Here's What You Need To Know To Become A Certified Dog Trainer

Want to be a Certified Dog Trainer? Here’s where you can earn your certification and how the process goes.

College

If you’re still in high school and want to become a professional dog trainer, or if you want to go back to college, you can take up a degree in animal science or animal behavior with a business minor.

The animal knowledge will help you as you learn to train and understand dogs, and the minor in business will enable you to do what many other dog trainers do – own a business where they offer their services!

After that, you can carry on if you like and get a Master’s degree to become a certified canine behaviorist, or a PhD in veterinary studies or zoology.

Vocational School

If you’re looking for inexpensive training options, you can go to a vocational school to pick up behavior theory and dog training basics. Make sure you thoroughly research your options first, though, as some may use outdated techniques.

Apprenticeship

After you’ve gotten your education, you should see out one or more trainers to look up to and be inspired by. By being mentored by them, you’ll get valuable, practical real-world experience and learn about the risks, tough decisions, and emotions that come with this job.

Certification

To be a Certified Dog Trainer, you’ll need a certification – preferably through the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers. The CCPDT also provides countless resources to members. You can also join the Association of Professional Dog Trainers to get even more resources.

Specialty

Lastly, once you’ve learned enough, you can decide to specialize. What kinds of dogs do you want to work with? What sort of training would you like to do? Whatever you decide, make sure it’s something you truly want to do!

Feature Image Source: Pixabay