San Mateo Dog Training Club

My golden retriever has been coming here since she was a puppy. We’ve done puppy obedience, basic obedience and intermediate obedience. She has developed into such a well behaved and polite doggy. Highly recommended!

I didn’t realize how spoiled I was with the dog training school my pup and I attended before this one (in Seattle) where we were warmly welcomed and I felt like my dog was having a good time while learning. Definitely not the case here. I don’t plan on returning even though we haven’t finished the series; I don’t feel like it’s a good use of my time and might actually be negatively impacting the relationship between my dog and me. The instructor didn’t offer me anything helpful in two sessions, only told me what my dog should be able to do. It was not a fit for us; I didn’t receive any effective training techniques or encouragement. Edit: Bumping my review from 1 to 3 stars because the customer service was phenomenal when I wanted a refund.

I found SMDTC several years ago while looking for a place to train for AKC obedience. I started my young dog in Basic and moved up from there, and have worked with most of the trainers over the last few years. The trainers are excellent, the price is on the lower end of the scale for training. I think it is incredible that the club is run as a not-for-profit, and the people who manage the day to day operations for the club are all volunteers. I think this is why the prices are low. I can hands-down recommend this club for training at any level.

Wish I had done my research to find other low score reviews. Definitely do not agree with the method how they train dogs, or dog owners. It was a lot of negativity we had during the brief 3 classes we stayed with them. 1st class, we were proposed to buy a new martingale dog collar, and during the 3rd class was asked to "upgrade" to a prone collar. We were told our dog was aggressive, disrespectful to other dogs, and if our dog had done this to the trainer's "german Shepard", he/she would be harsh on him (Yea, whose dog is aggressive?). Full story - my little boy barked back at another dog, reactive, and did not growl. What a great teaching of punishment and public shaming in the name of leadership, where we came in looking to fix the exact barking behavior. Customer service was very prompt and responsive though. I asked to switch to another class and was issued full refund.

PLEASE avoid this place at all costs for the sake of your dog. I was so excited to take an obedience class, but the second we got there the instructor starting telling us how bad harnesses are (i'm well aware you need to use a regular collar for competition and training, but for every day use/walks harnesses are exactly what you should be using and how prong collars are perfectly fine to use... they DO NOT use positive reinforcement or science based methods. She went on and on about how a prong collars won't hurt the dogs neck, the fact that you have to clarify SO much about how it won't cause pain is a pretty clear indicator IT DOES in fact cause discomfort. If you've ever seen a prong collar you'll know it LOOKS PAINFUL and it is. Please do your own research! If you're looking for good training, please please please find trainers that are CPDT certified! The only way to know if the trainer is legit. I made the mistake of not checking and just assuming they use positive reinforcement only, but they clearly don't. Don't bother with this place.

Great instructors, clean facility, and affordable prices! I highly recommend Reena's puppy kindergarten class. She truly understands dogs; she has insightful tips and employs positive training techniques. Her class is very comprehensive, and in my opinion moreso than other puppy classes (e.g. PetSmart, etc.). We've walked away (with a loose leash and in heel position) with strong fundamentals. We are currently enrolled in Marian's basic obedience course, and so far it's been great. I will update this review post class. :)

I was looking forward to take advantage of a drop-in conformation class without going to the east bay or South Bay. We arrived a little early for the class at 7:30pm (per the website), and decided to walk in to see if there was any paperwork or other requirements. We were greeted by a woman who asked what we were there for, and when I said "drop-in conformation class" another woman very rudely spoke up and said "that is at 7:40pm." When I said the website says 7:30, she said "No. It does not, it has been corrected." It was not welcoming, and upon checking the website again on my phone I showed the first woman that the time posted was 7:30 - 8:30pm. After the first woman was shown the website she said, "I am not sure why it wasn't updated, but it is at 7:40. I hope your car is close by so you can wait and stay warm." Not once did they introduce themselves, welcome us, apologize for the confusion, or ask if we wanted to bring our dogs in to wait. Based on this exchange, I had no interest in attending the class. I do not recommend the conformation class on Tuesday nights.