Written by Steven Appelbaum, President of Animal Behavior College
www.AnimalBehaviorCollege.com

As a professional dog trainer and President of Animal Behavior College, I have been asked literally thousands of times over the last three plus decades, why someone should invest in professional dog training.

There are a number of reasons hiring a professional dog trainer makes sense for pet owners.

1. Communication: Dogs are intelligent social beings with complex communicative abilities but they don’t speak English! Hiring a dog trainer allows you to learn the best ways of communicating with your pet. This improved communication is at the heart of how a pet owner strengthens their bond with a loved dog
2. Preventing challenges: Over 60% of people enrolling in dog obedience classes do so to address pesky behavior problems. However, many of these behaviors, chewing, jumping, housetraining, puppy nipping and general unruly conduct can be prevented or minimized when you work with a dog trainer early.
3. Addressing issues: While not everyone works with a dog trainer early enough to prevent behavior issues, it’s not too late! Hiring a dog trainer to assist you in addressing behavioral challenges is the most effective way to solve them. Years of experience and time tested techniques used by trainers can save pet owners the headache of trying to course correct on their own.
4. Safety: Having a dog that responds consistently to obedience cues with and without distractions is a critical safety component. Being able walk your dog on a leash without them pulling, for the dog to come when called, or stay when directed can be the difference in outcomes during potentially risky moments.
5. Socialization: Finally, some pet owners feel comfortable preventing and/or address behavior problems on their own and successfully train their dogs without professional help. So why join a training group class? Friends! Working with a dog trainer in a group class setting allows the dog to learn important social skills with other dogs and to listen around distractions. It’s also a great place to meet other dedicated dog owners.

For more information about where to locate a dog trainer near you click on the link below.
https://www.animalbehaviorcollege.com/professional-dog-trainers/

Steven Appelbaum has trained dogs professionally since 1981. He is the founder and President of Animal Behavior College a school for dog trainers. Steve writes a column for Pet Age magazine, is the former editor of Off Lead Magazine, his book The ABCs of Practical Dog Training was published in 2004.