Beware of self-proclaimed “Dog Trainers”

Oct 20

I’ve been a dog trainer for a hot minute and I’ve recently been seeing a lot of trainers pop up around my location or really around anywhere that are self-proclaimed “Dog Trainers”. What does this mean? A self-proclaimed dog trainer has no formal training in dog behavior or dog training itself. They simply decide one day that they are good with dogs and they enjoy training them to do things and…BADA BOOM BADA BING they said “I’m a dog trainer now”. They slapped together a website, through some AI ads onto their Facebook groups or website and said “here I am world, I’m the best dog trainer here come pay me money to train your canine”!

But where do these people come from? I’m not saying that they can’t train dogs. Many of these people did start by simply…starting. Yes, some of them do just slap a label on themselves and call themselves trainers, but others really have done some work to get there albeit, not a proper training program. They might realize they are good with dogs and that they can read dog body language well and start developing a program, try it out with their own dogs, and then suddenly a training career is born.

The BIGGEST issue in the dog training community is: THERE ARE NO REGULATIONS FOR DOG TRAINERS TO CLAIM THEY ARE DOG TRAINERS. Any Joe-Shmo can walk over to you, tell you they are, and you wouldn’t know any different right? WRONG! There are ways that you as a client can make sure you are getting your money’s worth from a reliable, educated, and proper dog trainer.

Make sure they have some lettering following their name OR have a certificate from a recognized dog training school. For example, I am Kaitlin Evaston, CCDT (CATCH Certified Dog Trainer). I graduated from CATCH, a school recognized by several prominate dog training associations including APDT Internation (Association of Professional Dog Trainers), IAABC (International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants), and CCPDT (Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers).
They should have proof of continuing education. Dog training is ALWAYS changing. The field is growing, we are learning more and more every day about the right way to work with dogs. A trainer should always be looking to stay up-to-date on the newest forms of training and should be actively seeking continuing education by attending conferences or online workshops. How do you know if they do? They should be posting about it or have it on their website!
They use scientifically proven training methods. Trainers who have gone through the proper channels to be experts in their field have learned about the scientically proven training methods including positive reinforcement. These trainers do not use pain or punishment or any form thereof to train dogs, they do it using rewarding methods that create a safe and secure environment for your dog!
They show REAL progress with REAL people and REAL dogs. Real dog trainers don’t use AI in ads or videos. In my personal opinion, no business should and I avoid businesses that do. Why? Because I want to see REAL things in a world that is becoming so reliant on fake news and fake images. A dog trainer will show you their real animals, real videos, and real successes and struggles. Nothing in dog training is perfect and AI is an easy fix but doesn’t show a “real” version of anything. I’m not big into social media, but what I do post is raw and real.
They won’t make promises they can’t keep. If a trainer promises “I can fix your dog in 30 minutes”…RED FLAG ENERGY! No dog can be “fixed” in that amount of time and many behavioral problems can take weeks or even months to help get through. And there is ALWAYS a possibility that a dog can revert or not be able to overcome their issue. Any trainer with a 100% guarentee posted ANYWHERE is already lying to you. No one can guarentee a dog’s behavior at any time. Even the nicest most friendly dogs can have a bad day.
ANY DOG TRAINER WHO CLAIMS TO BE A DOG BEHAVIORIST OR BEHAVIORALIST IS BULLSHITTING YOU! First of all, a dog behaviorist is a LICENSED VETERINARY PROFESSIONAL ONLY. They WILL have “Dr.” before their name and it will end with DACVB (Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists) OR CAAB (Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist). These incredible humans go to school for YEARS to achieve this level of understanding of animal psychology and any trainer claiming to be one is a stain on their good name. And a BEHAVIORALIST is a made up word…they don’t exist, the end. Check out https://www.dacvb.org/ for more information on behaviorists.
And lastly, good dog trainers don’t need gimmicks to tell you they are good at what they do. We don’t need titles like “Expert” or “Master”, we rely on our expertise, education, and results to show you we are good at what we do.

I want to leave you with a thought…if you were having heart surgery and you asked your doctor where they got their training from for heart surgery and they said “Well I’m an expert” or “I’m a master heart surgeon” but they had no formal training, no certificates, no “Dr” in front of their name, and no continuing education under them…would you let them operate on you? HELL NO! Make sure, the trainer you choose hits all 7 of the above criteria and you will be in good hands. I’ve listed some resources below for certification information AND trainers in the Myrtle Beach and surrounding areas that hit all these criteria that I can personally recommend. Because there are so many of us, so little information out there about how to choose us, and none of us are a one-size-fits-all. If you have any questions contact Kay’s K9s, LLC at kaydogtrainingmb@gmail.com or text 843-231-9979.

Resources:

Post-nominal lettering for dog trainers: CPDT-KA, CPDT-KSA, CBCC-KA, CDBC, IAABC-ADT, KPA CTP, CTC, ABCDT, VSA-CDT, CCDT, PCT-A, PMCT

Dog Behaviorist: DACVB or CAAB, https://www.dacvb.org/ OR https://www.animalbehaviorsociety.org/web/committees-applied-behavior-caab.php

Organizations

CCPDT (Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers resources)- https://www.ccpdt.org/resources/

APDT International (Association of Professional Dog Trainers)- https://apdt.com/

IAABC (International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants)- https://iaabc.org/

The Pet Professional Guild- https://www.petprofessionalguild.com/

Dog Training Education Programs

The Academy for Dog Trainers- https://academyfordogtrainers.com/

The Academy of Pet Careers- https://www.theacademyofpetcareers.com/

Animal Behavior College- https://www.animalbehaviorcollege.com/