Service Dog Training Classes in Northampton

This summer, we’re offering group classes in two locations — service dog classes in Northampton and pet manners and obedience in Orange.

We’ll be offering three service dog classes in the Pioneer Valley:

• Service Dog Foundations — intermediate/advanced manners and obedience focusing on the most important skills SDiT teams need for public access, starts on June 1
• Assistance Tasks — an advanced class, training several assistance tasks for mobility, psychiatric, or medical alert service dogs, starts on June 15
• Public Access training — intermediate/advanced class training in a variety of public spaces in the Valley (Hadley, Northampton, Holyoke, etc.), starts this fall

Looking for pet dog classes in the North Quabbin? We are still offering these year-round! Learn about Family Dog Manners & Obedience group classes.

Which is right for you and your dog? Learn more…

Service Dog Foundations

Service Dog Foundations is an intermediate/advanced manners and obedience class specific to the skills most important to SDiT teams, including “working dog walk,” handler focus, leave it, and settle. In every class, we also train how dog and handler work with with human interactions in public accommodations, including how to head off access challenges. The class also is a way for teams to work in a group with other SDiT teams that are sharing similar goals and challenges.

SDF Details

Classes are one hour, meeting weekly for six weeks. Dogs attend all classes. Class size is limited to 6 dogs. Enroll today to reserve your dog’s place in class.

Date: Starts Thursday, June 1 (runs through July 6)
Time: 1:30 PM
Location: Animal Alliances, 137 Damon Rd., Northampton, MA 01060
Fee: $160
Registration required: Yes, register your dog
Prerequisites: This is an intermediate level class…

• Dog/handler team must be able to work well around other dogs and people
• The team must have completed at least one (and preferably two) group classes in manners/obedience with At Your Service or Animal Alliances, or equivalent (classes with trainers with compatible methods may be acceptable — please get in touch to discuss this)
• Teams that are new to At Your Service will be asked to complete a history on their dog
• For more information visit Group Classes or register now
• Have questions? Email or call us. We are happy to help.

Assistance Tasks class

Assistance Tasks is an advanced class training common assistance skills often used by service dog teams, particularly for psychiatric or mobility-related disabilities. If your dog already has an excellent foundation in obedience and manners and is ready to move on to task-training, this is the class for you.

Assistance tasks are fun to train and are the “brass ring” that SDiT teams are reaching for! They are also complex, must be built slowly, and are usually extremely important to the handler, so they must be done right. Because tasks are unique to each team, they usually also necessitate private training. This class aims to reduce owner-trainer costs and errors by providing instruction in basics of common tasks in a group setting.

The class will start your dog on these skills:

• Shaped retrieve (foundation for any task your dog does with their mouth, including retrieving dropped or named items, opening doors, covering with a blanket, dressing/undressing, etc.)
• Guiding (take the handler to an exit, their car, an available seat, a specific person)
• Alerting (alert to specific sounds, sights, situations, handler’s behavior, etc.)
• Chin rest (foundation for deep pressure therapy and shaped retrieve)
• One public access skill — “make yourself small” — training to fit in small spaces.

AT Details

Classes are one hour, meeting weekly for six weeks (but skipping one week in the middle — so the class will take 7 weeks). Dogs attend all classes. Class size is limited to 6 dogs. Enroll today to reserve your dog’s place in class.

Date: Starts Thursday, June 15 (runs through July 20)
Time: 12 PM
Location: Animal Alliances, 137 Damon Rd., Northampton, MA 01060
Fee: $160
Registration required: Yes, register your dog
Prerequisites: This is an advanced class…

• Dog/handler team must be able to work well around other dogs and people
• The team must have completed at least one (and preferably two) group classes in manners/obedience with At Your Service or Animal Alliances, or equivalent (classes with trainers with compatible methods may be acceptable — please get in touch to discuss this)
• Skills will primarily be shaped. Both dog and handler must have relatively fluent marker/reward (clicker training) skills.
• Dog must be reliable in two cued behaviors in a group class setting: 1. nose target (when cued, dog touches nose to handler’s hand or any other object) and 2. a down-on-target (usually referred to as a go-to-mat or go-to-place behavior)
• Teams that have not worked with Sharon before will be asked to complete a service dog questionnaire before enrolling and may also need to attend a lesson/assessment, prior to enrolling
• For more information visit Group Classes or register now
• Have questions? Email or call us. We are happy to help.

Coming in the fall: Public Access Training class

This intermediate/advanced class will focus on manners, obedience, and for dogs that are ready, tasks, in public settings. The class will be held in the Valley (Hadley, Northampton, Holyoke, etc.) and will meet in a variety of different settings — stores (home goods, grocery, pharmacy), restaurants (fast food or sit down), medical, possibly one rural location, etc. The class will end with an optional public access assessment for each team. Because of the complexity of finding the venues, etc., details of this class (including the cost, dates, etc) are still being determined. If you’re interested in this class, get in touch now to reserve your dog’s place.

Not sure which class would be right for you and your dog? Get in touch. I am happy to guide you.