Dock diving, barn hunts, new hooman baby prep: these aren’t your puppy’s basic obedience classes. We asked our pup-lovin’ Dog-Friendly Twin Cities Facebook group for cool and quirky recs for Minneapolis dog training classes. Here are some of the top picks to help your woofer level up.
Training for the Furry Athlete
- Dog Sport Foundations by Paws Abilities Dog Training: Dogs and playing sports is a match made in heaven, and this class teaches you and your dog handling skills, focus and impulse control, and positioning to be ready for any sport you choose.
- Young Dog, Old Dog, Trick Dog! by Big Leap of Faith: Teach your pup of any age some new tricks, including roll over, find it, circle, paws up, and more.
- Intro to Dock Diving by For the Love of Dogs: Just in time to show off your BFF’s beach bod, this class offers pool and dock-jumping lessons in conjunction with The Dog Tank.
Enriching Fun for Everyone
- Introduction to Nosework by The Paw Pet Resort: For super sniffers who wanna take their scent game to the next level, this class encourages pups to use their snouts to sniff out treats and toys. This enrichment work builds confidence in puppers. Paw Pet Resort also has a weekly swim party known as Surf n’ Turf–steak and lobster tails not included–but you will have a pawful lot of fun.
- Barn Hunt by For the Love of Dogs: Did you know dogs have as many as 300 million olfactory receptors in their noses compared to about 6 million in humans? Your pup’ll ruv the challenge of finding a rat while playing on a course of hay bales. The rats are hidden in safe tubes, and it’s up to your dog to sniff ’em out.
- Canine Freestyle! Groovin’ with Your Dog by Big Leap of Faith: Freestyle is a newer doggo sport that combines tricks, music, and dancing! No dance experience, no paw-blem. Your doggo will be weaving, spinning, and bowing in no time.
We’re All in This Together: Training for Pups and Their Hoomans
- Happy Feet by Paws Abilities Dog Training: This class will make nail trimming easier for you, your vet, AND your pup by teaching strategies to make Fido a little more comfortable and cooperative with the whole process.
- Your Dog and New Baby Group Class by The Canine Coach: Get your pup prepared for the baby while you’re still expecting! You’ll get weekly action steps to help you and your furry friend through the whole process.
- Dogalates! Core & Strength by Big Leap of Faith: This one’s a workout for you and your pooch that strengthens your bods and your balance. Plus let’s be honest, dogalates is just fun to say.
Dog Training Classes to Mind Your Ps and Qs
- I’m So Excited: Impulse Control by The Canine Coach: Is your dog extra exuberant? This class will help you with accountability and follow through with your pup.
- Manners/Rally Classes by For the Love of Dogs: This series of classes is pawfect for teaching polite behavior, equipping your pup to handle challenging environments, and effectively enforcing manners–all through positive reinforcement, of course. The Level 3 class includes field trips to show off the pup’s new skills out on the town. Hitting up a pawtio? Try out the Patio Leash™ to keep the paws from wandering.
Have you and your pup taken any of these classes? Are there any great ones we missed? Let us know in the comments and tag pics of your training experiences with #SidewalkDog on Instagram!
Featured photo: Murilo Viviani
Sidewalk Dog’s mission is to help dog parents spend more time with their puppers by discovering and sharing activities they can do and places they can go—together! Sniff out our award-winning newsletter and Instagram, join our Dog-Friendly Twin Cities Facebook Group, and grab one of our Dog-Friendly Brewery Passes.