Requirements to become a Dog Trainer for Best Friend's Dog Training

Are you a Dog Trainer?

Chances are strong that if you just walked out of a 12 week program or worked for a big box company as a trainer, you have a bit of work to do before we'll consider hiring you. We have a school, New York Academy for Dog Trainers to help finish you off your raw skills. It doesn't mean we aren't interested. We just have very high standards for our trainers. In fact, I can't find any other place in the country that has standards this high.

Once a prospective trainer has met our skills requirements, they need to meet our trainers and make sure we get along. Then meet our clients, since they have traditionally given us the best feedback ever! If that goes well, we will have you teach lessons while we watch ,critique, and make you better. It takes the average person (non trainer) a minimum of a year to get out and train on their own. If you happen to be very qualified, and have lots of teaching experience, it will be obvious and we welcome that experience.

We've had "Certified Master Trainers" come to us for looking for work. They wouldn't or couldn't work dogs in front of us. They refused. Several graudated from the same school. I'd say, "you're a dog trainer, pick a dog, and train it! I don't care what method, but show me what you can do." Nope..nogo. We've had others who showed up without "master" certificates, who would walk in and say, I know these methods,and they proved it. these are the people we like to work with. We don't expect you to know everything or even every method, but please be prepared to show us what you do know on green dogs, since thats how we make a living.

Because 25% of our clients come from other trainers, and we are not a cookie cutter training company that is married to one method, it is mandatory that our trainers can work with, perform, and teach a variety of methods to teach the client and dog what suits them best. Below is an oversimplified list of what is expected in order for us to give you work independantly.

1) Have and maintain and open mind, always!

2) Be friendly... very fiendly and helpful to people you meet.

3) Clicker & Food based method - Demonstrate, Train, and Explain

4) Short Leash Training with Traditional Collars - Demonstrate, Train, Teach, and Explain

5) Long Leash Training with Traditional Collars - Demonstrate, Train, Teach, and Explain

6) Tap system of Modern Remote Collar Training- Demonstrate, Train, Teach, and Explain

7) Long Low Continious method of Modern Remote Collar Training - Demonstrate, Train, Teach, and Explain

8) Old Fashioned Remote Collar Training - Demonstrate, Train, Teach, and Explain (we dont use this method!)

9) Ability to use multiple methods at once.

10) Be comfortable teaching and speaking to large groups

11) You must really want to work with us!

12) You are willing to train ANY breed!

13) Understand, and can work with Fear Aggression

14) Understand and can work with Dominence Aggression

15) Be willing to walk into a kennel or shelter, pick a dog, and train the dog without hesitation.

16) You must like dogs.

17) You must like, and get along with people, including other trainers.

18) Believe that your training is an ongoing process and dont feel you "Know enough already"

19) Be willing and able to build a referral base.

20) Have a demonstration dog that you have trained, offleash.