Dog Health Questions: Starting a dog training service?

So I trained Sandy for the show Annie, and I have had several people ask me If I would "hire out" and train their dogs for them. I LOVE training dogs, I would like to do it as a career. I have watched Victoria Stillwell on Animal plantet and learned ALOT from her, but most of it I already knew how to do. Should I go for it and train them and thier dogs? How much should I charge per hour, if any?

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-If you are going to eb doing this, then yes, I would charge. Say, about $8.00 per hour- if they come to you. More iof you go to their place. As you get better with other people's dogs, thy;ll refer you to others, and your fee could go up slowly. Start small, do a GREAT job, then increase in customers and the amount you charge.

Dog Training with Hand Signals - Hand Signals Help With Obedience Training Your Dog

• If you are asking on here how to train a dog to "focus" you are nowhere near ready to train dogs professionaly. If you were, you would know there are better, more reliable sources out there to gain knowledge from (and not just a couple of TV shows either!)
  
  Start by "training" neighbours dogs etc for FREE to build up a reputation for yourself. Join clubs in your area that compete in Obedience and things to make a few "contacts" who can help you on your way, who you can watch and learn from. READ LOTS. You are more likely to get people to trust you in your abilities if you have some titles under your belt - so train your own dog and COMPETE, COMPETE, COMPETE! If you can do it with yours, you can do it with others (often more easily!)


• Yes defiantly go for it if it is something you love to do. The charging part all depends though. How serious is their problem with their dog?, How much are they willing to pay? Make sure it is reasonable though. If I were you i would charge 25 dollars an hour, but you are the professional. :)


• You need to at least apprentice under a trainer. You will get the experience you need with all breeds.
  You can't learn or get experience training from a TV show


• Yes! If this is what you want to do then I would say go with your heart!
  PS £10/$12 sounds reasonable for a one to one session with the dog depending on how good you are....... good luck. I really hope you do it!!


• Depending upon your age, you need to ask an insurance agent about professional liability insurance. You or your parents or guardians can be sued for quite a bit, should things go wrong.
  
  Dog training and handling is a great business, but only if you are covered by insurance - a lot can go wrong, and you can be sued for LOT of money.
  
  I would suggest that perhaps you might be better off apprenticing to a professional trainer - they may have a postion under their insurance that would pay at least as much, and get you out of the position of being at risk for such a lawsuit. It would also get you more training and experience, let you make a name for yourself, and they would have a steady stream of customers. Not such a bad way to start out.
  
  Going out on your own right away is not necessarily the best way to start - one bad incident, and your reputation is shot. And reputation is everything.


• Wow! You are already a celebrity dog trainer and that could give you instant credentials. I would network and start out with those closest to you and develop a business that way. You may just have enough clientel to be able to charge a nice amount (well above what other pet training centers charge). My advice: start with small steps but always have that vision!
  
  http://www.squidoo.com/dog_obedience_training