Dog Training at Wagsworth Manor

Professional Dog Training in Malvern PA
and the Philadelphia Main Line

Wagsworth Manor is pleased to offer professional, comprehensive Dog Training Programs including Group Classes, Puppy Socialization, and Private Lessons in Malvern PA and throughout the Philadelphia Main Line. Our Dog Training Programs are dedicated to enhancing the relationship and communication between parent and pet. Whether you are looking to improve your furry family member’s manners, strengthen your bond, or provide a healthy outlet both mentally and physically, we can help you achieve your training goals. In a fun and positive environment, our Training Program will help you and your dog better understand and communicate with each other, ultimately leading to a harmonious lifelong relationship.

Group Training Classes

Wagsworth Manor is thrilled to be offering group training classes taught by our talented, professional dog trainers. The classes are designed around fun and learning. Whether you are looking to start your puppy off right or teach your old dog new tricks, our weekday, evening, and weekend classes will help you learn the basics or fine tune more advanced skills. With the help of our trainers, you too can have that well-behaved pooch you have always dreamed of and in the process, strengthen the bond you have with your favorite canine companion!

S.T.A.R. Puppy Class

Ages: 10 weeks to 7 months old

Prerequisites: None

Early training and socialization of puppies & their parents helps establish good habits and healthy relationships right from the start! In this 6 week class, we’ll help cultivate basic manners and help your puppy achieve an AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy certification and ribbon upon graduation, as well as address how to handle common puppy behaviors such as crate training, proper greetings, and mouthing.

This series includes:

  • Social Skills - Teach your pup to enjoy being touched for easy nail clippings, vet exams, grooming, etc.
  • Crate & House Training- Get the A to Z on potty training with helpful tips.
  • Basic Manners- Teach your pup to sit rather than jump, pay attention, leave it,  and walk nicely on leash.
  • Basic Cues - Learn important communication skills that will set your puppy up for being a well-mannered furkid.
  • Fun, and more Fun!

Good Manners Class

Prerequisites: Puppy Preschool or equivalent course or over 7 months old

Looking to take your skills to the next level? Join our Good Manners Class! Whether you’re looking to teach your dog new behaviors or make already known cues more reliable, this intermediate class will help you get there while having fun throughout the process!

This series refines:

  • Basic cues – Sit, down, stay. Duration, distraction, and distance. Refining behaviors and both verbal and hand cues – gestures only, verbal only.
  • Recall – coming when called
  • Walking on a leash without pulling – Stop people from asking who’s walking whom.
  • No jumping on people – or to jump on cue for those who enjoy it.
  • Leave it – teach your dog to resist temptation.
  • Fun - Always!

Introduction to Scent Work Class

Ages: 5 months and older

Prerequisite:  STAR Puppy Class, Good Manners or equivalent

Course Length:  4 Weeks

Unleash your dog's sense of adventure with our Scent Work Class that takes you step by step to birch detection! Our comprehensive program is designed to nurture your dog's innate scenting abilities, starting from the basics and working all the way up to birch detection. Our experienced trainers will guide you and your furry friend through each stage, building confidence and skill along the way. Whether you're planning to compete or simply want to engage your dog's senses, our class is perfect for all levels. Join us on this exciting journey and watch your dog's abilities blossom as they master the art of scent detection. Enroll today and take the first step towards unraveling your dog's incredible sense of smell!

This series includes:

  • Building a dog’s desire to hunt for a scent. 
  • Prompting your dog to search for a treat or an essential oil scent. 
  • Show your dog how you would like them to indicate the presence of the treat or scent, whether that be a bark, a sit, eye contact, placing their paw on top of the item, or another action.
  • Progressively increasing the search scenarios from scent boxes to a room search with different heights.
  • And more!

Intro to Agility

Ages: Over 1 year old

Prerequisites: Good Manners or equivalent

Agility isn’t just about your dog learning to go on, over, under and through obstacles. It’s also about refining communication and teaching your dog that paying attention to you is a gateway to fun.

This series includes:

  • Training skills – hand and object targeting, shaping, back chaining and body cues
  • Refining basic behaviors – sit, stay, down
  • Body Awareness – balancing, backing up, stability
  • Obstacle skills – hurdles, pause table, tunnel, dog walk, intro to teeter
  • Fun – Always!

Our Training Programs

Have a puppy you want to socialize and teach the basics to? Want to work directly with a trainer? Prefer to drop your dog off and pick them up with better behavior? Have a smarty pup who can’t wait to learn the next new thing? Wagsworth Manor’s Training Program has something for you, and our professional trainers are happy to design customized plans for you and your dog’s needs!

Board-n-Trains and Camp-n-Trains

Sessions are offered in daily half or full sessions with customized training plans. Whether your canine companion is spending the night with us while you are away or is here for the day, our trainers work one-on-one with your dog to lay the foundation, help achieve more consistent results, and then transfer the skills needed to you so you can continue to reinforce the positive behaviors at home. All training sessions are completely tailored and customized to you and your dog in order to help you reach your training goals.

Skills Taught include (and are not limited to):

  • Obedience such as sit, down, recall, stay, loose leash walking and leave it
  • Behavioral Solutions such as jumping, inappropriate chewing, leash reactivity, nipping and mouthing

Sessions are Offered in daily Half or Full Sessions with customized Training Plans

Enrichment Sessions

Have a high-energy dog who likes puzzles, enjoys learning new tasks, or benefits from extra mental stimulation? Our Enrichment Sessions are a great add-on service for our Daycamp Program. Not only will your dog expend physical energy, but he’ll also receive extra mental stimulation to help tucker him out, allowing you to relax together at the end of a long day. Your dog will receive gentle one-on-one guidance in our daily enrichment activity that will appeal to dogs of any age, breed or skill level. An excellent way to entertain dogs with limited physical abilities as well as brainiac dogs.

Activities include:

  • Training Walks
  • Doggie Flirt Pole
  • Treat Puzzles
  • Agility
  • Nose Work

Puppy Preschool

Start your puppy on the right track to becoming a well-behaved family member with our Puppy Pre-School Program, an all-inclusive basic training, daycamp, and socialization program tailored to each puppy's unique personality and learning style. By entrusting our highly experienced trainers to safely and properly introduce your puppy to things they’ll encounter throughout their daily life, you can be assured that you are setting your puppy up for a lifetime of success! Puppies enrolled in this program come in for a minimum of 2 days per week of learning, exercise and fun and go home with positive, lifelong skills - and friends!

Skills Taught include:

Potty Training, Crate Training, Basic Obedience, Proper Socialization, and address common puppy behaviors such as nipping and mouthing, jumping, and chewing.

Private Lessons

Work with a trainer on a specialized behavior without your dog getting distracted by the rest of the class. Schedule a private coaching session at Wagsworth Manor Pet Resort focusing on obedience, problem solving, or behavior modification and learn how to get your dog on the road to success.

Contact us to schedule a training session

Dog Training Gallery

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Testimonials

Maureen ODonnell
Maureen ODonnell
July 25, 2024.
Very friendly staff. Great care of my pup.
Ted Wright
Ted Wright
July 25, 2024.
Our dog means the world to us. She's a rescue that I nearly hit with the car, and she's changed our lives Wagsworth does a tremendous job a bit more for the service but well worth it. Look at the Facility WoW huge. I'd recommend their services to anyone. Ted & Karen Wright. & Bella
Thomas Varley
Thomas Varley
July 18, 2024.
This was the first time our year-old pup, Mitzi, had been boarded, so we wondered how it would go. She had a great time, enjoyed making friends during playtimes and came home exhausted but not stressed, which certainly hadn't been the case with other dogs we boarded elsewhere. Mitzi was very well cared for and she will be back. Thanks, Wagsworth!
Siobhann Hall
Siobhann Hall
July 14, 2024.
First time leaving my dog. The place was clean and the people and caregivers were so friendly. They had all kind of packages to choose from. When I called to check on my dog and his handler let me know in detail how he was. When I picked him up today they provided a ‘report card’ to how he did and the friends he made. Great experience. I will definitely go back! Thank you!
Kimberly Wallace
Kimberly Wallace
July 7, 2024.
Wagsworth is the best! My giant breed dog has stayed here multiple times over the last several years, and every time is well taken care of. I love that Wagsworth allows me to choose options that meet my dogs needs and I always feel comfortable that my dog is good hands while I am away.
Jim Thompson
Jim Thompson
July 2, 2024.
We would not take our dog anywhere else, Moose is a gentle giant of a chocolate lab and Wagsworth has everything he needs and to give us peace while traveling. Large spaces to sleep, a pool, and outside spaces to play. We know he is being well cared for.
joe barr
joe barr
July 2, 2024.
The team at Wagsworth are awesome, friendly and patient, i feel at ease leaving Geno there!
Jeffrey Schnug
Jeffrey Schnug
July 1, 2024.
Wagsworth boarded our cat for 8 nights during some family travel. As always, they did a great job caring for him, he doesn’t miss a beat the second he gets back to his home so you know he feels happy and safe there. They also do a great job of following instructions for his feeding and medication. While there have been some price increases passed along lately, you know you are receiving great care and kindness towards your cat there.

Contact us to schedule a training session