PUPPY TRAINING
About Puppy Training at Bark Avenue
Bark Avenue Daycamp is where we train puppies. A foundation of socialization and dog training will help prevent behavior problems and promote a happy, healthy and confident puppy.
At Bark Avenue Daycamp, we acknowledge the significance of puppy training, recognizing that puppies are highly impressionable, and absorb a wealth of information during their early stages. These initial months are crucial as they acquire the skills to perceive and respond to their environment.
Whether you live in Elgin, Hoffman Estates, St Charles, Arlington Heights, or Carol Stream, creating positive learning experiences through puppy training and socialization can help prevent the development of behavioral problems such as fear, anxiety, and/or aggression when exposed to something new. The more you can expose your puppy to a variety of people, dogs, and environments (sights, sounds, and textures) the better chance you have at raising a well-balanced and confident dog. As their confidence builds, the anxiety and/or fear around new experiences will decrease.
Whether it’s attending our puppy playtime, puppy pre-school, or basic obedience classes, these are all great opportunities to begin exposing your puppy to new experiences and begin their puppy training. Dog training not only teaches your puppy good manners, but it builds a mutual bond and enriches your relationship!
Puppy Playtime
When: Sundays, 12:00-1:00pm
Duration: one hour per session
Cost: FREE!
Ages: 6 months and younger
Puppy Playtime is open to all clients and non-clients.
No reservation needed — Just stop by!
Puppy Playtime is a great opportunity for play and socialization with other puppies in a safe and supervised environment. Our goal is to create a positive experience for your puppy while they meet new fur’ends, explore a new environment, gain confidence, and have fun. Your pup will certainly be ready for a nap afterwards!
Bark Ave DayCamp is absolutely the best place I could have ever found to bring my puppy to playtime. Cassidy is such a sweetheart with every puppy and remembers every single puppy by their name and their character. She was always so nice to us. My puppy always had a wonderful time.
Puppy Pre-School
When: Saturdays, 9:00-9:30am
Duration: 6 weeks, 30 minutes per session
Cost: $120
Start your puppy off on the right paw with Puppy Preschool! This class is designed to give puppies and their families the tools they need to navigate the exciting—and sometimes challenging—early stages of puppyhood.
Through fun, positive, age-appropriate training, we’ll help puppies build confidence, learn good manners, and develop skills that will carry them into adulthood.
*For puppies under 4 months.
Puppies and their families will learn about:
- Handling — Teach puppies to feel comfortable and cooperative with everyday handling, grooming, nail trims, and veterinary care.
- Confidence Building — Help puppies become comfortable and confident when experiencing new people, environments, sounds, surfaces, and situations.
- Drop It & Leave It — Build impulse control and teach puppies to safely disengage from objects and distractions.
- Jumping — Encourage polite greetings and teach puppies appropriate ways to interact with people.
- Potty Training — Learn practical strategies for creating successful potty routines and preventing accidents.
- Crating — Create a positive relationship with the crate and teach puppies that it is a safe, comfortable place to relax.
- Nipping & Mouthing — Understand why puppies nip and learn appropriate ways to redirect and manage this normal puppy behavior.
- Feeding & Mealtime Manners — Establish healthy routines and teach puppies to be calm and polite around food.
- Puppy Calm — Build the ability to settle, relax, and make good choices instead of constantly being “on.”
Puppy Preschool is about more than teaching commands—it’s about teaching you how to understand your puppy and helping your puppy learn how to succeed in the world. Our goal is to build a confident, calm, and well-mannered companion while giving you practical skills you can use every day.
10/10-11/21, Saturday, 9:00-9:30am (NO CLASS 11/7)
We (and our puppy) love Bark Ave! We came for puppy playtime and they were great with the dogs. You can tell that they really care.
Fundamentals
When: Wednesdays, 6:30-7:15pm | Saturdays, 9:30-10:15am
Duration: 6 weeks, 45 minutes per session
Cost: $180
Build a strong foundation of communication and obedience with our Fundamentals dog training class. This class focuses on teaching your dog essential skills while developing focus, engagement, and reliability.
Dogs will learn and practice:
- Attention Getter — Teach your dog to focus on you and respond to your cue.
- Sit — Establish a reliable sit on cue.
- Down — Build a calm, controlled down position.
- Stay — Increase duration, distance, and reliability while remaining in place.
- Place — Teach your dog to settle and remain on a designated spot.
- Heel — Develop loose-leash walking and focused movement by your side.
- Recall — Build a dependable response when called.
Whether you’re starting from the basics or looking to strengthen your dog’s existing skills, Fundamentals provides the tools and structure needed for better communication, focus, and obedience at home and out in the real world
Recommended for dogs at least 4 months old. If dogs are less than 4 months, we recommend Puppy Pre-School. Note: If your dog is reactive/vocal towards people and/or dogs, please contact us for other training options.
9/30-11/4, Wednesday, 6:30-7:15pm
10/10-11/21, Saturday, 9:30-10:15am (NO CLASS 11/7)
11/11-1/6, Wednesday, 6:30-7:15pm (NO CLASS 11/25, 12/23, 12/30)
