3 hours of socialization, enrichment, and training for puppies 6 months and younger, brought to you by one of our Certified Professional Dog Trainers, in a small group setting. Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
-Safe and personalized experience, with positive reinforcement training
-Stationing; settling for a more content, relaxed puppy
-Free play to encourage reading dog to dog body language and polite play
-Puppy safe obstacle courses building body awareness and confidence
-Enrichment exercises for your dog’s brain, encouraging problem solving and good decisions
making
-Basic manners and obedience such as sit, down, stay with opportunities to practice loose leash
walking and reduced jumping
-Outdoor potty time
Eligible dogs:
-12-23 weeks of age
-Age-appropriate vaccinations & clear stool culture
-Attend our Puppy Socialization for assessment and program approval
-No bite history, aggression, or reactivity to humans/dogs
-Comfortable in a crate for short periods
Puppy school is designed to be paired with our group classes and private training to encourage bonding and connection for a harmonious life with your new furry family member.
Ask about our discount for current clients!
This is the socialization class that every puppy (under 6 months) should participate in. No obedience taught here, this is pure socialization! While our puppy kindergarten class touches on socialization there simply isn't time to really dive into this critical piece of your puppies development.
This 50 min class includes puppy playtime as well as time for confidence building through exploring different surfaces, equipment, noises, and body handling. Great for all puppies under 6 months but critical for puppies that are a bit nervous or cautious in new settings.
Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
Open to all puppies 12 weeks- 5 months at the start of class.
Puppy Kindergarten classes are key to a well behaved, well socialized, confident dog!
Your puppy will learn proper play etiquette, bite inhibition, play off-leash games and learn basic obedience.
Puppy Kindergarten:
Starts your puppy with....
Sit
Down
Stay
Focus Exercises
Loose-Leash walking
Leave It!
Jumping
Mouthing
Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
For dogs over 6 months of age.
Do you have a new dog in your home? How about a dog who's been there a while but could use a refresher course? Well then we have the class for you! Our Elementary School is a class for both dogs who need a beginner course in manners, and for dogs who have been around the block and might need some help remembering.
During this six week class your dogs will learn:
Sit
Down
Stand
Stay
Leave It
Loose Leash Walking
Recall
Heel
Not only is this class a fun way to bond with your dog and get out and meet new people but it will start you on the path to passing the Canine Good Citizen test. It will also teach you how to train through real life situations, which aren't always ideal.
Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
Once you and your dog have learned the basics it's time to put these skills into real life situations. This class will get you on the right track to having your dog well behaved in public. Many dogs can pass the AKC Canine Good Citizen test after this class.
We will cover...
Sit for Petting
Greeting a Stranger
Walking through a Crowd
Stay at a Distance
Go to Bed/Settle in Place
Hand Signals
Mastering this class should be everyone's goal! A well mannered dog needs all of these skills to be a good citizen.
Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
Want to teach your dog some amazing tricks or pretend you are an agility star! Crazy Canine will get you there. You and your dog will have fun completing crazy courses that will wear your dog out while building muscle and confidence. They will also learn basic skills that are the foundation to all tricks like targeting with nose, targeting with paws, back up, hold an item in mouth, controlled jump, and tugging. You can even work towards AKC Trick Dog Titles. For more information on what is required check out Do More with Your Dog. Taught by our very own Certified Trick Dog Instructor!
Your dog will leave exhausted and your cheeks will hurt from smiling. This class is all about FUN!
This class is limited to 4 dogs so everyone gets plenty of attention on the equipment.
This class is for all non-reactive dogs.
We will teach your dog the basic skills needed to safely use our agility and FitPaws equipment as well as explore other tricks that your dog might be appropriate to learn.
Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
Take your skills on the road! Join our small group class at local dog friendly businesses and parks each week and put the skills you have learned in the center into real life situations. Work as a team to expand your skills with higher level distractions, socialization, and fun!
Your dog must be under control and not reactive to people or other dogs in order to join this fun class. Great for those that have completed Middle School, considering therapy dog, and those working towards their CGC.
Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
Games, tricks, obstacle course & more; 6-weeks
Completed basic obedience and ready to strengthen your skills and learn new ones? Play fun training games while gaining a reliable focus and settle in a distracted environment. Increase confidence while playing on our obstacle courses. Win your team relay race while improving your loose leash walking and recall skills. Learn new tricks and fitness exercises to increase your dogs brain and physical activity. Each session and week will be unique. Designed to increase socialization, work comfortably around other dogs, advance your obedience skills, all while building a strong relationship and connection with Fido. All skills learned transfer into real life situations helping you and your dog live more harmoniously.
Great for:
Dogs of all ages and sizes.
Teams hoping to do therapy work.
Middle school grads or like skills.
Pawrents that want to keep and expand their dogs training.
Dogs working towards AKC trick titles and AKC CGC tests.
Not appropriate for:
Reactive/aggressive dogs
Dogs that do not have basic obedience skills
Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
This workshop runs for a total of 4 weeks and focuses on making you and your dog's walks more enjoyable.
Don't be the passenger on your dogs journey through the neighborhood. Take back your walks with a special class just for loose leash walking.
We will focus on:
Loose leash walking, leave it will be practiced with various distractions to give dog parents more control when walking their dogs in their neighborhood or around town. This can prepare them for Dogs Around Town. This will just be open to previous TEP students.
This class is for all non-reactive dogs.
Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
A Reliable Recall is the most important skill you can teach your dog. One in three pets will become lost at some point during their life. Our Reliable Recall class is designed to help you build a strong and dependable recall, using different levels of distractions while engaging in fun activities and games. 4 weeks
Don’t become a statistic! One in three dogs get lost in their lifetime. Join us to build and strengthen your recall to keep your puppy safe and at home. 4-weeks
Always wanted to try a class to build on your bond and relationship with your dogs while improving their focus, attention, and obedience skills... all while having fun? This is your chance to try agility and learn a few tricks in Crazy Canines; take your training on the road and visit local dog friendly places during Dogs Around Town; learn new skills during Rally Fun - all in one 6-week session.
Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
Want to see if your dog has what it takes to become a Therapy Dog?
This class will give your dog and you the opportunity to work around medical equipment and the public to see if your dog truly wants to be a therapy dog. We teach a visit command, handling skills for you and your dog, and prepare you for a typical therapy dog test.
Your dog must first pass the AKC Canine Good Citizen Test before enrolling in this Therapy Dog class. This class meets both at The Exceptional Pet as well as at different businesses in the area that welcome our clients.
Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
Therapy dogs come in all shapes and sizes, and their most important characteristic is their temperament. They are friendly, patient, confident, gentle, and at ease with strangers. They provide unconditional acceptance and never fail to put smiles on the faces of children and adults.
A therapy dog must not only enjoy human contact and excessive petting but seek it out. They must be comfortable staying in place, whether it is on a floor, chair, couch, bed or lap, or in their handler's arms.This class expands on the basic handling skills introduced in Therapy Dog 101 and focuses on the skills needed to pass the AKC Urban CGC tests required by The Exceptional Sidekick before taking their therapy dog test. This class will travel in and around Newtown for visits in pet friendly public spaces.
Prerequisite:
*AKC Community Canine test or approval from a TEP trainer.
*All age of dogs can participate in class but training must continue well into adulthood for any working dog.
*Be in good health and sound body.
*Handlers must be 16 and up and supervised by an adult if under 18
Rules and Guidelines:
*Dog must be trained using only positive training techniques.
*Dog must be well groomed.
*Dogs may wear harnesses, flat collars, or head collars. No choke or prong collars allowed.
*Dogs can never show fear, shyness, aggression, or agitation. If they get startled they should recover quickly.
AKC Canine Good Citizen, Community Canine, and Urban test are given separately. All therapy dog testing will be done through The Exceptional Sidekick Therapy Dog Program or you could apply through another national organization.
Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
Congratulations on all of your training successes to this point. If you believe you are ready to test your skills with the AKC Canine Good Citizen test, you can find more information at https://www.akc.org/products-services/training-programs/canine-good-citizen/.
Thinking your dog is a great candidate for therapy work? Come to this 1-hour session to learn more about this important job and if it is right for you and your best friend. Session is for humans and canines. Dogs reactive to other dogs or people are not appropriate for therapy work. Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
Come laugh and play with your pup while refreshing all those family manners. Fun games such as musical chairs, red light/ green light, sandy says, and more will be played!
Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
Celebrate the holidays with your best fur-friend! Festivities include holiday themed training games and a chance to destress, laugh, and play with your pup. Not appropriate for reactive, nervous, or fearful dogs.
If your dog has done group classes with us, we want to thank you by offering a 50% off coupon for our Holiday Parties. Reach out for a discount code.
Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
This two week holiday prep class. Hosting the holiday’s and need some tips and training so your dog will be his best fur-self with company? Join us for training tips and practice to help your dog not to steal food, counter surf, bark at the doorbell, jump on guests and more.
Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
This is a two session special! Tricks are great ways to expand your dog's repertoire and help her learn to learn faster! Fun will be had while we explore the basics of trick training. Beginner and intermediate tricks will be taught based on the group's experience. Click BOOK NOW to see the upcoming schedule or to get on our waitlist.
In partnership with Wags Doggie Daycamp and Boarding, we offer a SAFE and compassionate Board and Train program for your dog. This 5-day program is designed to provide effective training without the use of shock collars, prong collars, or fear-based methods.
Here’s what you can expect:
Expert Training: Your dog will work with CPDT-certified dog trainers who specialize in positive reinforcement. Our approach ensures long-term success by focusing on your dog’s unique needs.
Follow-Up Support: To make sure the training transfers smoothly to you, we includes three private follow-up lessons. The first lesson is usually done on the day of pick up and the following two are weekly after. This ensures you and your dog are on the same page, fostering a strong and lasting bond.
Happy Dogs: When not in training, your dog will have the opportunity to enjoy playtime with appropriate canine companions or relax in its own private pod. We prioritize your dog’s happiness with plenty of attention, games, play, and love throughout their stay.
All of this will take place at Wags, a long-established doggie daycare and boarding facility known for its dedication to providing quality care.
Join us in setting your dog up for a lifetime of success and happiness!
This cost includes two 40 minute lessons a day and three private lessons!
This cost does not include the discounted rate of $60 a night, payable to Wags at pickup.
Join us for this new 4 week class to help keep your dog active this winter with activities you can duplicate right in the comfort of your warm home. Dogs of all ages will benefit from the mental and physical exercise movement puzzles provide, leading to good decision making and physical coordination for a healthy long life. Your dog will build confidence, resilience, and body awareness that transfers over in new, stressful, exciting situations by using the 2-bowl game (Vito's Thinking Game). All while having fun and building a stronger connection with you.
