For Puppies 8 weeks to 6 months old
Puppy Training
Start your puppy off on the right paw. Early training is key to raising a confident, well-mannered dog who listens, learns, and thrives in your family.
Why Early Training Matters
The first few months of your puppy’s life are crucial for shaping their behavior and confidence. Proper socialization and training during this critical period help prevent future behavior issues and set the stage for a well-adjusted adult dog.
This class serves as the foundation for all future training. Once your dog masters this training, you can continue to build on their skills in our Continuing Ed classes for more advanced training and activities.
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Yes! Yes! and YEEEEEES!!!!
Oh my, we LOVE helping people get ready for their new pup before puppy arrives!
There’s so much to consider to be sure your puppy gets off on the right paw….
What’s the best location for puppy to sleep, play, and potty?
How will you ensure housetraining is quick and effective?
What supplies do you need?
What are appropriate house rules regarding puppy interactions (especially important for families with children)?
How will you teach your puppy it’s okay to be alone?
How will you transition your puppy from the only environment they may have ever known to yours?
How can you start a socialization program for your puppy at home?
Register for a session of our Private Puppy Coaching to be sure you and your pup get off to a perfect start!
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Congratulations on your new puppy!
The short answer to this question is that it’s never too early to start training your pup!
Your puppy has been learning since the moment they were born! Now that they’re part of your family, it’s important to remember that your puppy is learning every moment they are awake.
We recommend that puppies begin our GROUP CLASSES - Puppy Kindergarten and Puppy Social - at 11 weeks old or shortly thereafter. Yes, we know they haven’t finished all their puppy vaccinations by 11 weeks but current recommendations from leading veterinary associations are that puppies should experience safe, positive exposure to other puppies and people even before they reach 4 months.
Prior to beginning Puppy Kindergarten and Social, we can do private training with you at your home or our center.
Through private training, we can help you set up a plan for housetraining, socialization, appropriate play and rest, head start training on puppy life skills, and building appropriate interactions with all family members, including children. We can also help guide your selection of toys, crates, and other equipment.
Puppyhood is such a special time and we’re here to support you with proven positive techniques for raising a happy, well-behaved family member!
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There are advantages to group classes and private training. For best results, you might consider a blend of both!
PRIVATE TRAINING may be best if:
Your dog is too young (under 11 weeks) for Puppy Kindergarten and Puppy Social, our two group training programs for puppies.
Your schedule or situation prevents participation in Puppy Kindergarten and Puppy Social.
You have specific training goals beyond skills taught in our group classes.
You have very small children who you want to involve in the training.
Your training goals include other pets in your home.
You need help with behavior challenges such as fear, anxiety, or aggression.
But the advantages of GROUP CLASSES, especially for puppies, are important!
They provide positive exposure to new people, other puppies, and environments and this is so important to a puppy’s development.
Learning in a group environment helps puppies learn to be attentive to their people, even when there are distractions.
We can learn so much by watching how other puppies learn. We draw on all the puppies in class to demonstrate how to teach puppies and how they learn.
Many puppy parents enjoy learning alongside other puppy parents since they are experiencing many of the same rewards and challenges of puppyhood.
Whether you choose private or group training - or both! - we are here to help!
Puppy Kindergarten
FOR PUPPIES 11-20 WEEKS OLD AT FIRST CLASS
This flagship group class employs the latest knowledge about puppy development and behavior to help you and your pup get off to a positive head start. In this class, you’ll learn how to effectively teach and parent your dog, and your pup will learn key foundation behaviors!
With gentle guidance and tons of rewards, your pup will learn to be attentive to you, greet people politely, lie down, stay and wait, come back to you enthusiastically, and learn to walk nicely on a leash.
Tricks and other fun activities are introduced to build skills and confidence in our puppy friends.
Combine Puppy Kindergarten with Puppy Social (see below) for the most well-rounded approach to puppy training and socialization!
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Tuition - $375 Includes:
Small-group class setting in our spacious, climate-controlled, training center with fun and specialized training obstacles and equipment
Seven weekly sessions:
Class starts with an orientation seminar to dog behavior, how dogs learn, and how we train. This lasts about 1.5 hours and you’ll have homework to get your dog ready for training class!
Six (6) class sessions with puppies (each session lasts about an hour)
Access to our student portal with videos, handouts, homework, quizzes to support your dog’s training
Access to our client-only Facebook page
Access to weekly office hours, held online via Zoom
Essential training equipment ($75 retail value):
Deluxe treat bag and belt
Gear bag
20’ long line
Clicker and wrist band (you are not required to use a clicker but many people like to)
And more!
Graduation certificate, bandana, and photos
Opportunity to enroll in “Continuing Ed” courses to continue your training
Tons of KNOWLEDGE, SUPPORT, and FUN!
REQUIREMENTS FOR
PUPPY KINDERGARTEN & PUPPY SOCIAL
Puppies should be between 11 and 20 weeks at the first class.
Puppies must have been in your home and only with other vaccinated dogs for at least two weeks.
Puppies must have had the following vaccinations by first class:
2 parvo-distemper (often called DHPP)
Bordetella
For Puppy Social, we also require documentation of a clear fecal test. While we don’t require this for Puppy Kindergarten, we strongly recommend this.
Please note that we require vaccinations and the fecal test to have been administered through a licensed veterinarian.
Please let us know if you have any questions. Text or call our Training Coordinator at (530) 222-2822 or send us an email using the contact form below!
Puppy Social
For pups 11-20 weeks old at first class
Our Puppy Social is a 4-week play program that takes advantage of a developmental “window of opportunity” when puppies are learning to feel safe with novelty in their new world.
The focus of this class is positive interaction through play with other puppies and exposure to a variety surfaces and obstacles. The end result is that puppies gain experience and confidence that can help prevent future behavior issues.
Puppy Social can be taken prior to or concurrent with Puppy Kindergarten or our Private Puppy Coaching Program; puppies must be enrolled in one of these programs to be eligible for Puppy Social Class.
MEETS SATURDAY 10:30-11:30 AM
start any week!
4 concurrent SESSIONS | $100
single session | $35
WHAT’S after puppy kindergarten?
Acing Adolescence
This Continuing Ed class is designed for puppies who have completed Puppy Kindergarten or Private Puppy Coaching and are now entering adolescence (typically between 5-12 months).
As your puppy grows, so does their energy, curiosity, and independence.
This class helps reinforce essential skills by strengthening attention, impulse control, and responsiveness to cues, even in the face of the increasing challenges and distractions that come with adolescence.
in person and online via zoom
Private Puppy Coaching
Our Private Puppy Coaching program allows you to get the support you need during the first weeks and months of your new puppy’s life with you. This is a time of enormous change for your puppy, and it can be a time of enormous challenge for puppy parents too!
Puppy energy, antics, and behaviors, along with early training and socialization needs, can be overwhelming. We can help you and your puppy learn and grow together.
Our goal is to help get your partnership with your puppy off to a positive head start!
Prices are for sessions held in Chico, California and surrounding area. Additional travel fees may apply for sessions outside of Chico area.
REQUIREMENTS FOR PRIVATE PUPPY COACHING
Since we often see puppies as soon as they arrive at your home, we ask that your pup has started a vaccination program that will be continued with your veterinarian.
Should you wish to train at our center, we do require documentation of your puppy’s age appropriate vaccinations.
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60-minute lesson to help with targeted puppy problems (in-person at our center or you home or by Zoom)
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Four 1-hour, weekly, coaching sessions (in-person at our center or you home or by Zoom).
Puppies in this program are eligible to participate in our weekly Puppy Socials!
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Six private puppy coaching sessions cover our Puppy Kindergarten curriculum. Tuition includes: training equipment bundle, access to online materials, access to weekly online office hours. If you are in the Chico area, you are welcomed to also attend our orientation seminar (information is also available online via video).
Weekly coaching sessions are provided in-person or via Zoom.
Private coaching puppies are eligible to participate in our weekly Puppy Socials (additional fee required).
Questions About puppy training?
please Reach Out!
I can't say enough good things about the training programs at The Canine Connection
I get compliments all of the time on what an awesome dog I have. Starting with the puppy classes sets you up for success. Then moving on to the "teen" and "adult" dog classes reinforces the training. You learn how to teach your dog. You do have to put in the effort to reap the reward.
Abbie goes once a week to play and keep up her socialization. Canine Connection is the ONLY place I feel comfortable leaving her when I go away. I highly recommend Sarah and her staff. Abbie loves them!
- JESSICA WOOD CUMMINGS, CHICO, CA
