In recent times, there has been a sudden boost in the requirements of dog trainers all over India. Not many people perceive dog training as their full-time career in this country. Maybe because there aren’t enough dog training courses here.
In this article, we will look into how you can become a Professional Dog Trainer.
What is a Dog Trainer
A dog trainer is a person who trains the dog to behave well, as well as guides the dog owner to train his dog. Dog trains will help the owner understand the psychology of his dog.
Give a man a fish, and he will not be hungry for a day, teach a man to fish, and he will not be hungry ever. Instead of just training a dog, dog trainers mainly teach the dog owners how to work with their dog to make him follow commands and behave well.
Dog trainers understand the psychology of dogs, and they know how to deal with various dog problems like separation anxiety, aggression, stress, fear, excessive barking, etc. They know different training methods, and they show dog owners the correct method to use depending on the dog’s personality.
Process of Becoming a Dog Trainer in India
It’s not that easy to become a dog trainer in India, not because it’s different, but because there are very few excellent Dog Trainer courses and classes here. If you live in metropolitan cities like Mumbai and Delhi, you may find a few courses, but it’s not the same for other parts of India.
But this doesn’t mean that you cannot be one. We live in a digital world where people can learn anything online. You can be a certified dog trainer learning it online too.
Let me tell you one personal story, my cousin brother, who lives in a small city in Gujarat, earns ₹150,000 to ₹200,000 every month being a dog trainer. And guess what, he has learned everything online. Isn’t that amazing. I called up my brother yesterday and took all the information about his struggle and the courses he did. I have the entire timeline that needs to be followed to become a successful dog trainer in India. So let’s get started with it:
Step 1: Understand a Dog’s Psychology
The first and the most important thing to be a successful dog trainer is understanding how a dog thinks. You have to have a good understanding of dog psychology to find a possible solution to the dog’s unwanted behavior. There are so many behavioral problems that a dog might do. Studying their psychology will help you understand the reason behind their behaviors.
I will highly recommend you to read at least three different books related to dog psychology. Trust me; this will help you be a fantastic dog trainer in the long run. Here are my few recommendations:
- Think Dog by John Fisher
- How to Behave So Your Dog Behaves by Dr. Sophia Yin (Must read)
- How Dogs Love Us by Gregory Berns
- Inside of a Dog by Alexandra Horowitz
- The Dog’s Mind by Bruce Fogle
If you cannot find a paperback version of a book, get a digital version and read it on your android or iPhone.
Step 2: Learn to Train Dogs
Now that you have a better understanding of how dogs think and why they behave in a certain way, it’s time to learn various techniques to mold their behavior. I want to recommend two fantastic Dog Training courses, both of which you can find on udemy:
- Dr. Ian Dunbar’s SIRIUS® Dog Trainer Academy: I have personally taken this course to understand dogs better and trust me, it’s worth it. It covers a vast spectrum of dog training. The course also guides you regarding how to set up your own dog training business. It contains 23 hours of videos that you can access anytime, anywhere.
- Become A Dog Trainer: My brother recommended this course. It’s beginner-friendly and teaches you how to deal with various behavioral problems of dogs.
Step 3: Apply it on a Dog.
Until now, whatever you have learned is just bookish knowledge. You know the psychology, and you know the technique now it’s your turn to apply it on a dog. If you have a dog, then it’s just perfect. You can apply everything you learn on your dog. If you don’t have a dog, then try asking one of your friends or relative who has a dog to let you train his dog.
Step 4: Experience is the best teacher
Now that you have little knowledge of handling a dog, it’s time to take it a step further. As per my brother’s advice, to gain experience, start offering dog training services locally for free. Initially, your main goal should be to train different kinds of dogs, use various techniques on them, and understand what works and how it works.
Call everyone on your contact and ask if they know someone who has a dog. Don’t be shy about it. Use Instagram or Facebook to find dog owners in your area. Contact them and offer them a free dog training service. Set a goal to train at least ten dogs for free.
This will help you gain immense knowledge and experience. After training ten dogs, you will have a practical understanding of how to train a dog and teach its owner to work with it.
Step 5: Be a Free Intern
Contact dog trainers in your area and ask them if they want a helper. You can find a local dog trainer via Google or Justdial. Call each one of them, and ask if you can get to be their intern, tell them you are willing to work for free. Don’t be money-driven before you are capable enough. At this stage, try to get as much experience as possible. And I am not talking about the experience on paper. I am talking about the real on-field experience.
Working with professional dog trainers will help you understand how things work in this field. It will teach you the two most important things:
- You will learn how dog trainers who have years of experience work with dogs and their owners. This is something no book or course will teach you.
- Secondly, you will get to know how things work in this field. You will understand the business side of it. You learn how dog trainers approve clients, how they treat them, how they earn money and manage their business.
My brother suggests working with more than two different dog trainers. Every trainer has a different approach to dogs. Working with various dog trainers will help you compare them and choose the best one, or even combine all of them and create a better process.
Step 6: Get certified
There are a few well-known organizations that provide dog training certification in India. It is not necessary as you already have a vast amount of knowledge and experience. But in this country, certification from a university sometimes has more value than practical knowledge.
Every state, in fact, every university has different courses. I am not sure what state and what universities have what kind of dog training Degree. The best way to find it out is to go to your nearest university and check out their program.
However, few organizations provide Dog Training crash courses and diplomas online. One of them, which I know is BACBED, check out their online courses.
Step 7: Find a Job
The final step is, of course, to find your dream job. You can begin with freelancing. Remember, you had trained ten dogs, give them a call, and ask them how they are doing with their dog. Explain to them that now you have become a certified dog trainer and better understand dogs. Tell them that they can hire you if they need any help with their dogs. For old sake, offer them a discount. Dog owners are usually friends with other dog owners. Ask them if they know anyone with a dog and get the contact. The only thing that will stop you is ‘SHYNESS,’ do not be hesitant to ask.
If you live in a big city with lots of Dog Training organizations, contact all of them and see if they have any vacancies.
How do Dog Trainers make money in India?
There are quite a few ways you can make money being a dog trainer; here are a few:
- Freelancing: Freelancing is excellent for beginners, for sure. But let me tell you, freelancing equals struggling. You will need to be active on social media and find and contact dog owners constantly.
- Private Dog Training Sessions: This is a fancy word for freelancing. It is for someone who is established in this field and has a lot of contacts and clientele. Private dog trainers usually go to the dog-owners house for private sessions.
- Work for Dog Training Organisations: This is a little more possible in big cities. You can get a job and be a dog trainer in an organization.
- Start your own company: You can also start your own Dog training company, in which you create a dog-friendly environment and offer your training.
Final Thoughts
Be persistent and never give up on your dream. If you like dogs and want to be a dog trainer, just persuasive your goal. One piece of advice I would give you is, use social media, it’s more powerful than you think. If you have any questions or doubts, feel free to contact me, I will be happy to help.
