:help: Need ideas for clicker training dog busniess

3137 Views 18 Replies 10 Participants Last post by shedeivl, Apr 8, 2011

shedeivl

Discussion Starter · Apr 7, 2011

Hi my name is Ash and I'm 23 and wanting to open a Clicker/Positive reinforcement dog Training busniess

and ideas are welcome event if you think there silly
so far family have sugested:

"barking mad" "positive leads" "give a dog a bone" "who let the dogs out" :frusty: :doh:im drving my self crazy :crazy: you see i want something catchy that ppl will rember

1 - 19 of 19 Posts

petpeeve

· #2 · Apr 7, 2011

IMO, a successful training business will probably require more than a catchy name.

Something to hang on the wall ... a BSc, or diploma from a notable academy etc ... is a good start. They are not a 'must have', but they will certainly help bring credibility.

Achievements with your own dogs is also a plus.

People skills, business savvy, a clean and appropriate venue to hold classes, knowledge of a broad spectrum of breeds, etc etc etc ... are all things you should have in place.

IDK, perhaps you already have all of these ?, ... I'm just sayin'.

... best of luck to you in your future endeavours. I sincerely hope it all works out.

Pawzk9

· #3 · Apr 7, 2011

shedeivl said:
Hi my name is Ash and I'm 23 and wanting to open a Clicker/Positive reinforcement dog Training busniess

and ideas are welcome event if you think there silly
so far family have sugested:

"barking mad" "positive leads" "give a dog a bone" "who let the dogs out" :frusty: :doh:im drving my self crazy :crazy: you see i want something catchy that ppl will rember

Not to discourage you, but how much real life dog training experience do you have at 23? You might consider apprenticing under a good trainer or look into Karen Pryor Academy. I've taken one course from them, and want to do the entire program. I think for a clicker training education, you probably can't do better than KPA. And they also support their trainers and give a fair amount of marketing training as well. With your age, I think people may want to see signs of your experience and some sort of meaningful certification. Good luck to you!

workerant

· #4 · Apr 7, 2011

How old do you think this trainer is? I doubt she's 23 yet. Let's take the OP at her word and try to be helpful.

Businesses often grow beyond their original scope, so don't limit yourself with your name choice. A friend of mine has built a successful truck accessories business that he named Just Jeeps. Word got out how good he is and now he's Just Jeeps and More. It's kinda awkward and not all that descriptive (more what?) A more general name would have, in hindsight, been a better choice.

That said, how about Click with Your Dog! The Clicker Clique (maybe a bad connotation with 'clique,' though.) Click and Trick. The Good Dog! Academy.

LazyGRanch713

· #5 · Apr 7, 2011

petpeeve said:
IMO, a successful training business will probably require more than a catchy name.

Something to hang on the wall ... a BSc, or diploma from a notable academy etc ... is a good start. They are not a 'must have', but they will certainly help bring credibility.

Achievements with your own dogs is also a plus.

People skills, business savvy, a clean and appropriate venue to hold classes, knowledge of a broad spectrum of breeds, etc etc etc ... are all things you should have in place.

IDK, perhaps you already have all of these ?, ... I'm just sayin'.

... best of luck to you in your future endeavours. I sincerely hope it all works out.

I actually look for this bolded part first. Certifications are great, but if it's applied that means more to me than just "I got the diploma". The trainers I work with teach what they trial, and they trial successfully and teach others how to do the same. If I were looking at a school to send my gun dog to in order to learn how to hunt, I wouldn't automatically look for a trainer who trains sheepdogs, kwim? Is the dog school you're (the OP) wanting to open geared towards pet manners or competition of some sort?

Curbside Prophet

· #6 · Apr 7, 2011

How about just " Woof!" And then when people ask where the name came from you can just say your dog made it up.

Awesome, I know. That'll be $500.

KBLover

· #7 · Apr 7, 2011

Pawzk9 said:
Not to discourage you, but how much real life dog training experience do you have at 23?

I bet she has more than I do at 34

aBlueDog

· #8 · Apr 7, 2011

Im totally digging "Woof!"

I see nothing wrong with being 23 and wanting to do this. Along as the OP understands whats involved in running a business then there really is no issue. Sure she's not going to have 10-15 years professional experience. Everyone needs to start somewhere.

Maybe a free meet and greet and workshop would be a way to pull in some prospective business.

Curbside Prophet

· #9 · Apr 7, 2011

aBlueDog said:
Im totally digging "Woof!"

I know, I'm going to make a killing here. The tagline could be "Woof!, it's dog for fun dog training."

That'll be $500 more please.

Pawzk9

· #10 · Apr 8, 2011 (Edited)

workerant said:
How old do you think this trainer is? I doubt she's 23 yet. Let's take the OP at her word and try to be helpful.

Businesses often grow beyond their original scope, so don't limit yourself with your name choice. A friend of mine has built a successful truck accessories business that he named Just Jeeps. Word got out how good he is and now he's Just Jeeps and More. It's kinda awkward and not all that descriptive (more what?) A more general name would have, in hindsight, been a better choice.

That said, how about Click with Your Dog! The Clicker Clique (maybe a bad connotation with 'clique,' though.) Click and Trick. The Good Dog! Academy.

Actually, I haven't seen any posts that haven't taken the OP at her word and and all have tried to be helpful. As to names, it always is a good idea to do a search and see if anyone else is already using the name, and register the name to yourself if they are not. Still, much more to opening a school than a cute name.

aBlueDog said:
Im totally digging "Woof!"

I see nothing wrong with being 23 and wanting to do this. Along as the OP understands whats involved in running a business then there really is no issue. Sure she's not going to have 10-15 years professional experience. Everyone needs to start somewhere.

Maybe a free meet and greet and workshop would be a way to pull in some prospective business.

I think a GREAT place to start would be to apprentice for an experienced trainer that the person respects. I know a lot of people don't think training dogs is any big deal, or at least that training pet dogs doesn't require much skill or knowledge. Personally, I would like to see trainers, like other professionals be required to have a certain amount of education and experience to set themselves up in business. Sometimes you are holding the life of a dog in your hands. Sometimes you are also holding the personal safety of humans in your hands. It's a really good idea to know what you are doing.

petpeeve

· #11 · Apr 8, 2011

I understand Pawz' concern, safety for all involved is important, and real-world experience is a factor in many would-be client's minds. It may be a tough sell for someone so young, but not impossible, that's for sure.

I believe it all comes down to actual ability, and being able to walk the walk.

.. Emily at kikopup is a good example of a brilliant, young trainer.

"" WOOF! "" ... hmmmm

... would be a novel way of answering the phone at the training hall, wouldn't it. :eyebrows:

shedeivl

Discussion Starter · #12 · Apr 8, 2011 (Edited)

ok to clear things up I am 23 years old and I came from the country were I was with dogs and trained dogs my whole life back when I was little though clicker training was un heard of I am now studding under a trainer in syd and have watched many hrs of kikopup and other dog trainers on youtube and read so many books i have lost count as the knowlage is not really avabile here in Australia the dog training industry is just taking off... I am planing to do a course b4 I open but same issue the corses here are old school or there not avabile to me so it's more hand on experance
I understand that it's not as easy as 123 im going to be a dog trainer but I know what i have to do to get there :clap2:

petpeeve

· #13 · Apr 8, 2011

Well, one thing ... time IS on your side

shedeivl

Discussion Starter · #14 · Apr 8, 2011

i like woof and click and treat there good ideas thanx but i dont understand the age issue as i have seen 10 year olds teach there dog to skate board and im sure that enent older trainer start out being older

katielou

· #15 · Apr 8, 2011

shedeivl said:
i like woof and click and treat there good ideas thanx but i dont understand the age issue as i have seen 10 year olds teach there dog to skate board and im sure that enent older trainer start out being older

They didn't start out old but they started out under other trainers and have lots of proof of experience under their belts, With their own dogs and others.

shedeivl

Discussion Starter · #16 · Apr 8, 2011 (Edited)

i understand that I was just saying age should not mater as you can read from my other post I am now studding under a trainer in syd so i understand the experance nessary b4 i oppen but i wanted a name to help kick things off the right way affter i have gained more experance

it's kinda a catch 22 ppl dont want you traing dogs without experince but you can't get experince without training dogs ...

Yvonne

· #17 · Apr 8, 2011

Some of those names are already used by certified trainers. Who did you train with?

Pawzk9

· #18 · Apr 8, 2011

shedeivl said:
ok to clear things up I am 23 years old and I came from the country were I was with dogs and trained dogs my whole life back when I was little though clicker training was un heard of I am now studding under a trainer in syd and have watched many hrs of kikopup and other dog trainers on youtube and read so many books i have lost count as the knowlage is not really avabile here in Australia the dog training industry is just taking off... I am planing to do a course b4 I open but same issue the corses here are old school or there not avabile to me so it's more hand on experance
I understand that it's not as easy as 123 im going to be a dog trainer but I know what i have to do to get there :clap2:

Well, I wish you good luck. I think credibility is a little harder to come by when you are very young. You will have to impress people with your knowledge. That said, I know people who have been training dogs for 50 years (and successful in sports) whom I wouldn't allow to touch my dogs. Age isn't everything. There are some clicker trainers in Australia aren't there? I know it's a big continent, but I know some freestylers (who by and large train with clicker because it's the only thing that works well in the sport. And Aiden Bindoff is Australian.

shedeivl

Discussion Starter · #19 · Apr 8, 2011 (Edited)

Yvonne said:
Some of those names are already used by certified trainers. Who did you train with?

I train with a lady called shona from http://www.positivepawsdt.com.au/ she just a local trainer

there are a few clicker trainer in Australia but most use mixed training methods it's no where near as popular here you see most ppl just dont worry about training there dogs where i grew up trained dogs where for city slickers or the only training as such was herding sheep if traing was done it was a make it up as you go along and hope the dog get it
alot of punishment based stuff and infomation was only rumers such as rubing a dogs noise in it if he pees in the wrong place I came to the city to learn another way and hopefully teach people another way over here training is still push the dogs bum down to sit and the positive stuff that is done is normal mix with some trodictions like booby traps like if a dog digs put a bollon in it that will pop and scare the dog this method was show on one of our TV show i dont realy think i should name it but its verry popular so much so that the whole of Australia saw it to make it worst this show is a vet show so it has the whole vet recommendation stigma this is why it needs to change and i want to be there when it dose

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