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A Well-Trained Dog Is a Joy to Own

About Training at Canine Retreat

Canine Retreat offers both private training & group training classes from beginner to advanced, including basic obedience, AKC’s Canine Good Citizen® and AKC S.T.A.R.™ Puppy.

Group training classes run in six-week cycles and focus on positive reinforcement techniques to improve the communication between you and your dog and strengthen your bond. An experienced trainer will provide constructive feedback and tips for how to continue your dog’s training at home.

  • 1 hour per week (missed classes will have the opportunity to attend makeup sessions)
  • $350 – Pre-registration required
  • Participating dogs must have current rabies, bordetella, distemper/parvo

For private training classes please contact our trainers or any of our 6 Canine Retreat locations.

Meet the Trainers

Babette Haggerty  “Train Every Day People to Have Once in a Lifetime Dogs.”

As a Bergen County native, Babette began working in her family’s upstate New York kennel as a young child. She continues her family’s tradition by offering puppy training, obedience classes, house training and problem solving throughout New York City and New Jersey. As an experienced trainer and dog owner, she fully understands the need for owners to live a stress-free life of harmony and balance with their dog. 

As a mother of two children, she has experienced first hand the importance of teaching kids how to appropriately reinforce training methods in the home. Many times you will even find her two children participating in lessons and demonstrating how to teach dogs to take direction from children and solve problems.

Babette is the author of the critically acclaimed book Woman’s Best Friend: Choosing and Training the Dog That Is Right for You, published by McGraw-Hill, which sold out of its first printing in six weeks.  She has been featured numerous times at the national and local level on radio, newspaper and television, as well as in Pet Business and Dog Fancy magazines for her expertise.

Lizz Molloy  “Canine Good Citizens come in all shapes and sizes”           

Lizbeth comes to Canine Retreat by AKC with extensive experience in non-profit work, risk management, and her most passionate industry: dog training. Lizz has trained hundreds of dogs over the years with her love for dogs and dog sports starting in her teens. She also trains and competes with her own dogs – earning conformation, companion, and performance titles on many breeds, including Bulldogs, Clumber Spaniels, Pointers, Belgian Malinois, Pharaoh Hounds, and most recently All-American Dogs and Peruvian Inca Orchids. She volunteers with several local and national rescue organizations, helping match dogs in need with their “furever” families.

Lizz is excited to bring her love and passion to Canine Retreat by AKC, where she will help strengthen the bond between dogs and their owners as they learn and train together. After all, a ‘well-trained dog is a joy to own’.

Open Class Registration

Canine Retreat Tribeca – 21 Murray Street (between Church & Broadway)

  • To sign up, register your account here
    • Select the training class you would like to register to attend
    • If you already have an account with Canine Retreat, please contact the store or the trainer directly to reserve your spot!

Canine Retreat Chelsea – 145 W. 20th Street (between 6th/7th)

  • Starting Saturday April 4th 
    • Canine Good Citizen 2:00pm
    • S.T.A.R. Puppy 3:00pm
  • To sign up, register your account here
    • Select the training class you would like to register to attend
    • If you already have an account with Canine Retreat, please contact the store or the trainer directly to reserve your spot!

Canine Retreat Midtown West – 620 W. 42nd Street (between 11th/12th)

  • Starting Saturday March 7th
    • S.T.A.R Puppy/ Puppy Kindergarten – 1:00pm
    • Canine Good Citizen – 2:30pm
  • To sign up, register your account here
    • Select the training class you would like to register to attend
    • If you already have an account with Canine Retreat, please contact the store or the trainer directly to reserve your spot!

Canine Retreat W. 57th – 645 W. 57th Street (Between 11th/ 12th)

  • Starting Wednesday March 4th
    • Canine Good Citizen – 6:30pm
    • Canine Good Citizen Urban/Advanced – 7:45pm
  • Saturday Saturday March 21st
    • S.T.A.R. Puppy 11:00am
    • Canine Good Citizen 12:00pm
  • To sign up, register your account here
    • Select the training class you would like to register to attend
    • If you already have an account with Canine Retreat, please contact the store or the trainer directly to reserve your spot!

Canine Retreat E. 60th St. – 1105 1st Avenue

  • Starting Sunday March 22nd 
    • S.T.A.R Puppy/ Puppy Kindergarten – 10:00am
    • Canine Good Citizen – 11:00am
  • To sign up, register your account here
    • Select the training class you would like to register to attend
    • If you already have an account with Canine Retreat, please contact the store or the trainer directly to reserve your spot!

Dog Training Course Descriptions

Puppy Kindergarten: Introduction to the basics of good behavior at home and in the community for dogs under a year old. The course will include:

Basic obedience behaviors:

  • Walking on leash
  • Sit/down/stay
  • Recall
  • Leave it

Good manners in public:

  • How to appropriately greet people
  • Ignoring distractions

Typical puppy issues

  • Housebreaking
  • Jumping, chewing, teething, etc.

Upon successful completion of the course puppies are eligible for AKC’s S.T.A.R. Puppy Award.

Canine Good Citizen: For dogs over six months with some experience with basic behaviors. This course focuses on recognizing how trained behaviors apply to real-world situations. Through this course you will focus on how to better understand and communicate with each other. Through the hours of training and practice, you’ll deepen your bond and become a more connected pair. Not only will you and your dog understand the basics of dog training, and master skills like sit, down and stay, but you’ll know your dog will be able to handle herself with grace in a crowd and be a welcomed client at the vet or groomer. Testing for Canine Good Citizen is included.

Community & Urban Good Citizen/Therapy Dog Prep: Advanced training for dogs with a Canine Good Citizen title. This course applies the skills learned in basic/CGC training to increasingly challenging situations. Dogs are exposed to various distractions and unique settings. This course is recommended for those who want to pursue Therapy Dog Certification. Testing for CGCA & CGCU is included; we coordinate with Therapy Dogs International for Therapy Dog testing.

AKC Rally: Rally is a good class for dogs that have prior training and need a challenge or something new, based on AKC’s companion event of the same name, our Rally course incorporates the signs used in competition with a focus on how the skills acquired build teamwork and relate to navigating a city’s crowded streets.

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