COMMITTED CANINE

Below you will find our requirements for the dog. These must be met prior to bringing your dog to one of our programs.

Note: some of these requirements only apply to dogs we receive for Custom Training and will be noted as such.

• The dog should be no less than 10 and up to 30 months old
• • Older dogs are acceptable however, please consider that bad habits are harder to resolve if the dog has been practicing them for a longer time
  • a dog’s career as a functioning Service Dog must be weighed against his natural lifespan
• The dog must be up to date on rabies, distemper/parvo, bordetella vaccines.
  • Hard copy or e-copy of your dogs records are required.
• We strongly prefer males over 14 months old to be neutered before arriving for Custom Training or T.E.A.C.H.
• We strongly suggest that bitches over 18 months which have had a first estrus cycle be spayed. 
• A bitch that that hasn’t yet had an estrus cycle or which will be due in estrus during the training dates will not be accepted for Custom Training (but she may be transferred to a future date without loss of deposit.)
• Bitches in season may not attend a T.E.A.C.H. class.
• Dogs attending Custom Training must have tested negative for and be on monthly heartworm preventative (provided by owner).
• Dogs must be on a monthly flea/tick preventative.
• We strongly recommend that your dog has been radio-graphed and deemed normal for hip structure by a licensed veterinarian.
• We strongly recommend that your dog has been tested clear of any other high probability heritable conditions for the breed, 
  • For example, a German Shepherd Dog should also have an elbow x-ray because elbow dysplasia is a fairly high risk in the breed.
• The dog should be:
  • accustomed to living indoors with humans
  • Been exposed to a variety of real-world experiences and different social settings (negotiating a flight of stairs, riding in a vehicle, etc)
  • Housebroken
  • Crate trained
  • Recently groomed (Custom Training.)
  • If the dog requires professional grooming during its Custom Training duration, the owner is required to pay for the service and our travel time and mileage to take the dog to a groomer.
  • Free of chronic illness like poor GI track / digestion issue, ear infections, skin infections, diabetes, allergies, etc.
  • Free of severe motion sickness during car travel.
• The dog must not have any significant social issues such as
  • fear or panic
  • strong flight behavior
  • aggressive behaviors
  • intolerance of other dogs
  • high prey drive
  • strong desire to chase or kill small animals
  • resource guarding (food, toys, turf etc..)
  • snapping at your hand when you touch certain areas on its body, or when attempting to brush or cut nails
  • excessive shyness
  • excessive / incessant barking
  • ‘protective’ behavior

If you want your dog to remain on his own food during Custom Training, please provide a sufficient amount for his ten (or longer) week stay.

As professional dog trainers we have years of experience rehabilitating anti-social and aggressive dogs. We are capable of addressing typical anti-social behaviors that many pet dogs present. Behaviors like pulling on the leash, whining, jumping up, mild snapping at the leash or focusing on a cat are common anti-social behaviors that we are accustomed to seeing, and most often can resolve with property techniques even with prospective Service Dogs (although it’s always better if a future Service Dog doesn’t present such behaviors.)

However, if a dog arrives to T.E.A.C.H. with serious anti-social behavior, it will be immediately excused from the premises. The deposit will not be refunded.

If a dog that arrives for Custom Training presents serious anti-social behavior, there will be no refund of the deposit. The owner will be expected to come for the dog at the owner’s travel expense.