Inside a virtual session
What happens in a virtual dog training session?
Owners often expect a virtual session to be a trainer giving commands through a laptop. It is closer to a conversation with someone who has seen your exact problem hundreds of times and knows which questions uncover the cause.
Before
Before the session, you request a time and gather what the trainer needs to see.
You request a session on our virtual dog training page and our team confirms a time with you. In between, the most useful thing you can do is collect a little evidence. Memory is unreliable about dog behavior; a short video and a few notes are not.
Choose a quiet spot for the call. If it is a Zoom session about behavior, pick a room where the problem happens or where you can set it up: the front hall for door manners, the kitchen for counter surfing, the bedroom if the crate is there.
- A short clip of the behavior, filmed from far enough back to see the whole dog
- Notes on when it started and how often it happens
- Your dog's age, breed or mix and health history
- What you have already tried
The conversation
The session opens with questions about your dog's day, not with commands.
Expect questions that seem unrelated at first. How much exercise does the dog get, and when? Where does it sleep? Who feeds it? Does the barking happen more on weekdays? Behavior problems are rarely isolated, and the answer to a door-rushing problem is sometimes in how the morning walk is run.
The trainer will also ask what happens just before the behavior and what you do right after. That sequence, trigger then behavior then result, is where the plan comes from. If your dog jumps on guests and you push it off while saying its name, the dog may be getting exactly the attention it wanted.
On camera
If you are on Zoom, the trainer may ask you to show the problem or a set-up live.
Live practice is where Zoom earns its place. With the phone propped at dog height, the trainer can watch you run a short exercise and adjust your timing in real time. A typical sequence looks like this.
- Set the camera so the trainer can see you, the dog and the floor around you.
- Show the starting point: the leash, the bed, the door or the crate as it is today.
- Run the exercise once the way you normally would, without coaching.
- Repeat it with the trainer's changes to your position, timing or reward.
- Stop while the dog is still succeeding, and talk through how to practice it daily.
The plan
You leave knowing the first changes to make at home, in the order to make them.
Good advice is specific and short. Instead of a list of twenty tips, you should come away with one or two changes to start tomorrow, how often to practice them, and what progress should look like. Keep a notebook or your phone handy during the call and write the steps down in your own words.
The order matters. A dog that pulls on walks and also rushes the door usually improves faster if the door is handled first, because the walk starts there. The trainer's job is to find that starting point for your dog.
After
After the call, the work is yours, and a second session is there if you need it.
Daily practice is what changes the dog. A few minutes, several times a day, in the real situations, beats one long session on the weekend. Track what happens so you can tell whether the plan is working.
If the trainer hears something during the call that points to a safety risk, such as a bite history, you will be told directly that an in-person professional is the right next step. Medical questions are handed back to your veterinarian. That honesty is part of what the session is for.
- A few minutes of practice, several times a day
- Practice in the real situations, not only the quiet ones
- A sentence a day on what happened
- Another session only if the plan stalls
The programs
Book a session with our head trainer.
One-on-one by phone or Zoom, $99, anywhere in the US.
$99per session
Phone or Zoom, anywhere in the US
Virtual consultation with our head trainer
One-on-one guidance for behavior, a new dog, introductions or a new puppy.
Do I have to use video, or can I do the session by phone?
Either works. Phone suits decisions and planning, like choosing a breed or preparing for a second dog. Zoom helps with behavior problems because the trainer can see the dog's posture and your set-up. Sending a short video ahead of a phone call is a good middle ground.
Should my dog be in the room during the virtual session?
For a behavior question, yes, if the dog can stay calm on a leash, a bed or in a crate nearby. That lets you try an exercise live. For a breed choice or puppy planning call before the dog comes home, there is obviously no dog needed.
Can other people in the household listen in?
It usually helps when everyone who handles the dog hears the plan firsthand, because dogs get confused when each person follows different rules. Gather them in one room with one device so the conversation stays simple and the trainer hears one clear description.
What if my dog will not show the problem behavior on camera?
That is common, which is why a clip filmed beforehand is so useful. If you have no clip, describe the moment step by step: where everyone was, what the dog did first, and how it ended. The trainer can build a plan from a clear description.
Will the trainer tell me if a virtual session is not enough?
Yes. If what you describe suggests a safety risk, such as a bite history or a dog that is a danger to other dogs, the trainer will tell you that in-person help is needed. Health concerns are sent back to your veterinarian before training.
Virtual session, $99
See what a session can do for your dog.
Request a $99 virtual session by phone or Zoom. Our team confirms a time, and you work through your dog's problem one-on-one with our head trainer.