Dog training: group classes or private sessions?

Group classes suit dogs that can work calmly around other dogs, such as puppies learning the basics and dogs doing general obedience. Private sessions suit dogs with specific problems, like reactivity, fear or pulling that makes group work impossible, and owners who need help at home or on their usual walks. You can also combine both: a private first session to assess the dog, then the group or one-to-one format that fits. Offer each format as its own service, so owners book the right one from the start.

The group's strength is also its limit. Other dogs provide distraction, which is exactly what obedience needs to be tested against, and owners learn from watching each other. But a dog that barks and lunges at every other dog can't learn anything in a class, and it makes the class harder for everyone else.

Owners don't always describe their dog accurately. "He's a bit excitable" can mean anything. If you only accept dogs into groups after seeing them, say so clearly: make the first consultation or assessment a separate service, and write in your group class descriptions who they're for, for example "Puppies from vaccination to six months" or "Dogs who can stay calm near other dogs on a lead". Ask owners to describe their dog's behaviour in the booking note, which is optional but useful.

If a dog turns up in a group who clearly isn't ready, that's the moment to suggest private sessions first, and a place in a later course once the dog can cope.

Explain this path on your page. When owners understand why you suggest a private session first, it feels less like being turned away from the group.

On Book, each type of session is a service with its own price and optional description, and you open slots for each at the length it takes. A slot can have several places: for a group class, set the number of places to the number of dogs you can handle safely in your space. Each owner books one place, and once the class is full, the slot is no longer shown on your page.

The public booking form books one place at a time. If an owner comes with two dogs, they can book twice, or you can book both places yourself from your calendar, where you can set the number of persons on a booking.

How big should a group be? That depends on your space, the dogs' level and whether you have an assistant. A smaller group gives each dog more attention; a bigger one lowers the price per owner. Set a size you're comfortable with, and keep it the same across a course.

Private sessions are slots with a single place. Create separate services for sessions at your training ground, outdoors and at the owner's home, each with its own price and a description of where it takes place. For home visits, leave travel time between slots and group visits by area on the same days.

Slots of different services can overlap, so decide when you run group classes and when you do private work, rather than opening both over the same hours.

Book doesn't set a minimum number of bookings for a slot. If a class has too few dogs to run, cancel the bookings from your bookings list and contact the owners yourself, since Book doesn't email them when you cancel. You can offer to move them to the next class or to a private session instead.