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Pro-Trainer Academy
Our Premier Dog Trainers Program helps aspiring dog trainers reach their dreams by answering the question. How to become a dog trainer in California, by helping them to become professional dog trainers and independent business owners through the program we offer.
Imagine…
- Work that doesn’t feel like work.
- Earning an income by indulging in your passion for dogs.
- Having everything you need to confidently help owners have the dog of their dreams.
- Having the flexibility to learn and grow as a professional, at your own pace, and move down a new career path, even with your busy life.
- Being a member of a community to get ongoing support, work through challenging cases, and be inspired by others.
- Experiencing ongoing support/mentoring from an expert who does every day, what you aspire to do.
Perhaps you’ve always wanted a career in training dogs but never felt confident about how to become a dog trainer in California.
What if you could enroll in a program that can take you there – one that could help you obtain the skills to train dogs AND the skills to run your own business?
Gold Country Trainer Academy has a comprehensive, hybrid (online/ in person) that will give you the knowledge, confidence, and skills to help virtually any behavioral problem that you will encounter.
You will have an amazing foundation to launch into your choice of specialty programs if you desire or focus on serving an amazing array of obedience needs for pets and their parents!
Can you imagine?
If you can, the Premier Trainer Program is for you!
Benefits you’ll receive by joining us:
Create thoughtful Assessments of Teams
You will learn how to assess a team’s (both dog and person) strengths and weaknesses so that you can create a comprehensive plan to help them achieve their goals.
Communication with Clarity
You will have the confidence to train a dog in a way that generates excellent results with the least amount of stress and frustration.
Confidence in Handling all types of dogs
Through our Comprehensive Hands-on Training, you will become confident about handling even difficult dogs… that is after all what we often get called for!
Intensive Knowledge
By applying the intensive knowledge that you acquire in this program, you will build solid obedience foundations and transforms and transform dog behavior for dogs of all ages and behavior challenges.
Marketing
We teach you the best strategies for marketing in order to attract your ideal clients in your geographical catchment area.
Business Plan
Not only do we tackle the dogs, but we teach you all the aspects of running a business and help you create your very own customized business plan so you can hit the ground running upon graduation.
Our proven program is split into three distinct phases
Gold Country Trainer Academy is much more than an online course. It’s a comprehensive, hybrid (online and in-person) coaching and mentoring program that provides you with education and support across an entire year. Through a combination of online learning to get you started and in-person learning to get you hands-on directly with us, you will develop the necessary skills and support system to feel confident taking on clients on your own or working at a facility, depending on whatever direction you decide to take your training career.
Phase 1
Online: 3-6months.
Done from the comfort of your own home on your own schedule.
You will learn the following:
- Understanding Dog Behavior
- How to Communicate Clearly based on how dogs learn best
- How to use a balanced approach to training with a heavy emphasis on positive reinforcement but still ensuring reliability while maintaining a happy confident dog
Phase 2
In-person: 5 weeks Intensive in Person*
During this time, you will get a hands-on experience in all areas of our facility and all things dog:
Phase 3
Online: Practicum
Once you have completed Phase 1 and Phase 2, you must show that you internalized the skills in training, assessments, creating curriculum, and business aspects. You will have set the stage for you to hit the ground running in your own business. You may then enroll in our Practicum.
Successful completion of the practicum is required for certification.
By the end of the program, you will also be able to:
- Identify how best to assess a human/k9 teams’ strengths and weaknesses
- Identify how to create programs for human/k9 teams which emphasize teaching through positive reinforcement, but polishing with pressure as needed to secure reliable behaviors
- Identify commonly made errors in communication between handler and dog and create a plan to fill in the holes based on the team’s capabilities
- Learn to create customized approaches to multiple types of dogs and students based on their needs and abilities
- Create a clear business plan that you can put into action to get a jump start on your new career
At the Gold Country Trainer Academy, you’ll learn how to create a powerfully effective curriculum for teaching dogs and owners, group classes, private lessons, or comprehensive programs using our clearly established tools for K9 communication.
We take a science-based, multi-pronged approach to learning that ensures you have a highly effective, personalized experience, unlike any other program.
Through our proven, program, you will gain expertise in the following ways:
ONLINE MODULES & LESSONS
Using video lectures, demonstrations, downloadable templates, worksheets, action guides, and video recorded exercises, our Gold Country K9 Trainer Academy team will help you acquire the confidence and knowledge needed to safely design and implement comprehensive programs to help dogs and their humans become the best cohesive team possible.
LIVE GROUP COACHING CALLS
Live, online group calls provide guidance and support to ensure you have an exceptional course experience. You will have opportunities to engage one-on-one with your instructors, guest speakers, other students, and program alumnae to expand your knowledge. This is a truly interactive and engaging online experience that’s designed to meet your individual needs.
ONLINE AND IN-PERSON COACHING & MENTORING
You will have opportunities throughout the program to work with dogs, apply what you’re learning, and then receive personalized feedback. During these personalized sessions, you will receive customized feedback from one of our team members, get answers to your questions, and continue to advance your canine communication knowledge and skills. Most feedback will be done in the group format so that each student can benefit from the collective dogs in class. Because training varies from dog to dog, it is important for students to have enough exposure to different experiences, not just their own personal ones. We often benefit from watching others more than when we are working ourselves. Both are important.
EXCLUSIVE ONLINE COMMUNITIES
When you enroll in our Spring 2022 program, you will receive 12-months access to our robust Facebook group. There you will find an exclusive and supportive, online community. Here you can connect with our coaches, ask questions, gain access to additional resources, network with other canine fitness professionals, and connect with other like-minded individuals. This is a great way to stay motivated and inspired and meet other canine fitness enthusiasts during your time in the program and after you graduate.
ADDITIONAL MEMBER BENEFITS
Upon successful completion of Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the program, you will:
- Receive Certificates of Completion from Gold Country Trainers Academy
- Be eligible to apply to the GCTA Premiere Trainers Practicum. Successful completion of the Practicum experience leads to becoming a Certified GCTA Premiere Trainer
- Receive a special invitation to join our Alumni Program for ongoing support, continuing education, and access to special guest speakers and content updates to the program
- The ability to enter any of our specialty programs, such as Service Dogs, Detection Dogs, Advanced Behavior Modification Work
Next Steps…
If what you’ve learned sparks your interest, submit your application today!
Our admissions team will review your information and reach out with suggested next steps. This may be a 1-on-1 consultation with one of our K9 specialists or recommendations sent via email.
We’re here to help you make your dream career a reality!
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Upcoming Events
For a calendar of many of our events, please visit the link below
