for your dog (in any format - private, group, something else) - what did you pay for it? 

I'm seeing anywhere from $250 for four sessions at PetSmart to $1700 for lifetime training to 3k to to send your dog somewhere to come home trained. We are in a high-ish COL. Just wondering what's normal! I really like the $1700 training model but that's a LOT more than I had planned to spend on this. 

ETA: I am not interested in the send away training! I just included that for range. I guess I could have left it out lol.

[sadie]

Huge range. Typical group classes (non-pet store classes- these are at specialty training facilities) range from $30-50/class. One on one in a facility or come to your home could go for $50-$150 hour depending on the trainer. Board and train places could be $1500+ for a 10-day program.

[deadwing]

I strongly recommend starting with group classes at a local independent dog school. A six week session will probably run in the $200ish range. Look for a trainer with certifications such as CPDT-KA or KPA CTP. I would expect to do at least 2 six week sessions, but it's going to depend on your dog and your goals.

I would not send my dog out for training (it's important that you are involved). I also wouldn't go through a chain like Petco. I have not been impressed with what I've seen from dogs who have done training there.

[lavenderblue]

I don't have a current comparison, but close to 20 years ago when I did a one-on-one training class at my home it was $50 per session. I'd wager a guess that it is probably triple that now if not more.

[expectantsteelerfan]

We did the PetSmart puppy training class with our older pup when she was a puppy (I think it was when she was 4 months old, after she got her vaccines). I don't remember how much it cost, but probably similar to the Petco one plus inflation. It was good for socializing a puppy, and casual enough to get my kids involved (who were young at the time, this was 7 years ago, woah!), but it didn't teach much more than basic commands that I def. could have taught on my own at home. It was only worth it for the socialization aspect for us since we didn't have any other dogs in our life for her to be around.

Our other pup we got during covid, so group classes weren't an option. We did a few personal trainer options at our home (the trainer was from the place we board our dogs when we travel). I *think* it was something like $75 per session, and we only did 2 sessions. We picked what to focus on at each session, and they were specific to our dogs (we had both dogs present during the sessions since they are always together naturally). I didn't myself confident that that model of training would work (for me mostly) to train our pup with more complicated issues (like one thing I brought up was leash walking, and while she gave me a plan to train her on the leash, it was nearly impossible to implement when I was walking both dogs together on my own) so we never did more.

[k3am]

We paid $1200 for 10 hour long in-home (ETA: or public location, like pet store) sessions in a VHCOLA, but converted some into multiple group lessons. Our trainer required us to "graduate" from individual training before she'd allow us into a group lesson, and I really appreciated that model.

One of the biggest things a dog trainer does is... train the human. So while board and train sounds amazing, if you aren't an effectively trained dog owner, they'll be back to their old behavior.

[missva]

We just did private training with our 3 year old Lab. Initial in-home consult was $165, then we did two 1-hour lessons afterward that were $150 each. He had already been through group classes for basic obedience, we needed some 1:1 help for a specific issue. What are your training goals? I agree, I would not send to a train in home lass that you are not involved in for many reasons.

[waverly]

We paid $500 for 3 one on one sessions and unlimited group sessions in a 4 month period.

Then we paid $700 I think for 5 in home sessions. Group sessions didn't end up working well for us becuase they were very intense.

We switched trainers in between the two because the first trainer technique particularily with not pulling for walking did not work.

[charlatti]

Ours was about $400, MCOL, for the trainer to come to our house, evaluate our dog and help us learn to work with him, plus a second follow up session. The second session ended up not being necessary, so the trainer reduced it to about $200. The first session was at least a couple of hours that he was working with us and our dog, maybe a whole afternoon if I’m remembering right.

I’ve always wondered about the ones where the dog comes back home trained — how do owners know how to work with the dog? I’ve only ever done training with adult dogs, so maybe with puppies it’s different.

[sarahsays]

When I was a training, I charged $100 a session in Connecticut.

I also advise finding a CPDT-KA trainer if you go the private trainer route, though a basic pet store class is a perfectly fine place to start with a new dog that you're still bonding with.

For a number of reasons I did send my own dog to a 12 week board and train. I paid a greatly reduced rate because this is a trainer I have a personal relationship with, however the sticker price averages around 5k for 6 weeks. The trainer is located in South Carolina. I generally don't recommend board and train for basic obedience though it can be very helpful for behavioral issues.

[followyourarrow]

We paid $1500 for Mardi to be sent out for 3 weeks. It worked very well for her and I have no regrets.

We paid $45 for a one-hour group class.

One of the best things we did is send her to doggy daycare. They had a trainer on staff who did so much with her. Worth every penny. $35/day.

[liverandonions]

We did 3 week board and train for $3000 in suburbs of houston

[melissa]

I'm going through this now. We've got a five month old puppy. I found the same thing that you found and went with an individual trainer that is doing a few free training sessions as she is building her clientele. She is newer to the area but is very experienced. She charges $60 an hour or $165 for 3 sessions and she comes to me. I agree that it is more training me than the dog which I didn't realize I needed.

[ssmjlm]

Our dog training studio is $190 for a 6 week session, one class a week. This is basic obedience.

[circa1978]

I just had a friend get this quoted in our area and board and train was about $100/day per dog.

I've trained four dogs from puppies as an adult and I would say that you would be fine to start with a group class and see where you get. Dogs, in general, will pick up what you want pretty quickly, so it is really about you learning how to communicate and be consistent with the animal. The most important thing is to practice every day and to not send them mixed signals. You'll also find out pretty quickly if your dog is food motivated, and life is a lot easier if they are 😂 .

[wildrice]

Jan 31, 2024 13:28:08 GMT -5 circa1978 said:

I just had a friend get this quoted in our area and board and train was about $100/day per dog.

I've trained four dogs from puppies as an adult and I would say that you would be fine to start with a group class and see where you get. Dogs, in general, will pick up what you want pretty quickly, so it is really about you learning how to communicate and be consistent with the animal. The most important thing is to practice every day and to not send them mixed signals. You'll also find out pretty quickly if your dog is food motivated, and life is a lot easier if they are 😂 .

We are working on finding treats he likes, but unfortunately he seems to be a little picky! Distracting him with a treat has had limited success, but we're also only a week into him being here so he may still be getting settled.

It sounds like jumping immediately to the $1700 training will be more than necessary - he's actually pretty good in general, he just needs some work on ignoring the cat and other dogs/people on walks. As I keep telling him, he needs to learn to mind his own business   I wonder if a group class would be helpful for that since he'd have a lot of distractions.

[circa1978]

Jan 31, 2024 13:01:07 GMT -5 charlatti said:

I’ve always wondered about the ones where the dog comes back home trained — how do owners know how to work with the dog? I’ve only ever done training with adult dogs, so maybe with puppies it’s different.

Once a dog truly knows good recall or the verbal and hand command for say "sit" or "down" they aren't going to forget it, but they might get lax or see how far they can push it if the owner isn't following up the way they were in training. Puppies in particular can definitely be trained very, very early in life and those habits will tend to stick. But breed/personality/temperament  also makes a difference. Our very smart Eskie, who definitely knew better, challenged me on sitting at corners for YEARS - like, he always looked up at me first as if to say, oh we're still doing THIS? - but we taught our golden mix once and he does it every time. 🤷‍♀️ 

Some board to train programs use correction collars, which I'm not a fan of.

[exploding people]

We paid $145 for a six week group course (one class a week) of basic obedience skills. The place we went has basic obedience courses up to level three, and a ton of options for more specialized training.

[redheadbaker]

At the time I got my first dog (as an adult), our local SPCA offered basic training classes with their staff behavior specialist (a CPDT-certified dog trainer). I don't remember how much they charged.

Also echoing others to find a certified dog trainer. Run from any that do boarding for basic training (this doesn't apply to hunting training).

[waverly]

Jan 31, 2024 13:01:07 GMT -5 charlatti said:

Ours was about $400, MCOL, for the trainer to come to our house, evaluate our dog and help us learn to work with him, plus a second follow up session. The second session ended up not being necessary, so the trainer reduced it to about $200. The first session was at least a couple of hours that he was working with us and our dog, maybe a whole afternoon if I’m remembering right.

I’ve always wondered about the ones where the dog comes back home trained — how do owners know how to work with the dog? I’ve only ever done training with adult dogs, so maybe with puppies it’s different.

Our trainer offers this and no way would they send the dog back without also training the owners for this exact reason.  Even if they owners only had 1-2 hours to spare, I am sure they go over all the training and how the owner should work with the dog.  

[circa1978]

wildrice, ope, well food motivation is helpful but not totally necessary. Our current dogs are super strange and hate any peanut butter-flavored treat but they love cheese. It sounds gross, but a lot of dogs will really go for braunschweiger. (Don't use a lot of it.) Clickers are also super inexpensive and some dogs are very responsive to that, particularly if you tie it at first (and immediately) to a treat they are into.

[Susie]

Our puppy (who is turning 1 tomorrow!) had some problem peeing behaviors, and we paid $240 for one in-home consultation with a trainer with follow up email support when he was about 9 months.

We're doing small group classes at the same place now, and it's maybe $200-300 for 4-6 week classes.  We're planning to continue through earning CGC.  My 8 yo DD is handling him in class and it has been so, so good for their relationship.

[followyourarrow]

Jan 31, 2024 13:35:40 GMT -5 wildrice said:

Jan 31, 2024 13:28:08 GMT -5 circa1978 said:

I just had a friend get this quoted in our area and board and train was about $100/day per dog.

I've trained four dogs from puppies as an adult and I would say that you would be fine to start with a group class and see where you get. Dogs, in general, will pick up what you want pretty quickly, so it is really about you learning how to communicate and be consistent with the animal. The most important thing is to practice every day and to not send them mixed signals. You'll also find out pretty quickly if your dog is food motivated, and life is a lot easier if they are 😂 .

We are working on finding treats he likes, but unfortunately he seems to be a little picky! Distracting him with a treat has had limited success, but we're also only a week into him being here so he may still be getting settled.

It sounds like jumping immediately to the $1700 training will be more than necessary - he's actually pretty good in general, he just needs some work on ignoring the cat and other dogs/people on walks. As I keep telling him, he needs to learn to mind his own business   I wonder if a group class would be helpful for that since he'd have a lot of distractions.

Based on this, I'd work on the command look at me.  You want his whole focus to be you and whatever you're asking of him.  You want eye contact.  YouTube had some pretty good tutorials when I was working on this with Arrow.  We've started work on this with Mardi.  I swear I have two other dogs, they're just a million times more mellow that Mardi and a whole lot older lol

[sdlaura]

I had been meaning to look this up for my area since we have a puppy. I found a highly rated trainer nearby who runs puppy classes for $285 for a 4-week course of hour-long sessions.

[expectantsteelerfan]

Jan 31, 2024 13:35:40 GMT -5 wildrice said:

Jan 31, 2024 13:28:08 GMT -5 circa1978 said:

I just had a friend get this quoted in our area and board and train was about $100/day per dog.

I've trained four dogs from puppies as an adult and I would say that you would be fine to start with a group class and see where you get. Dogs, in general, will pick up what you want pretty quickly, so it is really about you learning how to communicate and be consistent with the animal. The most important thing is to practice every day and to not send them mixed signals. You'll also find out pretty quickly if your dog is food motivated, and life is a lot easier if they are 😂 .

We are working on finding treats he likes, but unfortunately he seems to be a little picky! Distracting him with a treat has had limited success, but we're also only a week into him being here so he may still be getting settled.

It sounds like jumping immediately to the $1700 training will be more than necessary - he's actually pretty good in general, he just needs some work on ignoring the cat and other dogs/people on walks. As I keep telling him, he needs to learn to mind his own business   I wonder if a group class would be helpful for that since he'd have a lot of distractions.

Have you tried freeze-dried liver treats?  Those have always been a favorite for my dogs.  

[So_Fetch]

We've done petsmart, a class at the shelter, and also one on one training and training daycare (drop off for the day). It's varied wildly.
But the best treats we've found are the Red Barn Naturals rolled dog foot. It breaks apart into small pieces and is fragrant and not too many calories.

[mags]

I was just quoted $850 for 3 sessions! In NJ for a GSD

[sproctopus]

Jan 31, 2024 13:35:40 GMT -5 wildrice said:

Jan 31, 2024 13:28:08 GMT -5 circa1978 said:

I just had a friend get this quoted in our area and board and train was about $100/day per dog.

I've trained four dogs from puppies as an adult and I would say that you would be fine to start with a group class and see where you get. Dogs, in general, will pick up what you want pretty quickly, so it is really about you learning how to communicate and be consistent with the animal. The most important thing is to practice every day and to not send them mixed signals. You'll also find out pretty quickly if your dog is food motivated, and life is a lot easier if they are 😂 .

We are working on finding treats he likes, but unfortunately he seems to be a little picky! Distracting him with a treat has had limited success, but we're also only a week into him being here so he may still be getting settled.

It sounds like jumping immediately to the $1700 training will be more than necessary - he's actually pretty good in general, he just needs some work on ignoring the cat and other dogs/people on walks. As I keep telling him, he needs to learn to mind his own business   I wonder if a group class would be helpful for that since he'd have a lot of distractions.

Ours isn't food motivated, but freeze dried liver is her currency! Have you tried that? (Nvm, this has been covered)

If I was doing it again, I would do the PetSmart classes, liver and YouTube videos. So much about training is just being confidence and repetition.

[EvieEthelGarland]

Jan 31, 2024 12:59:01 GMT -5 k3am said:

One of the biggest things a dog trainer does is... train the human. 

My friends who have done $$$$ board and train for their puppies now have dogs that aren't the best behaved. The people never kept up with drills and reinforcements. 

I'm in HCOL (maybe VHCOL?) area and my PetSmart is $149 for 6 classes. they have a February special for $99. Five years ago I did an independent training facility with my lab and it ran about $350 for group classes. After one session I switched to PetSmart because he's my 7th dog, I've raised seeing eye puppies, and he is just so easy. For basics, I was happy with PetSmart and wanted to keep going but it was March 2020 by that point.

[fernweh]

We paid I believe $150 ish for a 6 week group training session which was 1 class (1 hour) per week.

ETA- we are in Mid COL