Hello guys. I have been thinking about it alot with my GSD and working with her on trainning. I would love to become a trainer. I see all the videos on the website with Michael Ellis and I am hooked. I want to help people have a stronger relationship with their loving pet and so on. I am wondering if anyone could help with some information on achieving this.

The Tom Rose school is one that I have lots of respect for. I'd love to go there myself.

Michael Ellis and Tom Rose are both highly respected and offer classes.

Throw Triple Crown Academy into that mix.

I went to the Tom Rose sight and checked it out. I yet to see what Michael Ellis offers. A little hesitant though. I know that I can acquire alot of knowledge from either or but feel most of the knowledge and skill comes from experience and time.

Practice, practice, practice and absorb all the information you can. Find a trainer you respect and take lessons from them. And pick their brain while you're at it - most good dog people are very enthusiastic to help a student who truly wants to learn. Train your own dog(s) for performance events. Attend seminars from well respected people in the dog world.

If your own dog is to a good level in her training, get a second one. Different dogs have different strengths and weaknesses and you learn lots by working with more than one. Or volunteer at a shelter/foster dogs for a rescue organization. More hands on experience for you with a wide variety of dogs.

Be ready to spend a lot of time and a decent chunk of money to teach your self. Dog training is something that you must have a passion for to be successful at.

Joseph,
While attending one of the three legitimate dog training schools ( The Tom Rose School for Dog training, Triple Crown, or Michael Ellis ) would dramatically increase your dog training skills and knowledge, there ultimately is no substitute for experience. The pros put the time and effort in, and the wannabes look for a quickie way - don't be that guy.

Joining AKC and/or SchH training clubs and getting the actual experience that comes from working your own dog ( and seeing others work their dogs also ) is something that you can't learn any other way. Get out there, train, ask questions, and just put the time in - there's no magic formula, it's work and you'll have good days and bad, but you'll start to see the patterns that come during dog training with time.

Good luck!

Start with looking into one of the three dog training schools listed in the posts above. All are WONDERFUL places to learn and gain some experience. They all include hands on training with dogs, either your own or a pound pup, and TONS of classroom teaching on everything from theory to practical application. All are live-in type classes and none can be completed over a weekend, they take weeks to get all the information out of them and in some cases, to graduate.

Then, like Will said, train your own dog to the highest level possible for that dog, then do it again with another dog. There are many different sports to try, including SCH (or other bite sports), agility, scent discrimination, herding and best of all… Obedience! Get a title to prove that you can train a dog at a high level. In AKC OB you should be able to get almost any dog a UD and in SCH a BH. If you are unable to get one of these on at least two dogs, then to be perfectly honest, you have no business training other people’s dogs.

Another way to get some wonderful experience with MANY dogs, is to go to a local pound or shelter and work with or foster a dog with behavioral issues. Using the skills you learned at one of those schools mentioned, take a dog that would otherwise be PTS and teach it to be a great, adoptable pet. Here, screwing up a dog won’t be as big a deal as the dog would be PTS anyway and you are the dog’s last hope. (Just don’t fail Fostering 101!) Doing this you will gain a TON of experience in short order with just about all training issues, personality types, drive levels and motivational requirements.

If you are really smart, you will use these dogs that you have trained and helped to get adopted as a data base for clients. Offer free training for life (or a year) for basic obedience to those dogs adopted and discounts to friends they send to you (think of the GREAT marketing a well trained dog is and the emotional draw of a altruistic trainer that donated his time to train a death row dog&hellip or for more advanced training.

Even after you develop a great pet training business, continue training your own dogs to higher and higher levels. Get them titled and don’t be content with just well behaved “balanced” pets. My mom has one of those, and it has nothing to do with her training ability. PROVE your ability by competing and titling your personal dogs. And keep learning! Keep going to one of the various schools for refresher courses. You can never learn enough, even if it is to validify why you DON’T like a method of training…

That is great advice Jessica.

I also just wanted to throw this out there as food for thought -
While the reason people come to you is to train the dog, we all know that it is really the person who needs the instruction. This can be a very difficult thing to deal with. Everyone has their own quirks, neurosis, morals & beliefs, and of course personality.
If you want to be the type of trainer that works one on one with people, you are going to need to be able to learn to read them very well. You have to be able to do this, in order to tactfully push them in a direction they may not want to go at first - but it is best for the dog and the situation in general.
So yes, of course, hands on experience and practice with dogs and knowing them inside out is number 1, for sure.
But, I think the type of training you have in mind - private lessons, perhaps obedience or behavioral issues? Require people skills. At least, IMHO.

Well I saw the Triple Crown school and saw that they offer a course online. I would love to attend on either of the campuses but you know how it is with work and all. I can't exactly leave work for 10 or so weeks. I love the advice that you are giving and i am willing to take more if anyone else has more to offer.