About Nashville Dog Training Club

Nashville Dog Training Club is not a business – it is a volunteer-run club founded in 1960, and the only AKC-licensed agility, obedience, rally, tracking, scent work and lure coursing club in the metropolitan Nashville area. All board members, instructors and support personnel are volunteers. That shapes everything about how you use it.

What you can book here

Classes run in six-week sessions, one day a week, and cost $200 effective 1 January 2026, which the club says covers the cost of its building and utilities. CGC classes run seven weeks. Some classes are offered as drop-ins at $10 for a single session. Class sizes are generally 4-10 students with 1-3 instructors. You do not need to be a member to take a class – membership is a separate, optional process.

The training paths

Five are published. Obedience runs from puppy and beginner work up to competition level. Agility is aimed at confidence, dependability and the competition ring. Scent work is framed as letting the dog use its nose to compete and work its mind. Animal Therapy prepares dogs for therapy work. A Variety path covers conformation for the show ring, tricks and carting. Because the club is AKC-licensed it also hosts trials and tests, so dogs can title locally rather than traveling.

How to actually get in

This is the practical catch and the club says so: classes "typically fill very quickly", and registration opens in windows announced by newsletter. If registration is closed, the advice is to subscribe to the newsletter and wait for the notice. You must have a website account to register. All classes require proof of current rabies vaccination for dogs six months or older, and classes are non-refundable.

Conditions

The club does not restrict classes by breed or size, but states that a disruptively aggressive dog may be asked to leave class and worked with individually instead. Females in season are not allowed in the lower-level obedience classes – Puppy K, Beginner Obedience Level 1 and Canine Good Citizen Level 2 – and may attend upper-level classes wearing pants.

The facility

413 Allied Drive holds three full-sized rings with 3/4-inch rubber matting, jumps for three open and utility rings, agility equipment, meeting rooms and full climate control. It is available for rent to other groups on weekends and weekdays. Note that the help mailbox is monitored by volunteers and the club warns it may or may not be answered – read the FAQ first.