Our Training Philosophy and Beliefs
What it’s like to train with SJC
Training designed to be fun and enjoyable.
Whether you are working through serious aggression issues, competitive rally-obedience, or raising a well-adjusted puppy, we firmly believe that training should be enjoyable for you and your dog and we create classes and games to be both effective and enjoyable.
Flexible training based on what’s working and what’s not .
Our training plans are driven by data and results. We pay attention to results, if something isn’t working, we change it. We don’t keep using a hammer when it’s not working. We learn from what is working/not working and make future choices based on that information for more effective and efficient training plans.
Learners are respected and supported.
We treat all learners (human and canine) with the utmost respect. Learning new skills is challenging so we ensure that human students get just as much positive reinforcement and support as the dogs.
Finding solutions that work for both dog and owner.
We always work to meet the needs of both the human and the dog. What might be best for the dog, might not be possible for the human. What might be best for the human, might be unfair for the dog. We work hard to find that middle ground where both the humans needs and the dogs needs are being met.
Owners learn to be excellent trainers.
We believe it is our job to teach our human students how to be the best dog trainers they can be! We teach owners about the importance of environmental management, how to effectively reinforce behavior they like, and how to interrupt and redirect unwanted behavior.
Lasting behavior change, not quick fixes.
When working with behavior modification cases, we believe that for long term change, addressing the underlying cause of behavior is critical. We never want to simply put a band-aid over the issue by suppressing it and not actually fix the cause of the behavior.
Learn from the best trainers available!
All of our trainers and class instructors are either Certified Professional Dog Trainers (CPDT-KA) or are judges/evaluators or experienced and successful competitors in the sport/activity they teach. Our trainers do not take on classes or clients that are not within their areas of expertise. You get a trainer who you know isn’t just working from theory; they’ve been there, done that.
