Dog Training in Kenmore, WA.

I serve Kenmore out of my base in South Snohomish. Sessions happen at your home, on the lakefront, and on the trail system that runs through the city.

What training looks like here.

Kenmore packs more training environments into a small footprint than most cities its size, because Lake Washington, Saint Edward, the Burke-Gilman, and Wallace Swamp Creek all give you different distraction profiles within a few miles.

Saint Edward State Park. 326 acres on Lake Washington with forested trails, an undeveloped beach, and the historic seminary building (now The Lodge). Dogs are allowed throughout, on a physical leash of eight feet or less, and a Discover Pass is required to park. The trails through the second-growth Douglas-fir are some of the best long-line recall environments in the area. Day use only, 8am to dusk. The lawn and field areas around the seminary are the right place to work distance and duration; the trails are the right place to work distraction and surface variety.

The Burke-Gilman Trail and Log Boom Park. Log Boom is Kenmore’s gateway to the Burke-Gilman, with shoreline access on Lake Washington and a fishing pier. Dogs on leash only. The Burke-Gilman itself runs east toward Bothell and west toward Lake Forest Park; both directions are useful for graduated leash and focus work because the traffic varies fast. Weekday mornings are different from Sunday afternoons. I pick the day based on what the dog needs.

Wallace Swamp Creek Park. Sits on the Bothell-Kenmore border and runs through dense waterfowl habitat. It’s the right environment for prey-drive work with high-drive dogs and for the kind of exposure work that has to be done before a dog is reliable off-leash anywhere it matters. The geese in particular are a real curriculum.

The neighborhoods. Moorlands and the streets around 73rd Ave NE are quiet enough for early leash-manners work without being so dead the dog doesn’t learn anything. The blocks around Inglemoor are a step up in distraction. Most of the actual foundation work I do in Kenmore happens here, not in the parks.

How I work.

R+ first, adapted to your dog. The full reasoning is on the about page. The short version: reward-based training has the strongest evidence base for both effectiveness and welfare, and most dogs never need anything else.

I work under two local mentors. One has 45 years of experience in SAR and service-dog work. The other specializes in reactive dogs. My own dog Laszlo is a German Shepherd, which is part of why working breeds and high-drive mixes are where I do some of my best work.

Five ways to work together.

01 Private lessons. From $135 per 60-minute session. The starting point for most new clients.

02 In-home sessions. $145 per 60-minute session. I come over and put focused work into one or two skills. You don’t need to be home. Available after the first in-person session.

03 Day Training. $245 / $335 / 4-Pack $900. Drop-off training across multiple real environments. I pick your dog up, train them, return them at the end of the block.

04 Puppy class. $195, six weeks. Small-group course for puppies 4 to 6 months.

05 Group obedience class. $195, six weeks. For dogs 6 months and older.

Full details, intake flow, and cancellation policy on the sessions and pricing page.

Travel and scheduling.

Kenmore is inside the 25-mile no-fee zone. No travel charge for sessions in city limits or the surrounding neighborhoods on either side of the Bothell-Kenmore border.

Common questions from Kenmore clients.

Can we train at Saint Edward?

Yes, once a dog is ready for the trail environment. Most early foundation work happens in your home and immediate neighborhood, then we move out toward Saint Edward as the dog earns the harder distractions. The Discover Pass requirement is worth knowing about; first-time clients sometimes forget.

My dog is reactive on the Burke-Gilman. Where do we start instead?

Almost anywhere quieter. Reactivity work depends on finding the distance where your dog can think and working there. The trail is too close, too fast, and too crowded to be the right starting point for most reactive dogs.

My dog pulls toward the geese at every park. Is that fixable?

Yes, but the work has to happen at a distance where your dog isn’t already over threshold. Wallace Swamp Creek is actually a useful place to do it, with a long line and the right setup.

Should I take my dog to the Wayne Golf Course dog park?

The old Wayne course is the closest off-leash facility in Kenmore, but I don’t recommend off-leash dog parks and I don’t train client dogs at them. Disease exposure, dogs of unknown vaccination status and temperament, and the fact that most dogs there are practicing the exact behaviors we’re trying to unlearn make them a poor environment for serious training. If your dog needs off-leash time, a long line at Saint Edward or Wallace Swamp Creek gives you the freedom without the problems.

Do you work with high-drive working breeds?

Yes. Working breeds and first-time owners are the two groups I’m best with.

Also serving nearby

• Bothell
• Woodinville
• Lynnwood
• Snohomish

Start here.

Send a short message about your dog and I’ll respond within one business day.