MT Diablo Dog Training Club

A few years back, trained my wonderful dog "Indy" here. Efficient and effective, plus, they truly cared about the dogs and the results!

If i could give no stars i would. i've tried to come and participate in rally classes three times and i have been met with attitude and snarky comments every time. the "trainers" are unable to accept that not everyone wants to hold the leash the same way and i was glared at for using an e collar with my dog. if you don't do everything their way they tell you that you are doing it wrong. save your money and find a real club that embraces different training styles.

Terrific! My golden retriever and I are learning so much from Loretta and Shawn - their support and guidance is greatly appreciated!

Top notch training for even difficult canine. Friendly staff. Three trainers during class.

I've been involved in dog activities most of my life, and I would rank Mt Diablo dog training club as one of the best. It has a good variety of training classes as well as fun classes like tricks, scent detection, puppy beginner and canine good citizen awards. The instructors and members have been friendly and helpful. I highly recommend the training classes, fun classes, and the club itself.

What a great group of trainers they have! Taking our rescue thru first classes, improvement already, only 2 classes in.

I am aware a long history of great trainings that has been done through this club. That is why I am having my springer spaniel start at the Headstart program and then proceed through more training in the future. I am serious about making sure that my dog is safe and that I know my responsibility to her as well. I have full confidence in Mount Diablo dog training club.

We've been talking out Schnauzer here for years, great instructors, we always have a great time.

My German Shepherd Monty and I went through beginner's obedience and we both learned a lot. Wonderful instructor!

Wonderful training by friendly staff. Plenty of off street parking.

I've trained all my dogs at Mt Diablo and I think the training there is great. It is so impressive to see our beginning class at the end of the session. Every pup paying attention and walking nicely on leash. Don't expect your puppy to learn and remember everything from class. You need to be consistent and do your homework for your puppy to be a successful canine citizen.

Big mistake when I took my new puppy to a place down the street which set her up with some bad habits due to their training philosophy. I read some of the current negative reviews and they are not for the pet companion class but for people wanting to show there dogs in confirmation so don't let them scare you away!

I'd only recommend this place if you already KNOW what you're doing and you want to get your dog use to being with other dogs in a "dog show similar situation". No, I don't mean "puppy socialization", I mean getting them use to the noise, chaos and dysfunction that occurs at these types of dog related events. I've been showing dogs for over 40 years and I have finished a number of champions as an owner-handler so I know what I'm doing. Unfortunately, I can't say the same for the "instructor" giving the conformation classes here.

This is NO place for an amateur handler trying to learn how to show a dog! Each dog is different and works differently, it's up to you to work with your own dog and find out what works for best for your dog to get that win. The "instruction" they provided was minimal, at best, and completely ineffective. Thank God I knew what I was doing because, had I taken their "tips, advice and/or instruction" to show my own dog at a real AKC Dog Show, my dog would have NEVER done anything in the ring except lose!

My advice is: If you don't have a clue what you're doing or how dog training is suppose to be done, find a REAL dog trainer that you can trust and have seen the results of their experience in the training of Show Dogs or hire an AKC professional trainer because if you listen some of the things I was told when I brought my dog here, and actually do what THEY tell you you're suppose to do, you're just setting yourself up for a very disappointing dog showing experience!

I am surprised about the bad reviews. I've had excellent luck with my dog at Mt. Diablo Dog Training Club. I rescued him out of the Martinez Shelter. He was a fear biter when I got him, and not an easy dog. Very aggressive and mistrusting of other dogs and people. I had a lot to deal with. I had so much fun learning about him and dogs in general that I ended up showing him in Obedience.

He had fun, and so did I. We worked through his aggression issues. He is 14 now, and I still take him to MDDTC. He is learning how to do Nose Work, which is a perfect sport for an older dog. Negative training has never been an issue. We learned through treats and games. Dena Z.

I took my dog here for a few months, every week for conformation training. When I say training, I mean the most watered down version of training possible. if you can even call it training. There was nothing helpful or insightful about these classes. It was really just a less expensive dog show without the ribbons. At other conformation classes I've since been to, the instructor watches carefully, tells you what you're doing wrong, how you can make your dog look better, and what to practice at home.

At Mt. Diablo it was almost entirely just stand for inspection, do a down-and-back, do a go-around, done. My dog was young, bouncy, and playful when I started bringing him to these conformation classes. When he would show happy behavior in the class ring, I was instructed (and this was the only feedback I ever got) to yank hard on his slip lead and shout NO in his face.

I didn't know any better, so I listened. My dog never showed nicely after those classes. In fact, he became horribly fearful of judges! I've since learned from professional handlers that you should encourage happy behavior whenever the dog is in the ring so that they always have a positive show experience. Take your money elsewhere for training. There's a dog training facility nearby that doesn't freak out dogs to get results.

Do yourself a favor and take your money elsewhere. I got yelled at in this class, I was told that my dog needs to be quiet RIGHT NOW at the start of the very first class. Tell me how and I will calm him down, that's why I'm there! They told me that the only way I could stop my dog from mouthing is to spray him in the nose with bitter apple. Really?

The only way to control your dog is a choke chain in this class. I'm not even talking about the attitude of the lady running this show. I don't know who owns this place but they better consider hiring very different people for the job. You don't really learn much there either as a first time dog owner. Waste of money and time.

When I first got my dog, my brothers and I were overwhelmed with owning a puppy and were not very knowledgeable about how to properly train one. We were quick to find a trainer that could help us get his nipping and hyperactivity under control. We looked for a trainer in our area and found this place and thought it was promising. We went to two of the six classes and immediately stopped attending because their methods are outdated and old fashioned.

They employ dominance based training like jerking the leash when they aren't listening or grabbing their snout when they growl or bark and saying NO! Our dog struggled with heels on leash so they told us to use a prong collar. After successfully training my dog using positive reinforcement with the use of different trainer, I can definitely say that although you may see results using punishment or dominance as are employed by the trainers here, the results are transitory.

Their ideas on training are completely disconnected from ethology and I would recommend anyone interested in getting some training for their dog to look for someone who employs methods of positive reinforcement because the methods employed here are cruel and possibly dangerous.

I wanted to enroll my dog in beginning training which is for dogs 20 weeks and up. My dog turned 20 weeks the first week of the session so I arrived ready to begin. They actually turned me away because my dog was 4 days from her 20 week birthday. If they had another session around the corner I would shrug it off and start in another month but they don't have another session for 2.5 months! 4 DAYS TOO YOUNG?!?!She has all her shots and already knows several basic commands (sit, paw, down, beg, stay with food temptations, ect) and she walks and trots on a leash nicely. Dumb rule and silly enforcement of it.

I took a class here with my dog a few years ago. I can confirm with the other reviewers that the staff is not particularly coordinated and has an attitude (with one exception, a very nice assistant). What really irritated me is how several times in front of the class, the staff made derogatory comments about the owners, making thinly-veiled accusations of neglect, over feeding, etc.

People come to training because they want to do right by their dogs. Expressing concerns in private is a good thing, but harshly calling owners out publicly (with no benefit of the doubt) crosses the line and if anything turns off owners to potentially good advice for their dogs.

I was not impressed. Everyone seemed nice. Except the head lady. I admit I am a bit of a class clown and chatty Kathy but I did not need the teachers attitude while telling me to be quiet when it was the class assistant talking to me! Who also was the most helpful in trying to break my dogs bad habits. I felt like my dog was failing when he would lay down because he is too lazy to sit when we weren't actively doing something.

She was constantly telling me how to do things which is what the class is about but never addressed how to get my particular dog to respond, especially on the tasks he had trouble with. I had her take him at one point and felt verified when she could hardly control him. (He is a large lab) Just because your fully trained aussie dog (who doesn't like other dogs) can do it all easily doesn't mean I deserve attitude because my 6 month old lab has the attention span of a knat! It was an okay class, I would pick a different one if I got a new puppy. And maybe the other classes are better. I only took the puppy class.

I'm not sure where Jason went for training, but this is not the Mt. Diablo Dog Training Club that I know and love. I've taken our three family dogs there, one who had some pretty tough issues, and i have learned more and had more success than at any time with any dog in the past. Unfortunately we've moved away from the Bay Area, and I am still searching for the equivalent of this club. Great instructors, great facility, and incredible volunteers.

Took the puppy class, it was mediocre, probably 3.5 stars. Day one of the next level of training, I remind them my vet says no rabies vaccine until 6m of age, at first she says ok, then 1 minute later she rudely snips and says it's not ok. Poor review is related to this, coupled with the mediocre training class. My rating doesn't reflect their knowledge of vaccine schedules, I realize that the AVMA recommends the vaccine at about 3-4 months, but my vet says 6 months, that's not what the debate is about, it was the way they handled this situation, and the fact that they were ok with it during puppy class (our dog was there from age 4m-5m). I've had three other puppies, each went to different puppy classes, and all three were superior when compared to this one, and one of those classes was at a Pet Smart (which some people would frown on). Ah well, there are other dog training classes.