This is a list of the top dog trainers in San Francisco, CA, based on votes from the Sniffspot community and the general public.
ABCDT
Aggressive dog training, Reactive dog training, Board and train, In home training, Off leash training, Puppy training
California South Bay Area, including San Jose, Willow Glen, Santa Clara, Monte Sereno, Sunnyvale, Milpitas, Campbell, Saratoga, Los Gatos, Los Altos, Cupertino, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Menlo Park and Atherton.
Kaajal (aka KT!) loves puppies and is dedicated to getting new puppy guardians off on the right paw and guiding her students through the tough early days of owning a dog. Her goal? Transforming each bundle of raw puppy energy into the perfect adult companion. She also loves helping people have a well-behaved adult dog that knows how to be part of the family. She's dedicated her training career ...
Cdt, ccc
Reactive dog training, Board and train, In home training, Off leash training, Puppy training
Lake county, Sonoma county, Mendocino county, Napa county
Cdt
CPDT-KA, SAPro, CCDT
Aggressive dog training, Reactive dog training, In home training, Off leash training, Puppy training
Sonoma & Marin Counties
Quin is both CPDT-KA, CCDT and SAPro certified and is a firm of proponent scientifically backed positive reinforcement and aversive-free training methods. She believes this training truly strengthens the bond between pet and owner.
Quin grew up with dogs, however it wasn't until she began volunteering at the San Francisco SPCA that she realized her true passion for dog training and behavior...
CCPDT, Fear Free Trainer
Reactive dog training, Board and train, In home training
East Bay in San Francisco Bay Area
There are waaaay too many rules about what dog owners should and shouldn't do. You shouldn't let your dogs sleep on the bed. You shouldn't let them on your furniture. You shouldn't let them walk in front of you. My philosophy about dog rules is that there are no hard and fast rules. Instead, I encourage dog owners to create their own rules according to how they want their pets to fit into their...
CTC, CPDT-KA, KPA-CTP, CSAT
Puppy training
Santa Clara, CA, SF South Bay from Mountain View to San Jose
Hound Haven owner Peggy McCarty is a Certified Professional Dog Trainer. She earned a Certificate in Training and Counseling (CTC) from the San Francisco SPCA Academy for Dog Trainers. Graduating from the Academy (considered the "Harvard for dog trainers") under the instruction of Jean Donaldson.
She also studied with Malena DeMartini, an expert in the field of Separation Anxiety. Pegg...
In home training
Spend some time with James, and you’re almost certain to hear him crediting his canine companion, Clay, for being the true trainer in their relationship. This mutual canine-human respect is the foundation of his vision for primepaw, which he founded in 2015.
The goal: to help humans recognize the incredible potential of dogs, using only positive reinforcement techniques and unconditi...
Puppy training
I’m originally from NJ, but have been living in SF for over 26 years now. I graduated from Rutgers University with a degree in Accounting and Business and I worked in the financial accounting world for a few years. I realized that I wasn’t really happy with my job and living on the east coast and after a short stint in Colorado, I moved to SF in ’93. I have always loved animals and aft...
Once upon a time, we – Virginia Donohue and Mark Klaiman – had 9-to-5 careers. But as we toiled away in our cubicles (well, actually, Virginia had an office and Mark was stuck in a cubicle), we dreamed of a job where we could spend the day with our dogs and for our dogs to have fun every day just like when they were at our neighborhood dog park. Well, our dream came true and we got to spend...
Ever since I was a little girl, I went to every dog owner I saw, and I asked very politely, “Excuse me, may I pet your dog?” If the answer was yes, I would offer my hand for a quick sniff before gently petting the pup and soaking up as much dog love as I could. For every single birthday, special event, or after passing any dog, I would always ask my mom for my own puppy. The answer was alwa...
Hi there, I'm Kytha Gernatt, and I've been dedicated to helping San Francisco's busy families and professionals to have happier lives with their dogs since 1999. I started as a dog walker and began using positive reinforcement in 2005 with my own dog, Goldie, a rescued pit bull with cut off ears and some reactivity issues. To help Goldie to stop lunging and barking and pulling while on-leash I ...
Puppy training
Erin has worked with dogs for over 10 years. She brings a love of dogs and a wide perspective of the many aspects of what Bay Area dog life entails into her training. With the goal of preparing puppies and dogs for their best lives here in this unique place we call home, she has a special interest in cooperative care and helping adolescent pups learn the many necessary skills ranging from buil...
Aggressive dog training, Board and train, Reactive dog training, Puppy training
Always drawn to large breeds, Tobey owned a string of rescue dogs with aggression problems and saw how challenging it was to own a dog in a city with a full time job. They worked for 15 years in the restaurant industry doing openings. While working with people was amazing, late nights behind a bar and working inside grew tiring.
After years of rehabilitating foster dogs, devouring tra...
In home training, Puppy training
Hi, I’m Josh Jaramillo, the Lead Trainer at DPT. My journey with animals began at the age of 12, starting with livestock such as chickens, sheep, and rabbits. Growing up, my family had both dogs and cats, which sparked my lifelong passion for animal care.
My interest in dog training developed when our family dog went through Dan Camp for issues like dog aggression, human reactivity, ...
Aggressive dog training, Protection/guard dog training
Althea Karwowski is a CCPDT Certified Dog Trainer (CPDT-KA) and a Certified SA Pro trainer (SAPT). She has completed the Aggression in Dogs Master Course. Althea brings over a decade of experience training dogs and coaching people to train their dogs. Althea has taught Bravery Class for Shy Dogs, Shy Dog Seminar, Just the Basics and New Dog 101 at the San Francisco SPCA. Having graduated from...
Shura holds a Certificate in Training & Counseling from the Academy for Dog Trainers, widely held as the “Harvard of dog training schools.” She has been training dogs since her graduation in 2001, giving in to her soft spot for small dogs early on. She is a member of the Pet Professional Guild which provides world-wide leadership in positive reinforcement training. Locally she belongs to th...
Once upon a time, we – Virginia Donohue and Mark Klaiman – had 9-to-5 careers. But as we toiled away in our cubicles (well, actually, Virginia had an office and Mark was stuck in a cubicle), we dreamed of a job where we could spend the day with our dogs and for our dogs to have fun every day just like when they were at our neighborhood dog park. Well, our dream came true and we got to spend...
In home training, Puppy training
From the day she co-conceived and co-founded DPT, Natasha Koral knew she wanted to create an environment that would embody her love of nurturing people and what they most care about, creating an environment of hospitality and support that is one of the hallmarks of DPT.
“I’ve always believed that there can be heart and compassion in day-to-day business matters,” Natasha declares,...
Aggressive dog training, Board and train, Reactive dog training, Puppy training
Kalif has an extensive background in education and has worked with children in various settings delivering educational training centered on diversity and nonviolent conflict resolution. Before joining our team in 2021, Kalif taught children at the Oakland Zoo on conservation, animal health, and welfare. His educational background makes him adept at helping clients learn how to improve their han...
As a veterinarian, published scientific author, and an accomplished dog trainer, Dr. Sophie Liu is a highly sought after behavior consultant and presenter. After receiving ACVB-resident training, Dr. Liu returned to her roots in Oakland, CA to provide a full range of services for East Bay dog owners.
Dr. Liu knows that raising a puppy or a well-adjusted adult dog requires a perfect ble...
In home training, Puppy training
Dan Perata is a San Francisco original; someone who has always bucked the traditional conventional wisdom. A third-generation native of the city, Dan has always had a natural rapport with all animals, dogs in particular. He’s been working with them since he was a teen! He’s been honing and perfecting his methods ever since, sometimes in the most fascinating of places.
Dan began wor...
In home training, Puppy training
You can tell by her last name that she’s been here for a while. Next to Dan and Natasha she’s worked at the family biz the longest, going on 13 years. She started off cleaning kennels and feeding puppies as a kid and after all these years she’s now the Facility Manager. Aside from managing the downstairs, she helps with creating new operation procedures and if you are lucky, you will see ...
Puppy training, Agility training
Fawn is a third-generation San Franciscan who brings a wealth of experience and a profound love for the human-dog bond to SmartyPup! With 15 years at Sirius® Puppy Training and a decade at the SFSPCA Dog Trainers Academy, Fawn has honed her skills and developed innovative training methods grounded in a deep understanding of dog behavior. In October 2008, she launched SmartyPup! with the missio...
In home training, Puppy training
A trainer who has been with DPT for three years, JV’s favorite part of the job is hearing the clients verbalizing about their dogs’ progress. ”Just hearing that is awesome,” he says. An army brat who besides living in various states also has lived in Mexico and Japan, JV’s spare time is spent skateboarding, reading comic books and playing video games. Of the three dogs he’s had duri...
Puppy training
I’ve known Tony at Bernal Beast for about 17 years now, as I frequent the shop for food and treats for my own dogs and the dogs in my care. We engaged in some mutual marketing for each other many moons ago, when I was still running my puppy daycare facility, SF Puppy Prep, which I co-founded in 2005. When I approached Tony recently about doing some training in his pet shop, I genuinely wante...
In home training, Puppy training
Hi there! I'm Cyd True, Dog Trainer & Behavior Consultant and founder of True Dog Training 101. I offer San Francisco folk's canine companions group adventure hikes and training.
GROUP WALKS:
I recently returned to the Bay Area after a 13 month move to Nevada and I will never leave SF again! If you want your dog to get exercise with an expert in recall, hander focus and fun, ...
Aggressive dog training, Reactive dog training, Puppy training
Beverly provides private and personalized empathic dog training and behavior problem solving. She has extensive knowledge and success with solving aggression issues and helping shy, fearful dogs. Beverly has been working with dogs all her life. She actually started training dogs at 9 years old. She has since been educated in animal behavior as well as canine obedience and training. Beverly hold...
In home training
grew up with a fat, sweet cat named Peaches, who was born a month later than me. I’ve always loved animals, but my interest in dog training began after I adopted my first puppy, Kempie. I was introduced to positive reinforcement training through a puppy kindergarten class at the East Bay SPCA and was hooked.
Fast forward many years…While Kempie is almost perfect in my opinion, I ha...
KPA CTP
Reactive dog training, Service dog training, In home training, Off leash training, Puppy training
City Limits of San Francisco
Mother of Bailey the yellow Labrador, working with dogs for 15 years, in my second year of professional training. Continued education is very important to me. I also study raw feeding and dog nutrition.
Welcome to San Francisco’s list of top dog trainers. The San Francisco, California list is based on 171 votes from the California Sniffspot community. Only the San Francisco dog trainers with the top number of votes made this list. Trainers are ordered by number of votes, with Kaajal Tiwary at the top of this list with 56 votes. We also counted 2983 votes for California, with the remaining trainers listed outside of San Francisco.
Our rankings include trainers certified by CPDT-KA and CPDT-KA. They also specialize in Puppy training, In home training amongst other training programs.
San Francisco dog trainer services include:
Behind every successful San Francisco training session lies a passionate professional. Kaajal Tiwary shares why they chose this path: Diesel, (my soul dog and the sole inspiration behind D For Dog) is a 7.5-year old Pit bull. He's the best teacher and mentor I could ask for. Diesel came to me when he was literally 6 days old. He has come a long way from his fear of the world in general, leash reactivity, sound sensitivity, was a classic Dog In Need Of Space. Today he is a better adjusted dog and absolutely loves puppies. He's helped me raise many Board & Train and Day School puppies, teaching them appropriate dog-dog communication, the concept of sharing, confidence building in different situations, besides social skills. He is a fantastic puppy teacher. Diesel loves Nose Work, Free Style, Playing with me and lots of Snuggle time.. All 28 trainers on this San Francisco list are committed to positive reinforcement. Trusted San Francisco trainer, Kelli Staffieri, uses the following methods: .
Explore the top dog trainers in San Francisco as voted by our community:
Ordered alphabetically, only included cities where there is enough data to compile a list
Diesel, (my soul dog and the sole inspiration behind D For Dog) is a 7.5-year old Pit bull. He's the best teacher and mentor I could ask for. Diesel came to me when he was literally 6 days old. He has come a long way from his fear of the world in general, leash reactivity, sound sensitivity, was a classic Dog In Need Of Space. Today he is a better adjusted dog and absolutely loves puppies. He's helped me raise many Board & Train and Day School puppies, teaching them appropriate dog-dog communication, the concept of sharing, confidence building in different situations, besides social skills. He is a fantastic puppy teacher. Diesel loves Nose Work, Free Style, Playing with me and lots of Snuggle time..
It's very important to understand what our dog is communicating at any given point in time.. This advice is particularly relevant for dog owners in San Francisco looking to improve their dog’s behavior.
Does your dog ever growl when you walk by their food dish? Maybe they get possessive of treats, carrying them far away and giving you side-eye when you start to approach — or snarling at your other pets or children if they get too close.
As almost every dog owner is aware, the nose of a dog is an amazing thing. Just as they can pick up sounds we can’t hear, their sense of smell and ability to pick up scents is well beyond ours. In fact, dogs have 40 times the number of olfactory receptors as humans.
More than 80 million Americans rely on their service dogs to help them navigate the world. Task-trained assistance animals perform a huge range of life-changing—in many cases, life-saving—services: These dogs act as eyes for visually impaired handlers, provide mobility support, alert to seizures and blood sugar crashes, interrupt anxiety attacks, remind their people to take medications, and so much more.
You thought your dog was house trained. Your home was clean from puddles of pee, those dreaded middle-of-the-night bathroom breaks were behind you, and you loved every minute of dog ownership… until your four-legged best friend started using the bathroom inside again. What’s going on?
Ah, poop. We humans think it’s disgusting… but many of our dogs seem to love the stuff. If you’re wondering why your canine companion tries to eat feces (either their own or that of other animals) you’re not alone!
Do you have a water-loving dog looking to burn some energy? There are countless dog parks to visit throughout our country — but some of them become far too hot in the midday sun to be safe for your pets to play. That’s why we’ve put together a list of some of the best dog water parks throughout the United States! At these locations, your pup can frolic, splash, and swim to their heart’s content.
* All Sniffspot articles are reviewed by certified trainers for quality, please see bottom of article for details *
Does your dog destroy every toy you give them? Is your house littered with remnants of fabric and stuffing of all different sizes? Are you tired of investing in “indestructible” toys only for your pup to still dismantle—or worse, get bored of—them in just a few days?
You’ve been told your dog needs regular exercise. There’s a reason “walking the dog” is a classic daily activity: Frequent excursions give your pup a chance to experience the world, maintain a healthy weight, and — most importantly — spend time with you! Consistent physical activity can also improve their strength, muscle tone, coordination, and mental ability over time.
* All Sniffspot articles are reviewed by certified trainers for quality, please see bottom of article for details *
Many dogs have gotten a bad reputation over the years for being "dangerous breeds." Rottweilers are among them. Like pit bulls and other large, blocky-headed types of dogs, these powerful and beautiful animals are often assumed to be aggressive.
Your dog is reactive. They’ll see another dog, person, or other stimulus in the environment (like a car or bike) while out on a walk and suddenly go crazy at the end of their leash. The barking, lunging, and growling feels embarrassing for you — and it’s clear that your pup isn’t having a great time either.
Does your dog display reactivity to other pets or people? Maybe they’re a new rescue pup and are still settling into your home. Or they were sick growing up, so you missed their critical socialization period. Possibly they’ve had a bad experience after being raised as a normal puppy.
Do you have a reactive dog or suspect you may have one? You’re not alone!
* All Sniffspot articles are reviewed by certified trainers for quality, please see bottom of article for details *
From 2009 to 2020, there was a 40 percent increase in the development of public dog parks. Designated spots for canine exercise have become commonplace in every major city in North America — many pet owners won’t even consider renting an apartment that doesn’t have its own fenced-in pet area for their canine companions.
Thousand Oaks, California has been a safe haven for Sniffspot host, Jen, since childhood. Having grown up in busy Santa Barbara, Jen, an introvert from an early age, would seek out solitude and serenity away from tourists attractions and droves of people visiting from elsewhere. “My grandparents own 60 acres about a 30 minute drive from here, and I grew up spending every summer and every holiday visiting them on the ranch,” Jen explained. “In Santa Barbara, we wouldn't go to the beach on the weekend because that's where everybody was, so you'd find places off the beaten path where the tourists weren't. For me, the ranch was just my happy place.”
Ellen is the host of Country Pasture Getaway, one of Sniffspot's most popular sniff spots. She has taken the time to write up the lessons she has learned about how to be a great sniff spot host.
Just 20 minutes outside of the busy city of Portland, Oregon, and settled right on the banks of the Columbia River, you’ll find what countless visitors have flocked to the area in search of – mountain views, crisp, clean air, and running water for miles. What you might not expect to find, however, is a hidden oasis designed just for dogs and their people, owned and operated by a farming couple and enjoyed by visitors on two legs, and four.
Fran is the host of Ranch Setting, one of Sniffspot's most popular spots. She has taken the time to write up the lessons she has learned about how to be a great Sniffspot host.
Looking for a space to play with your dog no matter what the weather’s like outside? Look no further than our list of the best indoor dog parks in the United States! These climate-controlled spaces are growing in popularity as pet ownership increases throughout the country. As a bonus, many of them also offer dog training, boarding, grooming, or daycare services on the premises.
Looking for the perfect place to play with your dog? We’ve got you covered! It’s hard to narrow down, but we’ve put together some of the best off-leash dog parks throughout the country so you can plan your next adventure — along with a checklist of what to bring, what to know beforehand, and some frequently asked questions.
Looking for the perfect place to play with your dog in Las Vegas? We’ve got you covered! Take a look at the best local dog parks to plan for your next adventure in Sin City.
Looking for the perfect place to play with your dog? We’ve got you covered!
Looking for the perfect place to play with your dog in Portland? We’ve got you covered! Take a look at the best local dog parks and plan for your next adventure in the City of Roses.
Discover the German Shepherd Dog, a breed celebrated for its intelligence, loyalty, and versatility. Known for its impressive size and smooth, graceful movements, German Shepherds excel in various roles, including as guide, therapy, bomb detection, and police dogs, while being a devoted family companion.
Discover the Labrador Retriever, a breed celebrated for its playful nature, affectionate temperament, and trainability. Labradors are known for their friendly demeanor and adaptability, making them perfect family companions and versatile working dogs. As one of the most popular types of retrievers, Labs are ideal companions for various lifestyles and are recognized by the American Kennel Club (AKC) as an excellent breed for families.
Discover the Golden Retriever, a popular breed celebrated for its affectionate, playful, and trainable nature. Considered a large dog, Golden Retrievers were originally bred in Scotland for hunting and retrieving game beginning in the 1860s. Today, they're recognized by the Kennel Club and the American Kennel Club (AKC) as one of the most beloved companion dog breeds.
Discover the American Staffordshire Terrier, a distinct breed celebrated for its playful, friendly, and loyal nature. Often confused with the Staffordshire Bull Terrier, a separate breed of British origin, the American Staffordshire Terrier (AmStaff) is considered a medium-sized dog. While both breeds share some similarities, the AmStaff is generally larger and has been developed as a distinct breed in the United States.
Discover the Australian Shepherd, an AKC breed celebrated for its trainable, playful, and affectionate nature. Despite its name, the Australian Shepherd is actually a native breed to the United States, originally developed to breed on farms and ranches. Considered a medium dog, Australian Shepherds were bred for herding beginning in the 1950s. As one of the high-energy breeds, Aussies are known for their boundless energy and need for regular exercise, including aerobic exercise.