Best Dog Trainers in and Near Milwaukee, WI

Best Paw Forward is a positive reinforcement training school with its main office in Hartland and a second class location in Pewaukee. The site says it's in its 24th year and that its methods don't use fear or force. Owner Lisa has trained dogs professionally since 2006 and is an AKC Canine Good Citizen evaluator and a therapy dog evaluator for Intermountain Therapy Animals. Three instructors hold the CPDT-KA, and one of them, Pam, also holds the CBCC-KA. Puppy Kindergarten takes puppies 9 to 15 weeks old for six weeks, and Basic Manners runs eight weeks for dogs over 16 weeks, though the site says it isn't meant for leash reactive dogs. Sport classes cover agility at several levels, plus rally and flyball. Specialty classes include Rocket Recall, Loose Leash Walking, Shy Dog, Canine Good Citizen and Therapy Dog. Private sessions for behavior concerns are available if you call. No prices are posted, and every class needs registration ahead of time.

Black Dog Training is run by owner and lead trainer Cindy Hanisch, with classes held on site in Jackson. She started training at age 11 with her family's Samoyed, and her site says she has coached dogs and their owners in obedience and agility for the past 13 years. She has earned AKC titles in competition obedience, rally and agility, and she's a registered AKC evaluator for the Canine Good Citizen and S.T.A.R. Puppy programs. She describes her method as positive and reward based, and her site says play is essential for dogs and people alike. Group classes for puppies and adult dogs run one hour, usually with six or seven dogs. They cover loose leash walking, stays, waiting at the door, recall and impulse control. Daytime, evening and Saturday class times are offered this session. Private lessons happen at the facility or in your home. Prices aren't posted, so ask when you book.

Canine Einstein is a private canine gym and training center in Milwaukee that uses force free methods, which the site defines as teaching without pain or coercion. Its three trainers hold the CPDT-KA, and all three also list Family Dog Mediation credentials. The site says all staff are Fear Free certified and trained in pet first aid and CPR. Group classes include basic and intermediate manners, Patio Pooches, tricks for confidence and skills for the urban dog. Private training starts with a consultation and a management and training plan. For reactive dogs, You Have a Friend is a group class capped at four dogs, and graduates can join the BARC Club, listed on their site as $30 a month, for group hikes with a trainer. The gym can be rented privately, which the site suggests for shy and nervous dogs. A puppy program and Train and Play, a half day program of training and supervised play in small groups, round out the list.

Canine Enrichment Center in Grafton is owned and run by Heidi LaCosse, who lists more than 25 years of experience and calls herself a certified dog trainer without naming the certifying body. She was the Training Director for Pets Helping People, a Milwaukee therapy dog group, where she spent almost 20 years training and certifying handler and pet teams. The center describes its classes as game based learning in a pressure free setting. Classes split by age. Puppies under 5 months start with Enrich, Explore and Socialize sessions, and they can also take Confidence and Fun-gility classes. Dogs 6 months and older have Skills for Life and Skills 2.0, plus Fun-gility and a Fitness Bootcamp. Private play sessions let you use the space alone with your dog or with a trainer helping. Private lessons cover puppy manners and leash walking, plus focus work. Workshops and Play Care are listed as well. No prices are posted, and the center is closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Greater Racine Kennel Club is a nonprofit that has served the Racine area since the early 1960s with pet and competition training. The public can enroll in any class. Obedience and rally classes mostly run eight weeks and are listed on their site as $120 for nonmembers and $60 for members. Puppy Manners comes in two age groups, Junior for puppies about 2 to 4 months and Senior for about 4 to 6 months, and is part of the AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy program, taught by an AKC approved Canine Good Citizen evaluator. Basic Manners is for dogs about 5 months and older, including newly adopted dogs, and Advanced Manners builds on it. The Canine Good Citizen class ends with the test on the last night, and you need instructor approval to sign up. Novice obedience prepares teams for off leash control and competition, and Open obedience and rally classes are on the schedule too. The club also lists agility and scentwork, along with conformation and pop up classes.

The K-9 Obedience Training Club of Menomonee Falls is a nonprofit club for dogs and their owners, and its puppy and beginner classes need no membership. All breeds and mixes are welcome. The AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy class is for puppies 8 to 16 weeks old and is listed on their site as $110 for six weeks. K4 Advanced Puppy covers the 4 to 6 month stage over eight weeks for $125. Dogs 6 months and older take Beginner classes, two eight week sessions listed at $200 in total. All beginner work is on leash, starting with heel position and loose leash walking and building to reliable recalls. The second session adds sit stays, down stays and distractions. Past the basics, the club lists advanced obedience and agility, plus rally, flyball, nosework, freestyle, and dance and tricks. You register in person at the membership desk on Thursday evenings or Sunday mornings, and you'll need your dog's vaccination record.

Linda Bobot runs The Teacher's Pet Dog Training LLC in Milwaukee. She holds the CPDT-KA, a certification from the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers, which tests trainers by exam and requires continuing education. She also lists the KPA-CTP, a credential from the Karen Pryor Academy, and our records show her as a member of the Pet Professional Guild. The AVSAB position statement on humane training names both the Karen Pryor Academy and the Pet Professional Guild among the credentials it prefers. Her listing shows private training and assistance animal training, and it covers cats as well as dogs. We don't have a website on file for her, so this entry sticks to our records. On the first call, ask where sessions take place and which assistance tasks she trains.

Sit Means Sit Waukesha is a local franchise of the Sit Means Sit brand, run by owner and head trainer Matt Meitner and by Olivia Meitner, owner and office manager. The site says Matt's rescue dog showed separation anxiety and dog aggression, and in 2012 he reached out to Sit Means Sit for help. The business trains from its Waukesha location and from a second site in Menomonee Falls that it lists as its Milwaukee location. Board and Train, which the site calls Full Immersion, is the main program. Day Train lets you drop your dog off for a full day of training, and private one on one lessons have you take part. Group classes follow the one on one programs. Behavior work covers aggressive and reactive dogs, plus high anxiety cases and off leash goals. The site lists 33 communities served, including Milwaukee, Wauwatosa, Brookfield, Kenosha and Oconomowoc. The pages we read don't name the training tools or post prices, so ask about both.

Milwaukee Dog Training Club was founded in 1929 and calls itself Wisconsin's oldest dog training club. It trains in groups at an indoor club and an outdoor club, both in Milwaukee. Obedience starts with Basic, which covers sit, stay, come, heel, leash manners and jumping up. It moves through Beginner, Beginning Novice and Advance Novice to Open and Utility, where dogs learn scent discrimination and directed retrieves. The Puppy Class is a seven week session on Monday evenings for puppies 8 to 20 weeks old at the start. It's limited to 10 puppies and is listed on their site as $200. Topics include potty and crate training, loose leash walking, recall and meeting people and dogs, and the site calls its approach positive. Agility, with tryouts, and flyball are offered too. For obedience classes, every dog needs a license and current shots, and you register in person after a behavior assessment.

MKE Puppy Pal was founded in 2018 by owner and head trainer Justine, who also goes by Steen, after years of pet sitting and dog walking in Milwaukee and a training internship with Rescue Gang. The site says the business has worked with more than 1,000 dogs and their families. Training mixes positive reinforcement with balanced training and e-collar work when the trainer judges it appropriate, with a focus on impulse control and calm behavior. Services include puppy training, obedience and off leash training, plus behavior work for reactivity, aggression and separation anxiety. Sessions run 60 minutes once a week for six to eight weeks and can start with an in home visit to see your dog in its usual space. Virtual lessons are offered, and an adventure training option prepares dogs for hiking and camping. Areas listed include Bay View, Riverwest, Shorewood, Wauwatosa, West Allis and Cedarburg. No credentials or prices are posted.

The Wisconsin Humane Society runs dog training classes, and its Dog Manners Class is open to everyone, whether or not your dog was adopted there. Its training is reward based, using positive reinforcement rather than punishment or force. The Puppy Training Class is for puppies 8 to 16 weeks old and meets once a week for six weeks, and the Dog Manners Class is for dogs 4 months and older. Both focus on bonding and basic manners, along with helping your dog relax in new places, and both run at the Milwaukee campus and at the Racine and Ozaukee campuses. For extra socialization, the Milwaukee campus has a Puppy Enrichment Drop Off for puppies 8 to 16 weeks, listed on their site as $35 a session. Private one hour lessons are offered for dogs that struggle in groups. They take place in person at the Milwaukee campus, on a limited basis in Racine, or by video for anyone. Class prices aren't listed on the training page.