Dogs of any age (12 weeks and up) and any skill level will love learning about training in this fun and effective class. Dogs will benefit from developing their ability to pay attention around distractions and clients will learn valuable training skills that will be useful at home and in public. There are only four dogs maximum allowed per class so that clients get plenty of one on one assistance!

Beginning Pet Manners class is a great starting point for clients interested in service dog, therapy dog, facility dog, emotional support dog and companion (pet) dog training!

Beginning Pet Manners will cover: How dogs learn, training basics (positive reinforcement, changing undesirable behaviors), reward markers for better timing, sit (importance of hand signals and not using "bribes"), automatic eye contact (create a polite dog that "asks" for wanted items and controls impulses), self-control (dogs learn to choose to be calm at home, and later in more distracting environments, without being asked), down, wait (dogs learn the rewards of being patient for wanted items), polite greetings (including not jumping up), stay (with distractions!), reliable recall, walking nicely on leash, and a fun trick/game called targeting.

Even dogs who have had previous training can benefit from Beginning Pet Manners class. For example, dogs who might attend class that already know "down" can learn a more solid "down" (with faster response times, longer position hold times, verbal cues, hand signals, etc.). Also, some topics (such as automatic eye contact and building self-control) might be new for even for dogs with previous training.

Dogs of any age and skill level are welcome; however, dogs who might bark excessively at other dogs or people in class or are aggressive, highly anxious or fearful or have a bite history are not appropriate for group classes and should start in private training with a possible goal of later attending group classes. Dogs who bark a lot for any reason, including excitement, should start with private training as barking is not addressed in group training and can disrupt learning for others (dogs may then move on to group classes once barking has been addressed in private training). Dogs age 14 weeks and up usually do best in the class (younger dogs may sleep through some of the class but are still welcome!).

Intermediate class is an important foundation class that will help teach clients and dogs some of the most useful and challenging skills; clients will also have fun teaching their dogs tricks!

This class builds on the necessary foundation skills for therapy, facility and service dogs with some of the most important concepts for working dogs, but all dogs (working and pet) will benefit from learning the skills taught in this class.

Intermediate class will cover: Leave it (teach your dog to completely disengage with any object/person/dog/etc. when you say "leave it"), heel (pay attention while walking and sit when stopped, much more precise than loose leash walking), focus (check-in on request and focus on handler), wait at the door, wait with distractions, polite greetings practice, settle (effective long down/stay), using release words, shake, high five & other fun tricks!

All dogs who have completed Beginning Pet Manners through Skye's Dog Training are welcome to take the Intermediate class. Dogs do not need to be perfect at topics from the Beginning class to start this class; however, it is recommended that dogs have a solid "sit", "down", and "wait" before starting the Intermediate class to get the most benefit out of the class. Working dogs in training and pet dogs are all welcome in this class!

Important note: If clients have not yet taken Beginning Pet Manners with Skye's Dog Training and are considering starting classes with Intermediate class, something to consider is that most dogs really struggle to pay attention during the more challenging aspects of Intermediate class if they do not have the experience of Beginning class first. The training methods and terminology used in Skye's Dog Training classes may not be the familiar or the topics may not have been covered in as much detail (or maybe not covered at all in previous training). In Beginning class we cover all the basics of how we will be teaching future skills and those will not be reviewed in Intermediate. We will build on some skills, but the discussions of how to teach those skills will not be covered (since most clients will have taken the Beginning class first). If clients are unsure if they should enroll in Beginning or Intermediate class to begin with due to their dog's previous training and skills, Beginning is almost always the safest bet to make sure their dog learns the focus skills needed to participate in group training.

This Advanced class builds on the skills learned in Beginning and Intermediate classes and puts them to use practicing items on the AKC's Canine Good Citizen test. Of course, other fun and useful topics will be covered as well!

Advanced class will cover: come when called with more distractions (outside on long lines!), polite greeting skills & handling practice, ways to increase motivation for your dog when training, walking calmly by other dogs, stay with distractions & distance, heel practice and direction changes, "go to your place", fun new tricks and more!

This class will help prepare clients to take the Canine Good Citizen test if desired (check out CGC test items by looking up “AKC CGC test items” online). Most clients take this class without actually testing because the test items provide great practice for good public manners.

Clients who have met the prerequisites for the class are welcome to join this class at any time after the start date of class at a pro-rated cost if there is still space left available in the class (for example, clients might chose to join this class with only one week left and attend, and pay for, just one week of class). Clients will see this reflected at check-out if registering for the class late.

Working dogs in training and pet dogs are all welcome in this class!

This field trip class is an opportunity for clients to practice their dog’s skills and public manners in a new location each week with dog-friendly destinations such as department stores and malls!

In this indoor field trip class, dogs will work on their public manners by enhancing such skills as: holding stay positions while clients “shop”, leaving store items alone, loose leash walking, and calmly settling down in a new environment.

Clients must have completed Beginning Pet Manners, Intermediate and Advanced classes through Skye's Dog Training or have instructor approval (contact Skye's Dog Training by email for approval if required classes haven't been completed) before joining "Out on the Town" field trip class.

Clients who have met the prerequisites for the class are welcome to join this class at any time after the start date of class at a pro-rated cost if there is still space left available in the class (for example, clients might chose to join this class with only one week left and attend, and pay for, just one field trip class). Clients will see this reflected at check-out if registering for the class late.

Working dogs in training and pet dogs are all welcome in this class!

This fun field trip class is an opportunity for clients to practice their dog’s skills and manners in a different, distracting outdoor location each week with destinations such as parks, farms and shopping areas.

In this outdoor field trip class, dogs will work on their public manners by enhancing such skills as: loose leash walking, calmly settling down in a new environment, advanced leave it practice (with some serious farm animal distractions!), come when called (on a long line), confidence building and stay with distractions.

Clients must have completed Beginning Pet Manners and Intermediate classes through Skye's Dog Training or have instructor approval (contact Skye's Dog Training by email for approval) before joining "A Walk in the Park" field trip class.

Clients who have met the prerequisites for the class are welcome to join this class at any time after the start date of class at a pro-rated cost if there is still space left available in the class (for example, clients might chose to join this class with only one week left and attend, and pay for, just one field trip class). Clients will see this reflected at check-out if registering for the class late.

Working dogs in training and pet dogs are all welcome in this class!

This class will prepare handler/dog teams to take the Utah Pet Partners therapy team test (formerly Therapy Animals of Utah) and will provide clients with all the information needed to take the next steps towards certification. The Therapy Prep class can also help clients determine if therapy work is a good fit for their dog. Even if clients decide not to go on to therapy work, this class is helpful for developing canine manners and social skills around a variety of distractions.

Please see the Therapy Dog section of this site for detailed information about therapy work, testing, and certification information.

Dogs must have completed Beginning, Intermediate and Advanced classes (or have instructor approval) before registering for or requesting this class.

Important: This class is scheduled "on demand", so if clients are interested in signing up for this class, they should submit a request for the class by clicking "request this service" below. Once Skye's Dog Training has received a minimum of three requests for the class, the class will be scheduled based on availability of time for the class.

This class is for clients working towards achieving the skill sets required for Psychiatric Service Dogs. All clients attending this class must have completed the prerequisite training (group classes or private training) and have instructor approval before signing up.

In this course, dog/handler teams will learn skills and tasks specific for each handler’s individual needs. The class covers commonly used tasks aimed at assisting handlers with anxiety, depression and PTSD such as: Deep Pressure Therapy, Alert to Leave, Crowd Control and more.

Please see the Service Dog section of this site (under "Training Programs") for detailed information about service dogs, training and requirements before registering for this class.

This class is only available to Psychiatric Service Dogs in training and Autism Assistance Service Dogs in training. A letter from a licensed mental health care practitioner or physician indicating the client needs a service dog is required before signing up for this class. Please contact Skye's Dog Training for details.

This class is for clients working with their service dogs in training to achieve excellent public access skills. In this course, dog/handler teams will learn skills and cues to help the dog improve their behavior in public and increase focus on the handler.

The first two weeks of this class will be held at Skye's Dog Training facility and will focus skills to help dogs have the best possible behavior when out with their handler in public settings. Class topics include: positioning the dog while in waiting rooms and lines (and more), shopping skills, restaurant behavior, handling distractions and more.

The last two weeks of class will include field trips to a grocery store and and then a restaurant so dogs can practice their public access skills on-location!

Please see the Service Dog section of this site (under "Training Programs") for detailed information about service dogs, training and requirements.

This class is only available to service dogs in training. Dogs must have completed the Advanced class and must have started task training (through group classes or private sessions) and have instructor approval before joining this class. A letter from a licensed mental health care practitioner or physician indicating the client needs a service dog is required before signing up for this class. Please contact Skye's Dog Training for details.