Amiable Dog Training, Milwaukee

Training your dog just got a whole lot easier...

Do you have a lively dog? Is your dog a bit sassy? Would you like help teaching your old dog some new tricks? Want to know how to give your new puppy the best guidance?

Great training will ensure your dog is safe, happy, and a cherished family member. An efficient coach will keep you on track and make the process interesting and fun.

Let us help you reach your goals. Amiable Dog Training has been training dogs (and their owners!) since 1975. Enroll in one of our group classes, schedule a private lesson, purchase our easy-to-use books and DVDs, or hire the dancing dogs to perform at your next event.

Have questions? Please call or email today!

(414) 289-7785

Current Class Schedule

Dog Training Classes Milwaukee, 414-289-7785

Can't wait until the next class starts?  Consider a private lesson  to fill-in the gap 

Watch the video below to see what to expect at Amiable group dog training
  

Classes starting in WEST ALLIS:  
(Pahle Animal Hospital, 10827 W Oklahoma Ave, 53229)
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The calender below lists START DATES. 

• Basic classes (Essential, Mastering, & Off-leash) meet for 4 consecutive weeks/same time & location/45 minutes each week

 • Puppy classes (House & Obedience) and Small Dog classes EACH meet for 3 consecutive weeks/same time & location/45 minutes each week -- and most students take these classes back to back on the same day

• Freestyle/tricks class meets for 5 consecutive weeks/same time & location/45 minutes each week

• Cohesive Canines class meets for 2 consecutive weeks/same time & location each week

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Sunday May 19th, 2013

6:30PM  House Puppy (FULL)
7:15PM  Obedience Puppy  (FULL)

Monday, May 20th, 2013

7:30PM Essential Basic Skills  (3 openings)

Wednesday, May 22nd, 2013

7:30PM Canine Freestyle and Tricks  (7 openings)

Wednesday, May 29th, 2013

 6:30PM Small Dogs, Big Potential (1 opening)

Sunday, June 9th, 2013 

11:45AM   Essential Basic Skills  (5 openings)

Monday, June 17th, 2013

6:30PM   Off Leash Control (4 openings)

Wednesday, June 19th, 2013

6:30PM   Mastering Basic Skills  (1 opening)

 

Private Training: Is it the best choice for you?

Whether you schedule an in-home lesson or come to our location, private training is customized and convenient. For dogs and handlers with physical limitations, the personalized approach improves results. Even so, it is not always the best choice.

If you are unsure which direction to go, certainly give me a call or text or email anytime. But if you want to research it yourself, check out this chart of options.

PRIVATE LESSONS	DON'T CHOOSE IF...	SCHEDULE TODAY IF...
In-home	Don't do private in-home lessons if your dog is apprehensive, shy, or needs socialization (the only way to make him comfortable is with greater exposure)	Private In-home lessons are terrific if you:  • have very specific goals and a short time frame to accomplish them   • need to resolve household behavior issues, multi-pet challenges or any problematic family dynamic
At our location	Don't do private lessons at our location if the behaviors being addressed ONLY occur when dog is in his familiar environment OR the times/dates we have available don't coincide with your schedule	Your dog:  • needs better social skills or emotional control  • will benefit most by working in a challenging environment with individual and customized attention

Which Amiable Class Should You Bypass?

Have you noticed one size does not fit all? At Amiable, we want you to find the best fit for YOUR dog.

If you are unsure which direction to go, certainly give me a call or text or email anytime. But if you want to research it yourself, check out this chart of options.

LIST OF CLASSES	DON'T ENROLL IF...	ENROLL NOW IF...
Private Lessons	Don't do Private Lessons if your dog is apprehensive, shy, or needs socialization (the only way to make him comfortable is with greater exposure)	Private Lessons are great if your schedule is variable (and not conducive to group classes), your dog is displaying aggressive tendencies requiring better control is attained before entering a group class, and/or you want customize techniques and strategies
House-puppy & Obedience Puppy Classes	Don't enroll in Puppy Class if your dog is health compromised OR is too old (the cut off is 15 weeks on the day he begins classes)	Join Puppy Class to learn step-by step, fool-proof strategies in a cost effective, efficient manner and gain confidence through interaction
Essential Basics	Don't enroll in Essential Basics if your dog is dangerously aggressive or handler limitations require extensive customization	Join Essential Basics to learn the fastest way to develop a well-behaved confident companion in all environments and receive lots of personal attention for minimal cost
Mastering Basics	Skip Mastering Basics if you've achieved all you want from the Essential Basics class	Join Mastering Basics if you want to improve the bond between you and your dog, and raise your skills and your dog's understanding of commands
Off-leash Control	Skip Off-leash Class if you never foresee a time when a gate is left open, a caretaker is negligent, or equipment fails	Join Off-leash Class if you want peace-of-mind that your dog will always listen so he can be safe and enjoy greater freedom
Small Dog Class	Don't enroll if your dog weighs more than 15 pounds, is aggressive, needs to learn a great deal of emotional control	Great choice if your little dog needs learn NOT to soil the house, over-bark or be frightened and if you want to learn techniques to maximize the joy of owning a small dog
Freestyle / Tricks Class	Skip Freestyle / Tricks class if you believe dog training is exclusively practical and you only want absolute essentials	Do enroll in Freestyle /Tricks class if you want to learn how to handle two dogs simultaneously to increase the fun of owning two dogs AND to impress everyone who watches you!
Multi-dog class (AKA 'Cohesive Canines'	If you have two dogs but haven't trained either of them in Essential Basics, don't enroll in Cohesive Canines	You delight in working with your dog and striving toward goals that amuse others and simultaneously improve control and rapport with your dog

Wanna Be a Dog Trainer?

I can relate; and so can Tom Schmitt, former Amiable Dog Training Instructor and owner of Superior Dog Training in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. For this reason, we offer a new podcast series discussing our carreers, failures, and business advice, as well as topics ALL dog lovesr are interested in -- such as our breed biases that shouldn't be aired. Listen and let me know what you like, what stinks, your experiences, and what we should cover next.

Amiable Dog Trainer (AKA "Puppy Biz") Podcast EPISODES

#1 Tom Schmitt interviews Amy Ammen about the best and worst aspects of being a dog trainer

                            CLICK ON GRAY BOX BELOW TO LISTEN (coming soon...)

 

#2 Amy Ammen interiews Tom Schmitt about the best and worst aspects of being a dog trainer

                            CLICK ON GRAY BOX BELOW TO LISTEN

#2 Puppy Biz - Pro Dog Trainining career path - Amy interviews co-host Tom Schmitt

#3 Amy Ammen and Tom Schmitt talk about their mentors and how to find yours

                            CLICK ON GRAY BOX BELOW TO LISTEN

#3 Puppy Biz - Who needs dog training mentors? Tom and Amy did!

#4 Amy Ammen and Tom Schmitt talk about their employment history and reflections on becoming an employable dog trainer.

                            CLICK ON GRAY BOX BELOW TO LISTEN

#4 PuppyBiz - Employable dog trainers

#5 Amy Ammen and Tom Schmitt talk about monetizing your specialty in dogs, as well as how to set fees, whether to discount, and our observations about "guarentees."

                            CLICK ON GRAY BOX BELOW TO LISTEN

#5 Puppy Biz - Monetizing your passion

#6 Amy Ammen interrogates Tom Schmitt about why he isn't making gazillions in training sniffer and service dogs

                            CLICK ON GRAY BOX BELOW TO LISTEN (coming soon...)

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RESOURCES FOR ASPIRING PROFESSIONAL DOG TRAINING INSTRUCTORS

1. International Association of Canine Professionals, Martin Deeley, founder

http://canineprofessionals.com/IACP/FAQ

2. Counseling Dog Owners by Job Michael Evans

3. Training and Explaining by Job Michael Evans

 

 

"Training In No Time" - The Author's Opinion

Do you have ridiculous photos of yourself in the 90s? So do I. Regretfully, quite a few of them are in this book. Despite misguided clothing and coifing choices, the training advice and content isn't showing its age. Click here to order.

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- Amy Ammen, director of Amiable Dog Training

Review

"I love the Training In No Time stories; they're entertaining, concise, relevant, relatable (painfully so, in some cases), and memorable - and SO fun write. Personally, I often implement valuable changes in my life after hearing anecdotes or listening to someone else's experience. You too? Then pick up Training in No Time, apply what resonates, and make it part of your routine. Your dog will improve, the results will stick, AND you'll both enjoy the journey."

Summary from Thriftbooks

 "Training In No Time supplies the training regimen today's busy lifestyles demand for both owners and their dogs. It makes good use of how dogs learn and explains how to use that knowledge to establish and maintain the responses every dog owner wants.The Sneakaway is the foundation of this training method. Quite literally, you turn your back and sneak away whenever your dog stops paying attention to you. This method allows for easy teaching and effective problem solving by first focusing your dog's undivided attention on you, even around the strongest distractions.Then, using daily, subtle clues you give your dog in everyday interactions, you can instill good habits. The surest way to get permanent, positive results is to recognize and change the few big ambiguities that allowed problems to surface and to use daily, natural clues to instill, not destroy, good habits. Behavior is being molded 24 hours a day. This results in consistent, socially acceptable behavior under all circumstances and a well-trained companion dog."

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Click here to order a copy of Training in No Time. Your dog will thank you!

 To listen to Amy's summary, click on the gray box below

 

Training In No Time summary by Amy Ammen

Since you scrolled all the way to this point, you deserve a reward! Download Click to download Ch1 of TNT

 

Ambushed in the Park

It happened again.

"He's friendly!" the owner shouted as the dog bolted toward me.  

"Call your dog!" I pleaded, even though it was apparent the owner was a long way from having that type of control and I was powerless to stop the ambush on my own leashed dogs.

I know they are just dogs, but how would you feel if a complete stranger ran up and sniffed YOUR butt?  "Oh, don't worry, he's friendly," provides no comfort when your dog is about to be molested, attacked, or eaten!


Simple, Safe Rules For Dog Walkers (owners or otherwise):

1. Never take your dog off leash unless he listens instantly, especially around distractions
2. When you see another dog, ASK permission before allowing your dog to greet him
   
   
   

If your dog has developed social issues around other dogs due to an attack, ambush, or even just due to a lack of familiarity with dogs, give us a call at (414) 289-7785 so we can arrange a private lesson and establish an effective strategy.

- Amy Ammen, director of Amiable Dog Training 

Tie Your Dog Consciously

I just wrote about the importance of NOT tying your dog in a traffic pattern. What I failed to mention is that I saw a properly tied dog at Safeway that same evening. Check out this Corgi mix's location. He cannot reach the landing of the stairs and, while the leash could be a tad shorter, the length allows for passersby to walk uninterrupted.

Another reason to tie short (counter-intuitive as it is) is to promote calmness. Generous slack allows the anxious canine movement which can lead to frenzy. Before taking your "show on the road," follow these tips to train your dog to be relaxed while tied (and to solve problems, like house-soiling, in your abode).

Think Before You Tie

I was at Safeway on Betetania Ave in Honolulu last week. While enjoying a delicious bowl of Jambalaya before my business meet-up, a shopper tied her beautiful Jack Russell Terrier outside the entry.

Don't freak. True to its name, this Safeway is a safe location, the dog was completely relaxed, and the owner got the a-okay from the security guard and only needed to grab a couple items.

But the owner's selection of location still confounds me. Why choose the well-trafficked staircase when many highly visible alternatives were steps away?

Though this dog is a gem and I applaud the owner for taking him everywhere, remember to ALWAYS be conscious and courteous of pedestrians and choose tying locations accordingly.

"HIP IDEAS FOR HYPER DOGS" Radio Interview

Think your dog is hyper?  Think he is hopeless?  Have you tried everything?  

Laugh and learn as Lisa Woody, the host of The Lucky Dog Show, and I discuss surefire strategies to calm, comfort and control any canine.

Download The Hyperactive Dog

Looking for more information? Click here.

Dog Tricks Are The Ticket To Terrific Behavior

If you think tricks are superficial, checkout my radio interview with Lisa Woody, host of the Lucky Dog Show.

HIHD_LDS tricks

Click on the grey text block above (labeled HIHD_LDS tricks) to learn how tricks improve your control, solve problems, and ensure that everyone will love your dog as much as you do.

Enroll in Amiable Dog Training's Freestyle/Tricks class today.