Private training
What happens in a private dog training session?
Before spending $150 + GST on an hour, it is reasonable to want to know what that hour is for. There is no fixed script, because the session is built around the dog and the problem that prompted the booking. What we can describe is what the hour is meant to cover, what you leave holding, and the small amount of preparation that makes the coaching land.
Last reviewed September 29, 2026
The hour itself
The problem you bring sets the agenda.
The published scope of a private session is behaviour troubleshooting, obedience development, owner education and relationship building. In practice that means the hour follows the problem: a door that gets dashed, a walk that turns into a tug-of-war, a dog that has stopped listening outdoors. We look at the dog, we listen to what has been tried, and the work goes where the problem points. Owner education runs through all of it, because the plan is practised by the household, not by us.
What you leave with is written down: a weekly plan customized to your home, so nothing depends on memory and the practice happens where the trouble lives. The plan is the point of the hour. It turns sixty minutes of coaching into a week of short repetitions in the hallway, at the front door or on the usual walk. If the honest read is that more help would help, we say which program fits, including a smaller one when it is enough.
- One hour, one-on-one
- Written plan for your home
- Owner education included
- Honest guidance on fit
Making it count
A little preparation buys a better plan.
The hour is more useful when we see the real picture. Helpful preparation: one specific example of the problem with its setting, its trigger and what the dog did; a short video if one exists; the leash and collar in everyday use; treats the dog genuinely wants; and a note of what has already been tried, including the parts that feel embarrassing. Questions are welcome, and the specific ones are best: why the stay breaks when the doorbell rings, why the leash tightens at the same corner.
Afterwards, the plan belongs in your home. Short practice through the week tends to serve a dog better than one long weekend effort, and a step that stalls is information for the next conversation rather than a failure. Questions worth asking at the consultation before booking: what the session can and cannot cover for this dog, how the written plan is delivered, and how follow-up questions between sessions are handled.
Asked and answered
The questions people ask us.
What happens in a private dog training session?
The hour covers behaviour troubleshooting, obedience development, owner education and relationship building, built around the specific problem the owner brings. It ends with a written plan customized to the home to practise all week. Sessions are $150 + GST each.
What should I expect from private dog training?
Expect coaching aimed at the household as much as the dog, a written weekly plan, and an honest opinion on whether a program would suit the dog better. Published prices are $150 + GST per one-hour session.
How should I prepare for my first private training lesson?
Bring one specific example of the problem, with the setting, the trigger and the dog's response, plus the everyday leash and collar and treats the dog wants. A short video helps. A note of what has already been tried saves time in the hour.
Is the consultation the same as a private training session?
No. The consultation is where a program is recommended, including a smaller one when it is enough. A private training session is a paid working hour that ends with a written plan.
Keep reading
Bring us the problem
Book a consultation and tell us what your dog is doing. We will say whether private sessions or a program fits.
From real owners
Rated 5.0 on Google.
Real Northline dogs