Why We’ve Gone Digital (For Good)

When eventually taken into busy environments, these dogs are often labeled as ‘stubborn’, ‘willful’ or ‘disobedient’, and guardians can become frustrated and resentful of their seemingly unruly pups. When eventually taken into busy environments, these dogs are often

Before the shift to digital, I had spent the last four years working as a dog trainer in New York City. I worked 8-10 hours a day teaching in-person group classes in Manhattan facilities, going to and from private sessions, and working reactive and fearful dogs in the chaotic urban environment. The idea of hanging up my clicker and treat pouch, staring into the blank lens of a webcam all day, and somehow - magically, it seemed - changing canine behavior really scared me. The Calm Canine Academy team immediately sliced our prices in half to subdue my imposter syndrome and we continued, tentatively, to support our clients through these unprecedented times

As the months unfolded, and we started to experiment with technology, I feel like I had found the missing piece of the puzzle. Our success rate shot up, client relations dramatically improved, and my dogs were seeing rapid and long lasting behavior change. After lengthy discussions with the CCA community and staff, I am officially ready to plead my case for the digital training revolution…

fair price

One year ago it would have cost up to $200 an hour for a behavior consultation with me in New York City. The cost of our facility, the travel costs, time and energy that went into maintaining and sustaining a physical business drove my services to a price that - honestly - I was uncomfortable with. As a fervent "leftie" I couldn’t shake off a sense of shame about the exclusivity of my service. CCA was founded under the ethos of: “Modern Training, for every dog”. Simply put: we believe high quality, ethical training should be accessible and freely available to all. The digital format has allowed me to dramatically cut down on the fixed and marginal costs of my services, while achieving results that are better than ever.

Increased accessibility

Not only is digital training more financially viable, it allows us to help everyone - regardless of their location. We now have a global dog training community with clients in the US, UK, Canada, Brazil, Europe and more. Dog training is a shamefully unregulated industry, and being able to stream our ethical, certified trainers into living rooms globally is a gamechanger for our team, who are dedicated to promoting modern training methods that allow guardians to train without the use of fear, pain, or intimidation 

Improved Services

Hands down. Let’s face it, dog training is really just human training - teaching guardians how to bring about behavior change in their canine companions. When I first started I was really attached to this idea of needing to physically see and touch the dog. However, I found that once the option of physically training the dog myself was taken away, I was able to focus on refining my behavior therapy process, protocol writing, and client coaching skills. My training plans are now clearer, more refined, and far more effective, and all for a cheaper price: it’s win, win all round