Best Dog Trainers in British Columbia

The Dog School runs a Vancouver studio with a modular puppy program for puppies 8 to 16 weeks old, and its site advertises a free puppy play session. Older dogs can start Key Skills obedience at any time, then earn Advanced Badges in scentwork, heelwork, public manners and pre agility. Private lessons run in the studio or online for reactive or anxious dogs. Behaviour consults cover separation anxiety and aggression, so check the pricing page for current rates. Training is force free and reward based.

Tony Giotto runs A-Z Canine Training and says he has worked with dogs since 2001, including time studying with master trainer S. Prewitt. His private lessons cover puppy training and everyday manners as well as aggression work. He also offers recreational tracking and remote sessions, and a train and walk service runs in Burnaby. His site describes a play and praise method that uses no food treats and no physical discipline. He travels across Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond, Coquitlam, the North Shore, Surrey and Delta.

Brad Pattison leads Hustle Up Dog Training and says he has trained dogs since 1992. He has written four books and hosted TV shows such as Puppy SOS. His dogs earn praise and touch instead of treats, and the site calls the approach balanced. Options include board and train and private lessons at your home. Group classes run in Vancouver and Surrey. A private 90 minute lesson is listed on their site as $210, and a 30 minute phone or Zoom consult as $52.50.

Ankush Karwal runs the Bark Busters franchise for Vancouver and Richmond as a full time Bark Busters behaviour therapist. All training happens in your home and neighbourhood. The first visit runs two to two and a half hours and ends with a written plan, and follow up visits last about an hour. Programs cover barking, leash pulling, separation anxiety and aggression, plus puppy house training. The site says it uses no shock collars and no punishment, and it quotes one flat fee per dog by phone.

Our listing for Maraysha Kennedy ties her to Honourable Hound, a Burnaby and Vancouver school with a humane, science based approach. The listing shows the KPA-CTP and Fear Free Certified Professional credentials and the Aggression In Dogs Master Course. The school's site doesn't name her, so ask who will teach you before you book. The puppy track runs from Puppy Elementary up to Canine High School, and intro classes cover K9 Nose Work and urban hunting. Private programs work in person or online. There's also a separation anxiety program and a Reactive Dog Club.

Woofability Academy in Victoria spent nearly a decade in daycare and boarding before it moved to training. April Sauvé, a Certified Dog Behaviour Consultant and CPDT-KA, leads the team. Puppy Pawsitive Steps is a half day socialization program, and Pawsitive Steps Academy is a structured day program. You can book private coaching in person or online, including at home. The board and train option is aimed at leash reactivity and anxiety, and workshops cover recall and leash manners. A membership adds trainer check ins.

Woofers Positive Dog Training is listed in our directory under Bren Axon, a 2010 Animal Behaviour College graduate and Pet Professional Guild member, though the site itself doesn't name its trainer. The Canine Essentials group class takes no more than six dogs and meets in Brentwood Bay and Sidney, and puppies can join from 10 weeks. Puppy 101 is a private session of up to 75 minutes for new puppy owners. Private consults cover problems like leash reactivity and recall, and online classes serve owners farther away. The site describes kind, force free methods.

The Greater Victoria Dog Obedience Training Club has served the Victoria area since 1949. Volunteer instructors teach at the RCMP Barn on the Saanichton Fairgrounds, and the club is licensed by the Canadian Kennel Club. Beginner classes are open to the public, with purebred and mixed breed dogs welcome. Classes past beginner level need a membership, listed on their site as $20 for one person or $30 for a family in 2026. The club also offers the CKC Canine Good Neighbour test and tracking.

SmartDog Training works from a North Saanich facility with non slip floors and visual barriers, and it also lists the BC SPCA in Victoria as a class location. Group classes for puppies and adult dogs run in person or online with the same curriculum. Puppy socialization classes can be adjusted to your puppy's needs. Private lessons cover basic and intermediate skills, and agility classes and trials fill out the schedule. The business is AnimalKind accredited, and its trainers report over 37 years of combined experience.

Meghan Turton owns Jazzed Up Agility in East Kelowna and has represented Canada at 10 world events, including four FCI Agility World Championships. Classes run from puppy pre agility at 10 weeks to Intro to Agility for dogs 8 months and up, then Advanced Handling. Sport Puppy Foundations builds shaping and toy drive. Weekday day training for five to eight dogs is listed on their site as $65 a day plus GST. Her site says regular classes resume once a new building is ready, so ask about the schedule.

Catherine Adams runs Take The Lead Dog Training and works from Kelowna down to Summerland and Penticton. Private coaching comes with handouts and a summary after each lesson, and video review is optional. She works with puppies from 10 weeks through adolescence, and new owners can start with the Right Start program. Small group classes include Life Skills, Chill Out, Puppy Life Skills and an Open Training Night, and remote coaching serves owners outside the Okanagan. Her site describes kind, science based training and rewards without bribery.

Donna Thorne runs Next Level Canine Services in Kelowna, holds the VSA-CDT credential according to her listing, and is a Pet Professional Guild member. Puppy Start Right covers manners and socialization for young dogs. Good Behaviour Basics works on everyday manners, and Paws on the Path teaches calm, loose leash walking. You can pick the Pro Train option, where she does the training, or private coaching, where you learn alongside your dog. Her site says she uses positive reinforcement and avoids pain and intimidation.

Kelowna Puppies keeps classes to a maximum of four puppies or dogs. Puppy classes use rolling admission, so you can join on any Sunday with space and then attend six classes in a row. Lessons cover recall and loose leash walking, plus greetings and play. Classes meet both indoors and outdoors, and outdoor sessions depend on the weather and time of year. Kirsten, the trainer, describes herself as a certified behaviour consultant and certified professional dog trainer. The site quotes BC SPCA and Canadian veterinary guidance that discourages punishment based training.

Bonnie Hartney trains with Ocean Park Dog Training in Surrey, and her listing shows the CTC, CNWI, FFCP, FDM and CBATI credentials. Group classes include puppy classes, teen manners, a dog reactivity class, K9 Nose Work and tricks. Private training covers everyday manners as well as fear or aggression. The school says it uses food rewards and humane, aversive free methods, and that force has no place in training. Teen manners isn't meant for reactive dogs, so ask which class fits before you sign up.

Bianca Steinmetz is a dog behaviour consultant and trainer based in Surrey. Her business is AnimalKind accredited by the BC SPCA, and she works with reactive and anxious dogs, including dogs with aggression, through private training and behaviour consulting. She also offers socialization and play training, plus puppy pairing consultations for families choosing a new dog. Training covers the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island. Her site describes science based, humane training under the AnimalKind standards, and her rates sit on a separate page of the site.

Liz Gaige runs Fuzzy Buddy Dog Training for owners in Surrey and Langley. New puppy owners can book an in home puppy orientation, and the site advertises a free puppy social. Group classes have names like Help for Hooligans, for excitable dogs, and Stop the Pulling, for leash walking. Reactivity Solutions is a group for dogs who struggle around other dogs, and private lessons are available too. The site says training is reward based with no aversive tools, and it rules out prong and shock collars.

Brazilian Dog Guru runs a dog training facility in Kamloops, and its site has a page about Fernando, the trainer behind the business. The services page lists a boot camp and says that if you prepay three weeks, you get one week free. Daycare is listed on their site at $25 for a half day and $30 for a full day. The pages we read don't spell out what the boot camp covers, so ask how long your dog trains each day and which problems the program handles.

The Nanaimo Kennel Club formed in 1924 as a nonprofit to set up dog obedience classes, and it still teaches them. Classes include Puppy Socialisation and Pet Manners, obedience, rally obedience and Rally Free. The club also teaches scent detection and tricks, plus show handling for owners who want to try conformation. Purebred and mixed breed dogs are both welcome. The club says training should always be positive and fun for dog and owner, and it encourages members to include dogs in daily life.

Sarah Lane is a NADOI certified instructor who teaches as Canine Companions. Her small group classes take up to four dogs and meet at the North Oyster Community Centre near Ladysmith, south of Nanaimo. The lineup covers Basic and Intermediate Pet Manners plus two levels of scent detection. Basic Manners is listed on their site as $230 for six weeks, and Scent Detection Level 1 as $270 for seven weeks. She trains with rewards and works with you as well as your dog.

Megan Brooking runs Extraordinary Canines Inc. and lists CPDT-KA, CNWI, CTDI and FDM among her credentials. Her listing sits under Langley, but her site says in person lessons take place in Summerland in the South Okanagan. She runs puppy socialization classes with a focus on baby puppies and enrichment. K9 Nose Work and rally obedience make up the sport side, and she coaches trick dog titles. An online community adds free videos and paid courses, and she refers behaviour cases such as aggression to a colleague.

Terra Sevrens owns Moxie Dog Training in Langley and serves owners from Vancouver and Coquitlam out to Abbotsford and Mission. Puppy Success is for puppies under six months, and Off Leash Freedom works on recall. Leash Reactivity Reset uses structured exposure for dogs who react on leash. Private sessions can happen at your home or out in public, listed on their site from $150 an hour, and Puppy Success is listed from $700. Community walks give dogs practice around other dogs.

Janice Gunn owns TNT Training Center in Abbotsford, which has trained dogs since 1998, and she was named the 2024 CKC National Top Obedience Competitor. Foundation Obedience classes take dogs of all ages, and the Intermediate class prepares dogs for the Canine Good Neighbour test. Sport options include FunAgility, rally obedience and competition obedience up to Utility, plus show handling. Online courses cover Foundation Obedience and recall. Training is positive and game based, with video homework. The center doesn't offer private lessons or board and train.

Matsqui Flyball & Agility Club is a volunteer run nonprofit in Abbotsford, incorporated in 1990. It runs flyball lessons a few times a year and two hour Intro to Flyball workshops, with the fall 2026 workshop listed on their site at $50. Spring agility lessons ran five weeks for $150, and a six week trick class was listed at $160 for fall 2026. Dogs need basic obedience before flyball lessons, and junior handlers up to age 17 can take part.

Nikki O'Halloran runs Doggie Does It from Mission and also serves Abbotsford and Albion. Her training is private and one to one, at your home or somewhere local. She covers basic manners, potty training, crate work and leash manners, and she helps with reactivity and resource guarding. Puppy training and socialization are on the list too. She's a Certified Positive Reinforcement Dog Trainer through the International Academy of Canine Trainers and a Fear Free Certified Professional. Her methods are reward based and force free.

Cowichan Canine Behaviour & Training was established in 2009 in Cobble Hill and serves much of the Cowichan Valley. Its instructors are accredited through the BC SPCA AnimalKind program. There's an orientation class for new students, and classes include Puppy Start Right, Pet Manners, agility, rally and scent detection. There are reactive dog classes, and Lisbeth, the behaviour consultant, leads confidential behaviour consultations. Private lessons and day training are offered too, including sessions in your home. Training follows current published learning theory and is reward based.

Krisztina Harasztosi runs TGD Behavior & Training in Gibsons on the Sunshine Coast and offers online sessions across Canada. She holds an MSc along with the CDBC, CSAP-BC, CBATI-KA and PST-CI credentials. Work starts with an in person assessment of at least 45 minutes, listed on their site as $199, and home visits can be added to a package after that. She takes on fear, separation problems, chasing and aggression, including bites. Her methods are force free and Fear Free.

Maren Bruun runs Paw In Hand from a home office in Powell River and works across the Sunshine Coast and the Sea to Sky region. She holds the CBCC-KA and CPDT-KA and is accredited through the BC SPCA AnimalKind program. She's also Fear Free Certified, and her site says she has trained dogs for over two decades. Services include puppy and dog training plus behaviour programs, and she works virtually too. In Squamish she runs private training walks, and her methods are reward based.

Abbey Smyth runs Modern Dog Training in Whistler and sees private clients in Whistler and Pemberton. A Karen Pryor Academy graduate, she is Fear Free Certified and BC SPCA AnimalKind accredited. Puppy and Life Skills group classes meet on Tuesday evenings at Myrtle Philip Community Centre. Private coaching helps reactive and anxious dogs, including dogs with a bite history. Puppy classes are listed on their site from $185 and coaching from $150, before GST. Her site says she uses no prong or electronic collars and no leash corrections.

Pooch Partners in Vernon is listed in our directory under Shelly Korobanik, though its site doesn't name an owner or trainer. It works in person around Vernon and online. Life stage programs run from Little Paws for puppies to Golden Years for seniors. Named classes include Sidewalk Struggles, Back Like A Bullet, Predation Substitute Training and Home Schooling. Behaviour help covers reactivity and separation anxiety, and in home training is available. Dog sports include canicross and scent detection, plus agility and tracking. The site describes a welfare first, games based approach.

Dog Partners serves Fernie as well as North and West Vancouver. Our listing names Valerie Barry, with KPA-CTP, FDM and PST-CI credentials and Fear Free Elite status. The site uses first names only, so ask who will teach your class. The team is BC SPCA accredited and uses science based, force free methods. The Positive Puppies class is for puppies 9 to 16 weeks, with six weekly 45 minute sessions and no more than six puppies, listed on their site as $340 plus GST. It's our only pick in the East Kootenay, and private training is offered.