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What is your niche?
What is your niche in the training field? I have been thinking of leaning toward various animals, obviously dogs but I think all of our pet owners can use some true and sound advice.
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33 Replies
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My niche changes from time to time. Currently, I seem to be doing well with the human clients.
In a recent breakthrough, I got to clearly see the disconnect for people who love their pets, versus what they expect from their pet. When I see the light bulb go on and there’s a paradigm shift happening for the humans, I know I’ve done good work. Plus, it’s rewarding for me.
Oh sure, teaching a pet all the ‘party tricks’looks great from the outside, but my goal is to create a long term, meaningful relationship between humans and their pets that will carry on beyond the ‘party tricks’.
This seems to be my current niche.
As an example of creating a paradigm shift in human clients, I encourage people to replace the world ‘commands’ with the word, ‘cue’. My personal view is that it’s arrogant to expect instant compliance from our pets. I’ve also personally begun using the phrase, ‘cue response’ instead of ‘obedience’. Small, incremental learnings. You know, just like dogs!
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A long term and meaningful relationship is imperative.
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@Julie Cool question! I enjoyed attending seminars for clicker training horses and working on husbandry behaviors (hoof trims, ear cleaning, deworming meds) – nothing sharpens your timing and treat delivery more than a 1500lb animal crowding your space!
I learned a TON and highly recommend working with other species to sharpen skills.
Chicken camps are really great for getting quick with markers, working with cats makes you think outside the box. Small animals – rodents, fish – can push you to explore what’s possible. Really, there’s no limit, once you commit to understanding the body language and motivation of any critter. Humans definitely included!
What animals are you considering learning more about?
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That is really terrific. When I was younger I worked with horses but not in a professional capacity but I did learn a lot. I live in a town where bringing your goat to show and tell is the norm and everyone is in FFA.
I am going to stick with domestics for now and training dogs as my main and cats secondary. I want to have education on all domestic pets for the humans that care for them.
Thanks for the feedback on honing in on my skills.
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Goats!! Smartest of them all. Years ago I did some consulting with a Zoo and worked with their program animals, among them, goats. OMD they knew and could do so many tricks. Smart!! Super fun to train. You could offer to do clicker/marker workshops with the FFA kids on fear free/low stress goat show stacks, loading up onto the grooming platforms, etc.
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That sounds like a blast! I will have to check that out.
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Wonderful, @Julie Please keep us posted on your progress… it would be fun to hear how it goes.
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I’ve been thinking about this myself and I think in some ways we choose our niche and in others, it finds us. I’m still a new trainer but I thought for sure my trajectory would have me specializing in leash reactivity because of my long career as a dog walker. And it still might be one of the things I work on often. But now that I’m enrolled in the Family Paws Parent Educator course, I’m realizing how very fascinating the dog/baby and dog/toddler intersections are, and how very much there is to know. It’s a niche specialty that meets an important need for a community that struggles to access good information and I’m very excited to be able to help. Sometimes we get surprised by the direction our paths take us I guess!
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@MorganJ Family Paws has a GREAT program, I’m so excited for your FPPE journey! And I agree, so many families can benefit from this type of specialty. Good for you!
One cool thing about the dog training industry is there’s always more to learn, more to try, more to share. So if one niche starts to feel stuffy, you can break out of it by leveling up your education or by trying something new.
I think the variety of animals we can work with, and the different types of training we do, the different areas to focus on all make us better in every category. You start to see threads of commonality as well as perspectives that challenge your “tried and true” ways of thinking. Good stuff!
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I completely agree. I’m always adding to the list of courses I want to take because there’s just so much amazing work being done.
I would love an opportunity to train different species. I grew up horseback riding and it would be really fun to try implementing these skills with horses, donkeys, goats…the list is limitless. In my travels I have begun some conditioning experiments with local crows, pairing a novel distinctive sound with the appearance of food. I do think they’re starting to recognize me!
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I’m sure you are right! Crows and ravens are incredibly smart and food motivated. Just wait til they start bringing you little gifts to exchange! ????
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My niche developed without my planning it, but it’s fearful/anxious clients. I love helping clients who have high stress and low confidence blossom along with their dog. My first client of this type was the sweetest woman who had recently lost her husband and struggled with her tiny dog shying away from her when she bent over to pet. She was so afraid that her dog was afraid of her and it was shattering her confidence. I explained how this wasn’t her fault and showed her some DS/CC exercises. The look on her face at the second session when she was able to pet and bond with her dog was just priceless. I had a similar client this past week tell me that our training sessions are like her “me time” and they relieve her stress. I try to keep in mind that many people do not get positive, supportive feedback regularly, and I find it helps their overall happiness and confidence levels – just like dogs!
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Wow, @Graceanna – I LOVE THIS SO MUCH. I can almost see that dear woman enjoying her dog because of you… what a beautiful story. Thank you for sharing this. It’s so important to find your client “type” and develop the skills to work with them. Do you have any tips for other trainers on reaching more folks like her?
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I’m still figuring this niche out, but I can share a few thoughts….I know there are a lot of pros here who could share more!
These are usually somewhat elderly clients, who may have some physical limitations that make them doubt whether they can properly handle a dog. Or they have always struggled with getting their dogs to listen to them. The dog is their main source of comfort and companionship, and they’re willing to give a lot of effort to training. The assigned homework becomes a source of joy, which makes client compliance mostly a non-issue.
It comes as no surprise that insecure clients usually have insecure dogs. So offering a confidence building program for dogs would be a good start, to bring in human clients who need a confidence boost. <div>I’ve learned that these clients are usually not going to say in the initial intake what’s truly causing them stress with their dog. The woman I mentioned, initially asked for help with housetraining and door darting. Those were certainly a problem, but it wasn’t until we met in person that she was able to open up about her fears that her dog was afraid of her. I never ask direct questions, but I try to observe the client interacting with their dog and maintain an encouraging, listening attitude. </div></div>
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@Graceanna This is such beautiful work. I got goosebumps reading your reply. These sweet folks with their sweet little dogs are SO LUCKY to have you leading them. What a wonderful niche, and such a positive impact on their health and well-being you are making!
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I absolutely love this. It is a model I like to stick to. It is all about the overall relationships between the entire family, including human and non-human and how they can communicate with each other. I know we all say we have to train the human as much if not more than the dog. The truth is we can all learn to train, we train our clients in how to train their dogs with cues or tricks. Training the building of trust and solidifying that bond that is the true test of a trainer. You seem to be doing just that and I love it. Animal lovers tend to be warriors for the animals and sometimes forget that we need to fight for the pet parents as well. I think a lot of people love having an animal and it is our duty to help those people to love having a furbaby, a member of the family.
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@Julie what great reminders!! It’s so easy to feel like humans are just the hard part of our job.
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@Julie – this is so well said. We cannot “just train dogs” – it’s ALLLL about the people, if we really want to have an impact. Great reminders. Thank you for chiming in with your experience!
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I definitely agree that as trainers we often fill a supportive role. I have had many clients say our training sessions feel like a “therapy session” for them when they are struggling with the perception of failure as a new (dog) parent. Especially if the dog is an adolescent ????.
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My niche has been that I’ve come from dog walking and petsitting…I got certified as a trainer in 2019 and launched my training, walks & petsitting business. Partly, that was because I couldn’t imagine ditching my walking clients and petsitting can be good $$$.
As time has gone on, it has been a wonderful way to continue having a meaningful relationship with my past training clients’ dogs by offering my walks and sits services when they went back to work or when they went on vacation. It has been great to not “lose the dog” from my business after they graduate, or the owner feels they’ve improved enough to move on.
I was leaning towards LLW as my niche and forming a conver-sensational walk with your dog, instead of being pulled everywhere. But, really, I think being a one woman small business who coaches clients to train their dogs, providing care and walks for them, too…that’s my niche.
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That was also how I started and how I’ve combined walks and training check-ups for the past decade. I enjoyed that model and loved how it allows you to see in real life situations how well the training techniques worked, and gives you the opportunity to tweak your methods to improve effectiveness. It definitely made me a much better trainer. Unfortunately this is no longer possible for me in New York City as walking needs are too unreliable. I’ve shifted to providing Training sessions 2 days a week, and providing Trainer Supervised Daycare for my *special* socially challenged training pups on the other days. This still allows me to have a close long-term relationship with the dogs who need more help.
I’m sure this model has given you tons of invaluable experience that you would not have otherwise gotten.
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My specialty is encouraging clients to play with their dogs. I have a “messing about” class where we play games, do tricks, and run obstacle courses. The emphasis is on enjoying time with your dog. There’s no “reason” for any of the skills so people can relax and enjoy the process.
I also have playgroups where dogs play and people chat about dogs. It’s a great social outlet for humans and canines. Most of my clients just want their dogs to be happy, so they are a great bunch of people to hang out with.
I also have manners, cgc, agility and rally classes. All are casual and geared towards having fun. The outside world is stressful at the moment. I want people to forget about that. Happy dogs can go a long way toward that goal.
Thanks for the question. Writing this has helped me feel proud of what I do. ????
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I love your niche, @Cyn !
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I absolutely love this and I, as a fellow trainer am proud of you.
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@Cyn How absolutely wonderful for you, your clients and their dogs, to just come and play. What a lovely emphasis, and I agree, much needed by all! Sounds super.
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I originally decided to become a dog trainer to help the reactive and fearful dogs I was walking for clients. Therefore the first years of my studies I gained the most experience with reactive dogs. This continued when I foster-failed a dog with reactivity. When I first started offering private training sessions I started out with puppy training. I still enjoy seeing the gears turn and the “aha!” moments as puppies figure out the very counter-intuitive human world. However I always find myself drifting towards helping reactive and fearful dogs.
I currently offer daycare for my socially challenged training pups. These are leash reactive, dog selective, unsocialized, and socially insecure dogs that are able to go on group hikes, play off-leash, and even have cuddles with each other. I call them my motley crew of social misfits. I have yet to find anything more rewarding than giving a dog who is afraid of other dogs, a group of friends to feel safe with.
I guess my niche is giving fearful and reactive dogs opportunities to have experiences that were not previously possible for them.
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@flipzpets you made/ are making those dogs’ worlds so much bigger! What a humane and beautiful gift. I’m sure your clients are eternally grateful for your expertise. Living with a dog who struggles is a struggle and you’re giving those folks some relief, knowing their dogs are in good hands. ????
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Thank you Catherine,
I often feel guilty I wasn’t able to give that gift to my own pup while she was alive, but I also know it took losing her to create the space in my life to gain the experience and opportunities to do it for other pups. So really it was her gift to give.
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???? What a beautiful memorial to her, really. That’s a wonderful perspective, @flipzpets
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While I’m still finishing up my CATCH course and am not yet working as a trainer, I am fascinated by nose work! I’d love to work for a while as a pet dog trainer and hone my skills, but working with scent training in the future is definitely on my list. I am coming to dog training from an environmental science background and the growth of detection dogs for various conservation efforts is so cool!
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@HillmanA , that sounds like a such a great niche to focus on!!
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That sounds like an amazing path. I have so much more to learn about the training world. What I wanted when I started, is different from today, and may be different again. I love reading all of the different niches trainers are taking. ????
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