What Sets Us Apart
We are a family-owned and operated business, rooted in a real home environment on our three fenced acres in Shingle Springs. Dogs learn alongside the everyday sights, sounds, and personalities of a real household, with controlled and safe exposure to our resident animals and family members, including small children, our own dogs and cats, and soon chickens, ducks, and goats. As your dog builds proficiency in a new skill, we intentionally raise the challenge, changing up the environment, adding new distractions, and spending significant time training off property in public spaces, so the training generalizes to the real world, not just our property.
We believe great training goes beyond commands. It's about understanding how your dog thinks, how they communicate, and how they fit into the rhythm of your life, then building something that actually works for both of you.
We focus on quality over quantity, which is why we only accept a small number of dogs per cohort. This allows us to give each dog and handler the individualized attention needed to make real progress, rather than spreading ourselves thin.
Every client relationship is a partnership. We work alongside you to navigate manners, obedience, daily routines, and behavioral challenges, not with a fixed formula, but with a plan shaped around your dog's temperament, your lifestyle, and the goals you want to reach together.
Our focus is always on the bigger picture, helping you gain confidence, deepen your connection, and enjoy life more fully with your dog. We give you the tools and understanding to keep growing long after formal training ends.
Dogs are extraordinary companions, and the bond you share with yours is worth investing in. We're here to help you make the most of it.
Whole-Dog Approach
A whole dog approach means looking beyond commands because what happens outside training shapes everything that happens inside it.
That means considering your dog's diet, exercise, health, and natural instincts: the need to sniff, explore, and engage with the world on their own terms. It means understanding what actually motivates your dog, whether that's food, play, or praise, and building from there.
When all of that comes together, training becomes something more than obedience. It becomes a plan built around who your dog actually is.
Relationship First
When we say 'relationship first,' we mean building the kind of connection where your dog genuinely wants to engage with you, not because they have to, but because you've made yourself worth listening to.
That means clear, fair communication and making every interaction as rewarding as possible. When your dog trusts you and finds you more compelling than whatever else is going on, they start looking to you naturally, eager to learn, ready to work.
From that foundation, reliable behavior follows. Not because your dog is complying, but because they're choosing to.
Clear Communication
We communicate with dogs in the language they already speak. Food, body language, leash pressure, and marker words that give precise, real-time feedback.
When dogs understand what's being asked of them, something shifts. They become calmer, more confident, and more trusting because the world starts to make sense.
On-Going Support
Ongoing support and community means exactly that… we don't disappear when the program ends.
We stay connected through membership programs (coming soon) and free monthly pack walks, so you and your dog keep progressing, stay supported, and never feel like you're figuring it out alone.
Train with Us
-
Puppy Preschool is a one-week immersive day train program for puppies between 10 weeks and 5 months old, where you drop off your puppy with us on Monday through Thursday to build the foundational skills that set them up for a lifetime of good habits, while sleeping in their own home each night.
We begin with a phone consultation and detailed questionnaire to make sure we're a good fit and to understand your puppy's personality, history, and your family's goals.
Over the course of the week, your puppy will work on:
Crate training: building comfort and calm in the crate
Potty training: establishing a reliable routine and habits
Handling tolerance: getting comfortable with the kind of hands on handling they'll experience at the vet and groomer
Food lure introduction: the foundation for future obedience work
Leash introduction: learning to follow and move with the leash
Settling work: learning to relax and self regulate in new environments
Socialization: structured, age appropriate exposure to new sights, sounds, surfaces, and experiences
Breed fulfillment activities: outlets tailored to your puppy's breed tendencies and energy needs
This age window is a critical developmental period, and our goal is to use it well, building confidence and good habits early, rather than waiting until problem behaviors show up later. Every day is tailored to your puppy's individual temperament and pace.
Your puppy gets the benefit of consistent, structured exposure and repetition in a controlled environment, plus plenty of exercise and enrichment throughout the day, all without being away from home overnight.
You'll receive a hands on go home lesson each day covering everything your puppy has been working on, so you can keep the momentum going at home. Let us do the heavy lifting on training, socialization, and confidence building during this key window, while you focus on continuing to reinforce it at home.
Investment:
$600
-
Day Train Program
Day Train is an immersive program where you drop off your dog with your trainer Monday through Thursday to build real, lasting obedience — while your dog still sleeps in their own home each night. Choose the track that fits your goals: Core Basics (2 weeks) or Off-Leash & E-Collar Trained (3 weeks).
We begin every program with a phone consultation and detailed questionnaire to make sure we're a good fit and to set clear, measurable goals. From there, every day is tailored to your dog's needs: practical problem-solving, core obedience skills, and clean training mechanics built through structured repetition across real-world environments.
Core Basics (2 Weeks)
This track covers all the basic obedience commands on leash — sit, down, place, loose-leash walking, heel, and crate training.
Week 1 — Learning the Commands: Your dog learns the mechanics of each command in a controlled setting, building clarity and consistency in their responses.
Week 2 — Taking It Into the Environment Those same commands are practiced on leash across real-world environments and distractions, so the behaviors hold up outside of a controlled setting.
Off-Leash & E-Collar Trained (3 Weeks)
This track includes everything in the 2-week program, plus e-collar introduction and off-leash proofing.
Weeks 1–2: Same as the 2-week track — learning the core commands, then taking them into the environment on leash + layering in e-collar
Week 3 — E-Collar Recall: Your dog is introduced to the e-collar and builds long-line and e-collar-based recall.
Proofing: All behaviors are proofed both on and off leash in public, across distractions and real-life situations, building the kind of reliable structure that holds up in everyday life.
What Every Day Looks Like
Your dog gets the volume of repetition and controlled real-world exposure needed for genuine, lasting learning, plus adequate exercise and structured enrichment throughout each day. And your family never has to say goodbye to your dog for weeks at a time.
Every Thursday at pick-up, you'll receive a hands-on go-home lesson so you can reinforce what your dog has been working on over the weekend. Every Monday at drop-off, you'll have the opportunity to share feedback on how it went — what clicked, what felt hard, what came up at home. That loop means both you and your dog are learning and growing together throughout the program. Let us do the heavy lifting in training, exercise, and socialization while you work, and we'll send home a tired, well-worked pup every evening.
This program works well for newly rescued dogs, adolescent dogs (6m+) ready for structure, and adult dogs who need a reset. And because every dog is different, the pace and focus adapt to meet your dog exactly where they are.
Hybrid Board & Train Option
For owners whose schedules don't align with daily drop-off and pick-up, a hybrid option is available where your dog stays with the trainer Monday through Thursday for an additional $150/week, keeping all the benefits of the Day Train format while removing the daily logistics.
To qualify, dogs must be fully crate trained and potty trained — meaning quiet and comfortable in the crate with no crate accidents, indoor accidents, or indoor marking behavior. This is a firm requirement.
Graduates of this program are welcomed back for boarding in the future.
Investment
Core Basics (2 Weeks): $1650
Off-Leash & E-Collar Trained (3 Weeks): $3300
All tools and gear are included in your investment.
-
Our 60-minute virtual or in-person sessions let you work one-on-one with a trainer from your own home. No travel, no disruption to your day, and a more affordable option without compromising on quality. You get real-time guidance, troubleshooting, and personalized instruction, all while your dog is in the environment where their everyday behaviors naturally show up.
Investment:
Single Sessions
$100/hr in-person in your home, $75/hr at our location, $60/hr zoom
Plans
$500 in person in your home, $400 for 6 sessions at our location ($100 savings for in home & $50 savings for our location)
-
A Monday-Thursday Day Train of intensive, focused training designed for one outcome: a dog that comes back every single time, off leash, no matter the distraction.
Your dog will day train with us throughout the week, then you'll join for a 30-minute lesson at pickup each day. You'll learn the exact communication and timing we used with your dog that day, so the reliability we build during training transfers directly to you at home.
This program is intentionally narrow in scope. We're not working on manners, leash walking, or general obedience here, it's recall and only recall, built through consistent e-collar conditioning and real-world off-leash practice. By the end of the week, your dog should reliably return to you under distraction, and you'll have the skills and confidence to maintain that off-leash reliability long after the bootcamp ends.
Recall training is genuinely one of my favorite things to teach, and it's personal for me. I love off-leash hiking and adventuring with my own dogs, and that freedom only happens when you trust your dog to come back no matter what's going on around them. The more things you can do together off leash, the trails, the open fields, the real adventures, the deeper your bond becomes. This program exists because I want that same freedom and connection for you and your dog.
Investment:
$1250/dog Includes E-Collar Equipment
-
GSDCO Graduates are welcome to come back and board with us. Think of it as a tune-up while you're out of town. This is a chance for your dog to brush up on skills with someone they already know and trust, alongside other trained dogs. With skilled supervision, thoughtful pairing for play, and a home environment that balances intentional activity with built-in downtime, we make sure dogs stay engaged without becoming overstimulated.
Dogs who have completed another trainer’s training program that includes off-leash e-collar work, may be evaluated and considered for boarding on a case by case basis.
$85/dog/calendar day
Community Pack Walks
Pack Walks are every Sunday from
8:00am to ~9:00am (~2 miles) starting at Park Community Church
Free of Charge
Everyone is welcome, including families with children.
No on leash greetings permitted. Dogs must remain at least 4ft from each other at all times. Do not touch, feed or fuss over a dog that is not yours. This is a community building activity to work on neutrality in a group setting.
Our training asks something of you, too.
We ask that you follow the guidance, stay open to new approaches, and reach out when challenges come up because they will. We pour our heart into every dog we work with, and we ask that you show up with the same commitment. This is a team effort. With consistency on both sides, real and lasting change is possible and a more enjoyable life with your dog is the result.