How to Become a Dog Trainer

44.5 percent of all American households share life with a canine companion. Pet professionals like dog trainers, veterinarians, and veterinary behaviorists are more important than ever as our modern society becomes increasingly difficult for four-legged friends to navigate—dog reactivity, anxiety, and general stress from lack of proper enrichment are on the rise in domestic dogs.

If you’ve been thinking about pursuing a career as a dog trainer, this guide is for you. Maybe you fell in love with the idea while working your own pet dog through a training program for behavioral struggles. Maybe you've been watching one too many episodes of your favorite reality dog training TV show. Maybe you think it’s a great way to turn your lifelong love for animals into a rewarding career.

Here’s everything you need to know about becoming a professional dog trainer!

Read on for what the dog training profession entails, how you can get hands-on experience with training techniques, the importance of continuing education as the canine cognition field evolves, and more.

Summary: Overview of how to become a dog trainer

There is no one-size-fits-all process to becoming a dog trainer. Pet professionals get started down their career paths in different ways!

That said, here are some general guidelines to follow if you’re new to the idea of training dogs as your job.

• Understand what being a dog trainer entails. (Spoiler: there’s a lot of people teaching involved, too!)
• Get some hands-on experience, working with a variety of dogs, to hone your training skills.
• Dive into the latest understanding of dog training theory and animal behavior.
• Find a trusted dog training mentor or training school, if possible.
• Commit to continuing education!
• Consider getting a training certification from a respected professional organization for force free training.

1) Understand what being a dog trainer entails

It’s important you understand what you’re getting into before you commit to becoming a dog trainer. While every individual training business will have a different approach and serve their own unique clients, you should know a few core things.

Dog trainers work daily with dogs

This should come as no surprise. Dog trainers, of course, spend much of their time working with a variety of dogs!

Pet professionals who also offer boarding services on top of hosting classes or teaching individual private lessons invest even more of their waking hours into caring for their canine pupils. (Many dog trainers watch their clients’ dogs when their families go out of town. Some also offer board-and-train programs to kickstart the training process.)

This daily work directly with dogs can involve tasks like:

• Active training sessions
• Socialization outings
• Monitoring dog-dog playgroups
• Basic grooming and healthcare
• Cleaning kennels
• Organizing dog supplies like leashes, long lines, muzzles, and more

Dog trainers also work closely with a variety of different people

Something that’s less well understood about dog trainers: They don’t only work with dogs. Dog trainers are ultimately service workers! Many canine professionals get into the industry because they love animals… and are surprised to realize how much of their day is dedicated to communicating with the human end of the leash.

Depending on the types of services you decide to offer as a trainer, you might spend even more time interacting with pet parents than their actual dogs. This means it’s important you enjoy coaching people! (Deciding to become a dog trainer because you feel that “dogs are better than humans” probably isn’t a great idea. You need to be a people person too.)

Here are just a few of the ways dog trainers provide support to owners:

• Teaching key concepts during training classes and private lessons. The better job you do laying the foundation, the easier it will be for your pet parent clients to complete their homework and continue training on their own.
• Offering constructive feedback in class or remotely through email, phone calls, and text messages.
• Customizing training plans to individual lifestyles and goals. Every dog, owner, and lifestyle is different!
• Processing emotions—especially when dogs struggle with behavioral issues that can put strain on human relationships. Sometimes dog trainers play the role of therapist. (It's important to take care of your own mental health, too.)

There are several types of dog trainers

Aspiring dog trainers might choose to specialize in different things. While every professional dog trainer should understand basic learning theory (operant conditioning, classical conditioning, canine cognition) and have some general practical skills (more on education later), there are multiple directions you can take your knowledge!

If you start your own business, you’ll be able to choose firsthand which clients you want to take on. If you join an existing franchise, you’ll have less control (but more support from your superiors). The right fit is up to you.

Some professional dog training companies focus on:

• Puppy training and foundational skills
• Aggression
• Other behavior modification cases
• Dog-dog socialization
• Dog sport training
• Service dog training
• Separation anxiety
• And more

Dog training can be emotionally and physically draining

Dog training is an incredibly rewarding career. Many pet professionals can’t imagine doing anything els. Knowing you helped a client accomplish their goals is an amazing feeling! As a trainer, you have the opportunity to change both canine and human lives for the better.

It’s important to know that dog training isn’t all rainbows and competition ribbons and behavior modification success stories, though. Depending on the type of dog training you decide to pursue, the profession can be grueling both emotionally and physically.

Emotional aspects of training dogs professionally:

• Dog training can impact your social outings and work-life balance. You might have to work unusual hours or factor in travel commitments (especially if you offer in-person lessons at client homes).
• Dog owners might place lofty expectations on trainers—when in reality a dog’s success is a shared responsibility.
• Even when you do your best for every dog you work with, you won’t be able to control the outcome. So much depends on the owners and environment and factors out of your influence.
• Dog trainers might be faced with severe behavioral cases they aren’t able to help. It's difficult to turn away clients in need.
• Behavioral euthanasia is sometimes the most humane option for dogs and pet parents who are deeply suffering. This is a difficult conversation for everyone involved.

Physical demands on professional dog trainers:

• Dog trainers spend a lot of the day on their feet. During hands-on training, they run around, bend over, manage leashes, wrangle long lines, play with dogs who might be very strong... The list goes on.
• Working with dogs, especially fear or aggression cases, always comes with the risk of being bitten. Proper knowledge and preventative steps can go a long way here! But it’s important to keep caution in mind.

2) Get some hands-on training experience around different dogs

If dog training still sounds like an appealing career after understanding the commitment, it’s time to get your feet (or should we say paws) wet working with some four-legged students.

Train your own dog!

Training your own dog is a great first step for many aspiring dog trainers. You get to play the role of both trainer and owner, which helps you understand what it’s like to work with a pet you consider part of the family.

In fact, many professional dog trainers are in the industry because at some point they ended up with a challenging dog of their own—perhaps a fearful rescue who struggled with reactivity—and fell in love with the art and science of dog training as a result. These hours of experience training, troubleshooting, and adjusting in the moment can provide a solid foundation to embark on your new career.

Does successfully training your own dog mean you can call yourself a professional dog trainer?

Note that training your own dog does not mean it’s appropriate to go out and call yourself a dog trainer. It does mean you’re one step closer to working with other dogs and owners!

Can you become a dog trainer if you don't have your own canine companion?

If you don’t have a dog of your own right now? Don’t fret. That doesn’t preclude you from becoming a dog trainer so long as you’re passionate about the career. There are many lifestyle variables that might mean it’s not the best choice to open your home to a long-term animal resident right now—but you could still be able to offer your services to other clients.

Offer to help your family and friends with their dogs

A logical next step after working with your own dog (or if you don’t have a dog of your own to practice with) is to reach out to family and friends to see if they need help with their own pets. This will expose you to a greater range of behavior and environments in a causal, low-stress way.

Make sure to be transparent with your connections that you’re not an established professional yet. Don’t hesitate to reach out to a more experienced trainer if you encounter any behavioral cases!

Some ways to get started interacting with more dogs include:

• Offer to walk your neighbors’ dogs
• Start pet sitting on the side
• Help your family choose a behavior to work on with their dog (maybe they need help with mild leash pulling or refining recall) and help them teach it

Volunteer to work with dogs at your local shelter

Volunteering at your local shelter can be a great way to encounter even more different dogs and make a difference to pets in need as you continue to grow your skills. Humane societies and animal shelters around the country have different requirements, so check with your nearby organizations for next steps.

Remember that shelters can be stressful environments for both dogs and humans. Make sure to attend any recommended courses. Follow directions closely and always defer to staff instructions. This is a great way to get valuable experience—as time goes on, you’ll be able to make more of an impact and provide experienced advice.

3) Dive into dog training theory (and stay up to date with continuing education)

At the same time you’re getting hands-on experience with different dogs, you should be investing in your conceptual education, too. Theory and practice go hand in hand! Neither works without the other in a profession like dog training—it's a mixture of both art and science.

Some ways to grow your knowledge about dogs:

• Attend seminars hosted by well-regarded professional trainers
• Subscribe to online content provided by a reputable force free organization
• Consider going to a professional trainer’s dog training school, like the Karen Pryor Academy
• Learn how to analyze scientific studies about dog training methods
• Read books written by established dog trainers, ethologists, and other canine professionals

Dog training theory is complex. (We’ve summed up some initial concepts in this article.) Here are a few things to look for as you start consuming content and learning training techniques:

• Look for certified dog training professionals with years of experience. (More on certification below.)
• Avoid pet professionals who aren't willing to talk about the evolution of training principles over time. Modern animal training is much different than it was even just a few decades ago.
• Be wary of anyone who talks about dominating dogs, using force, or depriving our canine companions of basic needs like food and social interaction. You want to look for humane training resources.
• Understand that we can’t expect dogs to automatically understand our social norms. ("Good” and “bad” behavior are subjective!)

This list of resources can be a helpful place to start growing your dog training knowledge!

4) Consider getting certified as a professional dog trainer

You technically don’t need any sort of formal education or certification to call yourself a dog trainer in the United States. There are no regulations on the field—and some national certification organizations pose accessibility issues that can gate keep the industry from otherwise talented, dedicated professionals.

That said: If you're able to, it's a good idea to pursue a well-regarded dog training program. The top successful dog trainers take their education seriously and want to help owners make sense of the confusing landscape. Completing a certification can be a great test of your skills. Passing a rigorous exam lets you know you’re ready to offer your services to other owners in good faith—and it can make your expertise clear to potential clients, too.

Here are a few options for training certification, professional membership, and continuing education courses for force free trainers:

• Academy for Dog Trainers
• Association of Professional Dog Trainers
• Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers
• International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants
• Karen Pryor Academy
• Victoria Stilwell Academy
• Nicole Wilde's So You Want to Be a Dog Trainer books

See if any trainers near you are looking for part-time employees or apprentices

One way to set yourself up for success as a dog trainer is to apprentice under someone who is an expert at the craft. An owner or employee of a dog training company will be able to guide you through all aspects of training dogs professionally—from actual nitty-gritty training concepts, to different types of services and pricing, to setting up your own business, and more.

Some dog trainers offer specific mentorship programs where they take on anywhere from one to several students at a time. Other relationships happen more organically, like when a long-time attendee of a trainer’s classes expresses an interest in joining the profession. You can also consider looking for part-time jobs to get your foot in the door with an initial career opportunity.

This is a great next step once you’ve obtained knowledge about learning theory, dog body language, and training mechanics. Here's to you and your future animal training endeavors!

Trainer Review of this Article

There is so much misinformation out there, and we want to make sure we only provide the highest quality information to our community. The science of animal behavior is complex. The more seriously we take it—as pet professionals and everyday dog owners—the better! We have all of our articles reviewed by qualified, positive-only trainers. 

This is the trainer that reviewed this article:

Emily Fitzpatrick
VSA-CDT
Owner and Head Trainer | Misunderstood Mutt