Private Dog Obedience Training in Kansas City
Book a free phone consultationYou're not alone
We worked on basic obedience, loose-leash walking/heel, recall, and socializing out in public. Over 6 sessions my dogs are night and day from when we began.
Training In Action
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The Skills We'll Build Together
Obedience isn't a set of tricks, it's the toolkit for a calm dog you can actually take places. I train in your home because skills learned in a sterile facility fall apart at your front door. We start where the behavior lives, then work outward to the yard, the neighborhood, and the rest of Kansas City.
Loose-Leash Walking
Tension on the leash builds like a volcano: frustration rises, reactivity and anxiety climb, and every explosion gets rehearsed. I teach a truly loose leash that releases that pressure, so walks calm your dog instead of winding them up.
A Recall You Can Trust
Coming when called is the life-saving skill, squirrels and open gates included. We build a recall your dog wants to answer, then proof it outside where the distractions actually live.
Calm at the Door
Doorbell chaos, jumping on guests, bolting past your feet. I train polite greetings right at your own front door, because that is where the behavior happens, not in a training room across town.
Place and the Off Switch
Every dog needs an off switch. More than a go-to-your-bed trick, I teach your dog how to settle anywhere: during dinner, with guests over, out on a patio. Calm becomes the default, not something you beg for.
Out in Kansas City
Once the foundation is solid at home, we take it on the road: patios, parks, and coffee shops around the metro. Your dog learns that good manners travel, so you can actually bring them along.
From First Call to Lasting Change
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Free phone consultation
We start with your dog's background and story. Then I walk you through how I train, what we'll work on, and how it all works, including pricing, payment plans, and the package I'd recommend. I'm a coach here to teach and guide you, and I'm always here for advice and feedback.
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First session
We meet at your house. We go back over everything together, and I see it all in your world, where the behavior actually happens, so I get an even better understanding of what's happening and why. Then we start the foundation: building the behaviors you want, stopping the ones you don't. You leave with specific skills to practice: 10 to 20 minutes, 3 to 5 days a week.
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Follow-up sessions
Every 2 to 3 weeks. You do the work between visits, then we do three things: troubleshoot what came up and adjust, build on the skills you have or add new ones, and keep moving toward your goals. Dogs are moldable. Usually it's just that the human hasn't had the right information yet.
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Lifetime Support Guarantee
Every program includes call, text, and email support for as long as you have your dog. Any hands-on sessions down the road are paid, but I'll always be honest about whether you actually need one.
How Often Do We Train
Homework built into your life
You don't need an hour a day. You just need 10 to 20 minutes practicing specific skills that fold into your routine. No drilling: short, engaging work that's actually fun to do with your dog, practiced around real events. The doorbell stuff when the doorbell rings, the leash stuff on walks you already take.
Sessions are every 2 to 3 weeks on purpose: low pressure for your dog, for you, and for me. You get plenty of time to practice and feel confident. Three to five short reps a week isn't a New Year's goal, but a habit you can keep.
What every package includes
One-on-one, in-home training sessions, about an hour long.
A plan tailored to you, your dog, your household, and your lifestyle.
Every dog in your home included, with no per-dog charge.
Unlimited text, call, and email support between sessions.
Equipment guidance: what to use and how to use it.
I come to you, anywhere in the Kansas City metro.
Lifetime support: text, call, and email, plus another session if we ever need it.
Package pricing
Four 1‑hour in‑home sessions
$900
For mild behavioral issues and dogs who need a foundation. We usually focus on 2 to 3 things over about 2 months.
- All the dogs in your home included
- A custom plan for your lifestyle
- Unlimited text, call, and email support
- Equipment guidance
- Lifetime support
Six 1‑hour in‑home sessions
$1,100
For medium cases where we work on 3 to 4 things, like recall and impulse control, with time to make them reliable. Around 3 months.
- All the dogs in your home included
- A custom plan for your lifestyle
- Unlimited text, call, and email support
- Equipment guidance
- Lifetime support
Eight 1‑hour in‑home sessions
$1,300
My most reserved package, for severe cases like biting or fighting in the home. The most time to work through serious behavior safely. Around 4 months.
- All the dogs in your home included
- A custom plan for your lifestyle
- Unlimited text, call, and email support
- Equipment guidance
- Lifetime support
Frequently asked questions
Just need one session?
A single in-home session is $300.
What if we need more sessions than our package?
You just pay the difference. If you start with the 4-session package and your dog needs 6, you pay the price difference between the two packages. Never a new package, never a penalty.
How do payments work?
One payment, or split it in two: half at the start, half in the middle of your package.
Do you travel outside the Kansas City metro?
Yes, for a $25 travel fee per visit that covers drive time.
Not sure which package to choose?
Free phone consultationAn Investment in Yourself and Your Dog
Training your dog the right way is an investment: your peace of mind, your dog's future, and honestly your next dogs too. I know my training isn't cheap, but sometimes you have to invest to get the results you want. My program isn't right for everyone, and that's okay. If it sounds like a fit, let's schedule a consultation. If it's not, no hard feelings.
Meet Andrew
When you hire Good Dogz KC, you get me every session, not a rotating staff. You're paying for quality, educated information: not from somebody who's still learning, but from an expert who's been doing this with dogs of all ages, sizes, and breeds for nearly seven years. I've worked with thousands of dogs, I've had hundreds of dogs board and train at my house, and I've lived with them around kids, around other dogs, navigating new places, new houses, and new people. I have a training program that works.
What I care about isn't an obedient robot. It's a calm dog and a household that finally feels easy. Obedience is a great tool, but it's skill-based; it doesn't manage how a dog feels under stress. So I start with the emotional side, helping your dog actually settle, and use clear, fair boundaries to get there.
If you're reading this, you already know you're the one who needs the education. It's not that you can't do it; you've never been taught the skill. So how could you teach it to your dog? My program starts with a foundation and moves into harder and harder things as we progress, keeping it low stress. Progress happens over time; it's behavior. And these are normal things: every dog owner is dealing with something, and all dogs, just like humans, have things they could use help with.
My job is to be your coach and your mentor. I'm never going to tell you "you have to do this." I'm a resource and a springboard: I'll give you advice, tell you honestly what's worked and what hasn't across the thousands of dogs I've trained, and I'll always be in your corner. My goal is to see you and your dog succeed. This is an investment, and it isn't cheap, but you'll learn a skill that lasts the rest of your dog's life and every dog after: from then on it's troubleshooting, not starting from scratch.
In just a few sessions we were able to train my dog to wait patiently on his "place" when someone comes the door instead of tackling them the moment they step inside. Andrew is very knowledgable and a pleasure to work with!
Book your free phone consultation
Obedience Training FAQs
Real questions from families starting obedience work.
What does obedience training actually cover?
The real goal isn't a dog that performs tricks, it's a dog you can live with. We build loose-leash walking, a recall you can actually trust, a solid place and settle, calm greetings at the door, and a real off switch for the moments you need one. I treat obedience as a tool for a calm, regulated dog, not as the whole point, and I build the plan around your dog and your home.
My dog knows sit and stay at home but ignores me outside. Why?
That's one of the most common things I hear, and it isn't your dog being stubborn. Dogs don't automatically carry a skill from the living room out to a busy sidewalk, you have to teach it in stages. We start in your home, where your dog can actually focus, then add real distractions one step at a time: the yard, the driveway, the neighborhood, then public places. That's how you get obedience that holds up when it counts.
We took a group class and it didn't really stick. How is this different?
You're not the only one who's told me that. A group class can teach your dog a cue like sit or stay, but it happens once a week in a room full of other dogs, which is the opposite of where your real problems live. It doesn't teach you how to hold a boundary in your own kitchen or on your own walk. I work one-on-one, in your home, on the exact things you deal with every day, and I coach you so it keeps working after I leave.
How many sessions will my dog need, and do you cover my area?
It depends on where your dog is starting and what you want out of it, so I'll give you an honest recommendation on the free phone consultation instead of guessing here. Most people land on the 6-session package for the extra wiggle room, and if you start smaller and decide you want more, I just charge the difference, never a whole new package. I cover the full Kansas City metro, both sides of the state line, including Overland Park, Olathe, Shawnee, Lenexa, and Lee's Summit, and I come to you.
Do you use e-collars / "shock collars"? Is that safe?
Yes, I use an e-collar. It's a communication tool, like a tap on the shoulder: a leash for when your dog is off leash. It's not punishment and it's not a forever tool; it's there to help your dog build boundaries while we train. It has three core functions: a low-level stim that guides your dog like a leash (come back to me), a higher adjustable level, and a vibrate that teaches your dog to move away from things they shouldn't get into. I use it for recall, off-leash walking, boundary setting, and stopping unwanted behaviors like barking or digging. The level is Goldilocks, like a hot stove: your dog has to notice it's on, but it can never be painful, and it can't be so low they don't care. Just enough for them to pick a different choice. Pair that with a positive path that still gets them what they want, and your dog learns there are two avenues to the same result. Over time their brain naturally rewires toward the behaviors we want.
Will this actually work for my dog? Is my dog too far gone?
That's up to how hard you want to work for it. All dogs, just like humans, can change; how far they go depends on how committed you are. I've had really hard behavioral cases do phenomenally well because the owners put in the work: they invested in themselves, invested in their dog, spent the time, and succeeded. If you want results without putting anything in, you'll fail. That's why I build training into your everyday life. I'm a busy father with kids, my own dogs, and client dogs, so I know exactly how important your time is: 10 to 20 minutes, 3 to 5 times a week. You don't need an hour a day and you don't have to train every day. You just have to be consistent over time, with guidance and expertise on what to do next. And for what it's worth, rescues with unknown histories are most of my work, and age isn't a wall (dogs aren't even mentally mature till around three).
We tried training before and it didn't stick.
Common, and it makes sense. Group classes teach your dog a cue ("sit," "stay"); they don't teach you how to hold a boundary. And for a lot of dogs, a group class is just too much: they're past their threshold and can't pay attention. It's like taking your kid to a playground and trying to teach them math. That's not setting them up for success. Group classes are great for dogs that can already handle that environment, but if your dog hasn't learned that skill yet, you're going to fail. That's why I start training in your house: fewer distractions, so we can practice and build a solid foundation. Then we work your neighborhood as your dog gets confident, then bigger and more chaotic environments: more stimulation, more dogs, more real life. Laying the foundation is everything.
How often are sessions, and how much homework is it?
Sessions are every 2 to 3 weeks, on purpose, so you're never overwhelmed and the change has time to stick (it's reps in real life between sessions, not a cram). Homework is about 10 to 20 minutes a few days a week, built into your normal routine and practiced in the moments the behavior already happens (the walk, the doorbell, dinnertime), not an hour of drilling sits and downs. As for sessions and cost: packages are 4, 6, or 8 one-hour in-home sessions, most people start with 6, and all the dogs in your home are included. When you're ready, you can either schedule a free phone consultation, or pick your package up above and sign up right away.