Prerequisite: Puppy Must be 9- to 15-weeks of age at start of first class.

This fun class is for puppies 9- to 15-weeks of age and their owners who want to have a great start to their relationship. Your puppy will be around others of similar age and vaccination status in a clean and safe environment. This course has puppy play & socialization, being around other humans not part of their human pack, and being around different distractions. You will learn the art of playing together, being calm on command on their mat for relaxation and working on building your puppies confidence. We'll also learn crate manners, impulse control, learning their name with positivity and more. You as the puppies handler will also learn about marker training, capturing those good behaviors and teaching your dog to make the right choices.

This class will give you and your puppy a great start to prevent those unwanted behaviors before they happen and give you a leg up for the S.T.A.R. Puppy class.



Prerequisites: Puppy must be 4- to 10-months of age at start of first class and completely vaccinated.

Required to attend all 6 classes to be able to take the AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy test but the test is not required.

We take the classic core AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy syllabus and added some additional key skills we believe every puppy from 4 to 10 months should have. This class covers the first steps to loose-leash walking, sit, down, stays, stay with another person, recall (come when called), reaction to distractions, walking on different surfaces, being calm on command, examining your puppies paws and ears and socialization. We go through and help guide you through common problems puppy owners might encounter like jumping and nipping. At the end of the 6-week course, your puppy will be able to take the S.T.A.R. Puppy test and earn their first certificate through AKC.

It is required to attend all 6 classes to be able to take the AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy test. We add an additional 30 minute session at no additional charge of the 7th week to do any make-up tests.



Prerequisite: STAR Puppy or Family Dog

This class picks up where STAR Puppy and Family Dog left off. You'll be working with your dog to build your relationship and all while adding distractions and building distance between you and your canine. Once you have completed Steps to CGC, you will then be ready to take the AKC Canine Good Citizen Class where you can put into action all that you have learned from your classes.

Prerequisite: Basic Manners 2

In this 5-week course one of our AKC CGC evaluator instructors will review and help you practice the required skills to pass the AKC Canine Good Citizen test. It is required that your dog has taken Basic Manners 2 before taking this class. We will cover accepting & greeting a friendly stranger, sit-stays, down-stays, recall from a distance (come when called), supervised separation, loose-leash walking, appearance & grooming, walking through a crowd, reaction to another dog and reaction to distractions. We offer the opportunity to take your CGC test when you are ready with our CGC and Trick Dog testing days at no extra charge if you have taken this class with us.

Prerequisites: Your dog must have the CGC title before entering this class.

If you and your dog have completed and earned the title Canine Good Citizen then this is the next step to a polite and well-mannered social dog in public. We combine the skills CGC Urban & Community Canine in one 5-week class using the skills you and your dog mastered from CGC. AKC Urban requires that your dog demonstrate skills from CGC and beyond in the real world setting that includes traffic, crowds, noises, smells and other unplanned distractions in a city or town and the Community Canine is the advanced version of CGC. Our first class is taught at the CDTC facility and the remaining classes are taught off-site. On week 5 you will have the opportunity to take the AKC CGCA & CGCU test and have the opportunity to earn 2 additional AKC titles.

(Please Read Carefully)

Prerequisites:

1. Dog must be 1-year of age or older, 

2. You must have CDTC instructor approval or video submission with your dog performing a sit, stay, come when called and walking on a loose leash.

3. Dog must have an outstanding temperament, friendly to all people and tolerant of other dogs and non-aggressive toward other pets.

This class is designed to prepare handlers and their dogs for visits to institutions, facilities, and any other place where Therapy Dogs are needed. The primary objective of the the Therapy Dog is to provide comfort and companionship in a way that promotes healing and improves the quality of life for the people being visited and the staff who care for these people. Our ultimate goal is to create teams that visit facilities together, meet like-minded people and help address a real need in our community.

So what's the difference between Therapy Dogs and Emotional Support Animals? First, a Therapy Dog can help multiple people, sometimes even at the same time. An emotional support animal (as well as a Service Dog) is dedicated to helping one person all of the time. Another important difference between therapy dogs and ESAs is how the law recognizes them. ESA owners get special protections that allow to have their animals on airplanes and in rental units; these laws do not cover therapy dogs. Therapy dogs may only go into facilities where they are invited.

Prerequisites: Must be a member of the club.

It's time... Let's get fit with our dogs and why not do it together as members! We are committed to providing our members with sports they can do with their dog but it is so highly crucial to have a well fit balanced dog. Join us as we meet at the club for body conditioning classes and across the low country as we walk the trails of our beautiful Palmetto State as an AKC Fit Dog Club. Earn your 3 Fit Dog titles and the Turkey Trot Medals.

Prerequisite: Basic Manners 2

Why not have some fun and try this exciting Tricks class! A trick dog is a happy dog and why not share their joy of fun with the people you know. In this 4-week class you'll learn some fun tricks to impress your family and friends and even have the opportunity to earn your AKC Novice or Intermediate Trick Dog Titles if you so choose. These classes are meant to be fun and are designed to build your relationship with your dog. 

It is recommended that if you are looking to earn your AKC Novice Trick Dog Title you should take the CGC class first but it is not required. By earning your CGC title first your dog is then only required to perform 5 tricks to receive the Novice Trick Dog title. The Intermediate title requires 10 tricks to be performed.

Prerequisite: Non-aggressive dogs and have taken a CGC class or your dog is a competition dog. The core manner skills are needed to make this class enjoyable for all.

This class is fantastic to get your dog conditioned and ready for any sport. Learn how to stretch your dog and build core and body strength safely. It is highly recommended to perform these exercises before you begin any sport and cool down your dog with a stretch after. We HIGHLY recommend taking this class if you plan to do agility.

This class can also be used for your Fit Dog Titles!

This is not a first class for any dog except those headed for a serious competition career.

This class is appropriate for any dog and handler team that is interested in establishing a better working relationship and is ready to start the foundations for competitive Obedience and/or Rally sport.  We will introduce using a verbal marking system if you don't already have one and how to play with your dog as a release and motivator. The topics that will be covered and practiced will include: Having fun doing obedience, learn and review basic positions with attention and we will be laying the foundations for attention during, Recalls, Stands, Down, Sits, Drop on Recall, Retrieve on the flat, command discrimination, directed retrieve, stays and finishes.

Prerequisite: Competition Building Blocks Level 1 or have prior experience trialing a dog in Obedience or Rally.

In this 6-week class you will review, refine and build upon the skills learned the previous weeks. Skills needed for Competition Obedience and Rally will be practiced. This class does not work on the complete exercises but rather the foundations needed to perform the exercises.  You will learn to have fun teaching obedience to your dog and to use play as a release motivator. You will also learn or review basic positions with attention.

Prerequisites: Competition Building Blocks level 1 & 2 or have prior experience trialing.

In this 4-week Competitive Obedience class we are going to break down every exercise to the smallest detail all the way through Utility into separate smaller skills. This class will help you understand how to work with your dog at the highest level all while having fun! At this level you will refine the skills you learned, then with all the pieces your team will sequence them to form the complete exercise. This class will carry you through all levels of AKC Obedience: Novice, Open and Utility.

Obedience Unleashed is a weekly class designed for people interested in honing their competition skills. It is structured for people that cannot commit to regular weekly classes and/or need flexibility for their schedule. The classes at the Charleston Dog Training Club offer a clean, climate controlled environment and controlled distractions to enhance the training experience.

Each week there will be a different instructor with something fun to work on for all levels of trainers. Different levels of skills and exercises we be available from Novice through Utility level. One week it might be a fun game and another week might be practicing skills to better perform a complete exercise.

For this class dogs should be under the handler's control and non-aggressive, as multiple dogs will be working at the same time.

Prerequisites: Dog must be 1 year of age or older. Basic Manners 2 or Canine Good Citizen (Your dog must have a stay and a recall and is non reactive to other dogs).

HIGHLY recommend taking the Body Conditioning FIT Dog class.

This is a 5-week introductory course of Agility Skills. Working both as a team and independently, you and your dog will create and build on foundation skills: stays, recalls, rear end awareness, driving to a target, handling skills for flat work and two on two off plank work. We will also introduce the jumps, wings and the tunnel. By the end of the five weeks, you and your dog will get to run through a mini fun course.

Prerequisites: Focus for Agility.

This is an introductory course of the weave skills needed for agility. You will start to learn the skills needed to train the weaves successfully to your dog. It is recommend that you purchase a set of weave poles to practice with at home.

Prerequisite for Part 1: Have taken the CGC class before taking this class.

Prerequisite for Part 2: Must have completed the Novice Scent Work Part 1 class.

At the novice level odor division in AKC Scent Work, dogs search for cotton swabs scented with birch essential oil and alert their handler of the scent’s location with four element setting- buried, exterior, container and interior.

For our Odor Novice Scent work classes we break down these 4 elements into a 2 classes each being 4-weeks in length. In Part 1, you and your dog will work together to build what is called "HUNT DRIVE" (the dog's ability to search). You will learn the rules of an AKC Scent Work Trial, be provided information on the AKC titling programs, and how to enter a your first show. You will focus on the container and interior elements in this 4-week session. This class is designed to be fun for you and your dog and will help your dog to build confidence while working away from you. In our Part 2 class which is also 4 weeks, you will continue to develope on the skills learned in part 1 and work on the other two elements- buried and exterior.

Prerequisite: AKC Novice Scent Work Part 1 and Part 2 completed.

Coming Soon!