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Our curated list of the best professionals in the Spennymoor area.
With its local parks and strong community feel, trainers in Spennymoor focus on creating well-behaved family pets that are a pleasure to own and live with.
270 Park Rd, South Moor, Stanley DH9 7ED
From the moment we brought our puppy Millie to Lee at School of Dogs, we knew we were in the best hands. Lee’s depth of knowledge, endless patience, and kind, positive training methods have made all the difference. He doesn’t just teach obedience—he teaches how to live well with your dog and truly bring out the best in them. Thanks to Lee’s supportive guidance, we’ve learned how to help Millie thrive and feel confident as dog owners. His gentle approach creates a safe space for learning, and every session leaves us feeling empowered and connected. Millie also attends the doggy day care at School of Dogs, and the care from Lee’s team is beyond wonderful. They treat her like one of their own—gentle, kind, and attentive in every way. We cannot recommend Lee and School of Dogs highly enough. If you want your dog to be taught with warmth, expertise, and genuine love, this is the place to be.
We have just completed 5 weeks of training with Lee for our cockapoo puppy Marley. We are extremely grateful for Lees training and support. Marley has came on leaps and bounds. If your looking for a great dog trainer then Lee is definitely your man. Thanks Lee for all your help.
We were recommended to school of dogs after Lee trained another family dog that was perfectly trained and thought the school would be perfect for our puppy Ralph. It was a pleasure to take Ralph to Lee’s puppy classes. In the five weeks we’ve spent with Lee, Ralph has progressed and has come on leaps and bounds especially with his walking to heal and recall. We look forward to working with him in the junior classes to advance Ralph’s training further. 😀
So happy to introduce our friends and their rescue puppy to Lee and School of Dogs. We trained our Staffie Sky with Lee and can honestly say he's brilliant. Phoebe enjoyed her first lesson :-)
Thanks so much Lee. We just completed the 5 week puppy course and it was fantastic. Really helpful!
14, Skillion Business Centre, Langley Moor, Littleburn Industrial Estate, Durham DH7 8HG
We can’t recommend Kev highly enough! Odie struggles with dog reactivity, and we honestly thought walking calmly near other dogs might never be possible. Within seconds of working with Kev, we saw a complete transformation — our boy was walking confidently right alongside another dog. The level of skill, knowledge, and calm no-nonsense approach was nothing short of magic. If you’re looking for someone who truly understands dogs and gets results, look no further.
We had a great experience with Kevin and received really helpful tips for daily work with my athletic, strong, playful, and nervous dog.
Took our 9 month old cocker spaniel for his first training session yesterday with kevin. We booked the session to get help with pulling on the lead and reactivity with dogs as he becomes very hyper when out for walks if he sees another dog. Within 5 minutes he was walking by our side with full attention on us. Kevin also brought out another dog and the difference in Arlo was amazing again full focus on us and not the dog. I took Arlo out for a walk today and came across 2 dogs who were barking and pulling to get at him and again he sat and just looked up at me instead of reacting. Iam so grateful to Kevin as the difference in the first 24 hours has been huge already
Brought my reactive dachshund to Kevin for an initial assessment and within 25 mins he had him walking past other dogs while maintaining a loose lead. More practice over the next few weeks but thanks to Kevin’s advice huge progress has been made already. Thanks again 👍
I had never owned a puppy before, and although my husband has had several dogs in the past, his offshore work commitments meant I initially found looking after our Labrador puppy quite overwhelming. Red turns one next month, and she has grown into such a well-behaved young dog. The dietary guidance we received made a significant difference, and my husband and I were very diligent in doing our homework between training sessions. When Red was just five months old, we had a distressing incident where our neighbour’s German Shepherds jumped on us. This understandably left her nervous and unsettled around larger dogs. I mentioned this to Kevin during her next class, and he worked patiently with her to help her regain confidence. It was worth every penny—we couldn’t recommend their service highly enough to other dog owners.
35 Osborne Cl, Darlington DL3 9YE
Had a few sessions with both of our dogs and they were great! Done the beginner classes and a 1-1 home visit. We learnt ALOT and are continuously using the skills taught. Excellent experience
Liz is amazing; she is very clear in her teaching in class and so supportive helping to iron out where I've been going wrong, in a lovely way. The training programme that you access on line to support all that Liz has taught in class is excellent, the videos are a great reminder. These classes have been worth every penny and I highly recommend anyone who is getting or has already got a pet gun dog to book asap, it will save you and your dog a lot of frustration.
Liz is a really knowledgeable, compassionate trainer. We approached her for help with our 6 yr old rescue cocker spaniel! She helped us sort out his diet and sleep and then explained how the big emotions he was feeling were influencing his behaviour. Through training games we learned how to create a calmer environment so he found it easier to manage. Not only did we end up with a spaniel with the behaviours we wanted but the training gave us a really connected fun relationship with him. I can't recommend Liz highly enough for working breed parents!
I have just completed the Pet Gundog lifeskills and obedience course with my young springer spaniel, Izzy and thoroughly enjoyed it. I rehomed Izzy when she was 11 months old and life has been a whirlwind since then. She was obsessed with birds, she pulled on the lead, had no real recall to speak of and was perfectly happy to ignore me on walks in favour of running through undergrowth in search of anything she could chase. I signed up to Liz's course in a bid to further the training we'd already begun and it was one of the best decisions I've made. We now have a solid recall, including recalling away from birds and the neighbour's cats and our walks look so much different to how they used to. The games and skills that are geared towards gun dogs have been massively helpful in transforming our walks and I would recommend the class to anyone who has a whizzy, busy spaniel. The support from Liz both in and outside of classes is fantastic and she's able to tweak exercises to suit individual dogs where needed. The next part of our training journey is hopefully going to include some 1-2-1's with Liz to continue to build on the skills we've developed during the course.
We took our 14 month old bonkers lab to Liz and she has transformed him into a much more compliant, trainable and fun dog. Her understanding of the gun dog breeds and how they think and respond to direction and instruction is amazing. We've had such a great experience so far we're booking up for my time with Liz to develop his training and skills further. Something we never thought we'd ever get to! It's money and time well spent We can't recommend Liz highly enough.
Walworth grange, Walworth, Darlington DL2 2LY
I've been attending scentwork classes with PDAT since 2019, and mantrailing workshops/classes before that with all 3 of my dogs at the time, including a fairly reactive Jack Russell. Reactivity wasn't an issue in a small group where the dogs worked individually and he enjoyed the class. Ellie and Pepper both love their scentwork class. They're both deaf now (14 and 15 years old) and Pepper didn't start scentwork until after she'd gone deaf at 10 years old but this wasn't a problem for Laura and she was able to adjust the learning to help Pepper really 'get' the game and she hasn't looked back. I am now taking my young Springer, Izzy to scentwork classes and mantrailing (when we're able to grab a rare place!) along with taking part in the monthly scent trials and Erin's monthly gundog class. She loves everything about coming to classes with Laura and Erin and we hope to continue for a long time. We would highly recommend PDAT to anyone who's looking for dog training classes that are a little bit different and get great results.
Bramble and I really enjoyed the Foundation Training sessions, it was interesting for her (and me!) and with lots of advice, variation and scaffolding to extend or consolidate different commands. Non judgmental style, with a real focus on positive reinforcement for doggies and humans too! Thank you Erin, we are looking forward to our gun dog sessions!
Great class, easy to follow lots of support. Erin is great and very knowledgeable lots learned as well as having fun. Can't wait to continue.
Luca loved the foundation sports classes. I would highly recommend, Erin is knowledgeable and friendly ☺️
I took my 5 month old cocker spaniel Olive to the 6 week foundation sports class organised and taught by Erin Erin was brilliant and extremely knowledgable, myself and Olive learnt a lot over the 6 weeks, Olive seems like a better version of herself through everything Erin taught us. Now when out on walks where Olive used to be reactive to other dogs and people we can use some of the skills we learnt in the lessons and Olive is no longer reactive at all. I can’t recommend the course enough and we are hoping to carry on growing what we’ve learnt already by attending other classes going forward. Thank you Erin.
6 Ellington Cl, Ouston, Chester-le-Street DH2 1UD
Can’t recommend Vicky enough , I have attended the puppy classes with 2 of my dogs over the last 12 years and it has given them the best start . We are looking forward to starting the follow on course with Ruger in the next few weeks to build on the things we have learned.
Excellent company. Extremely professional and very reasonable prices. Would wholly recommend it to anyone looking for dog advice.
We were so close to returning our puppy because of him biting our daughter so much. We booked a home visit consultation and the 6 week puppy starter class and because of Vicky's help we managed to curb some of the more worrying behaviour. Vicky gives guidance and advice in a way that makes sense and helped us understand our puppy's behaviour, then what we can do to curb and manage this. She doesn't claim to have a magic wand or a quick fix, but if one thing doesn't work she will suggest something else, such as changing the reward or changing the command given. In class we found Vicky to be patient, recognising the different temperament of each dog there and their nature (because of their breed). When trying different commands and techniques she demonstrated first and encouraged us to persist, but acknowledged that it is hard work training a puppy. The lay out of the class was helpful and she recognised what dogs got on well and what dogs to keep well apart. Our pup loves Vicky (the treat lady!) and always loved going to class. Thanks to Vickys help our little one really is a good dog (well, most of the time!). Thank you, Vicky, for giving us the tips needed to make our home a happier home, giving us the confidence needed to continue training at home and helping us learn how to curb behaviour that could have led to something serious happening if things continued the way they were. And a big thank you for being there in between classes too, answering WhatsApp questions and emails.
Firstly, it is so important to know that Vicky is one of the few fully qualified and appropriately accredited dog trainers in the area so you know that you're getting someone who actually knows what they're doing. Vicky was excellent with us and gave us the skills and confidence to get our puppy through her classes. She's come so far by just learning the basics and we hope to continue to the next steps because our dog loved coming so much.
Absolutely loved the little learners course it was great fun and we learned so much that we are already benefiting from both at home and out and about. The group was just the right size and all the puppies got equal amounts of attention. Vicky was professional and informative and made the impossible look easy at times. She was also happy to pick up questions outside of the class. I couldnt recommend Have a Good Dog highly enough.
Finding experienced dog trainers in Spennymoor means connecting with professionals who understand the specific needs of this historic County Durham market town. From training energetic puppies in the residential areas near Jubilee Park to managing reactive dogs along the Tudhoe Mill Heritage Trail, our certified trainers deliver personalised obedience training, behaviour modification, and puppy socialisation programmes tailored to local community life.
Serving Spennymoor town centre, Tudhoe Village, Merrington, and surrounding areas including DL16 postcodes, we've successfully trained over 850 dogs in the region during the past eight years. Our expertise addresses the unique challenges of dog ownership in this close-knit community, from navigating the busy High Street to enjoying off-lead exercise at Carr Bottom Wood and Tudhoe Grange.
Spennymoor presents distinctive training requirements shaped by its mix of traditional terraced housing, modern estates, and accessible countryside walks. The town's excellent network of green spaces including Jubilee Park, Spennymoor Town Park, and nearby woodland trails provides ideal training environments, but also means dogs regularly encounter livestock, wildlife, and other canines, making proper recall and socialisation absolutely essential.
Our trainers specialise in addressing challenges specific to County Durham communities including desensitising dogs to agricultural activity around Kirk Merrington, managing reactive behaviour on narrow pavements throughout the town centre, and building confidence for dogs transitioning from rural rescue centres. We understand local walking routes along the Heritage Trail and ensure your dog develops the manners needed for enjoying Spennymoor's community-focused lifestyle where neighbours know each other and dogs are part of daily life.
Our puppy programmes focus on the critical 8-16 week development period, introducing young dogs to Spennymoor's environment including market day activity, traffic on Durham Road, and various surfaces found throughout local estates and country paths. Training covers house training, crate training, bite inhibition, and essential commands including recall, lead walking, and settling. Controlled socialisation sessions help puppies develop confidence around other dogs, children, and the diverse scenarios encountered in this friendly community.
We address leash reactivity on Spennymoor's residential streets, barrier frustration common in terraced properties, and fear-based responses that some rescue dogs exhibit. Using positive reinforcement and systematic desensitisation, we help dogs learn calm responses to triggers encountered throughout Jubilee Park or along busier shopping areas, building tolerance and replacing unwanted behaviours with focus and self-control.
Our advanced training develops the off-lead control necessary for safely enjoying Spennymoor's countryside access and larger parks. We build reliable recall despite distractions including wildlife near Tudhoe Beck, other dogs at popular walking spots, and livestock in surrounding agricultural areas, ensuring your dog responds consistently whether in town or exploring nearby Brandon or Ferryhill walking routes.
Dog training in Spennymoor typically costs £35-60 per hour for private sessions, with 6-week programmes ranging from £220-380. Group classes cost £10-18 per session, offering excellent value for basic obedience and socialisation needs.
Popular training locations include Jubilee Park's open spaces, quieter sections of Carr Bottom Wood for distraction work, and Tudhoe Mill Heritage Trail for lead training. Many trainers also offer home visits throughout DL16 areas and surrounding villages.
Professional dog training in Spennymoor creates well-adjusted canine companions suited to this welcoming County Durham community. Our proven methods combine evidence-based techniques with local knowledge, ensuring your dog thrives whether enjoying Tudhoe Village walks or navigating Spennymoor's town centre. Contact us today to schedule your consultation and start building the reliable, happy companion your family deserves.