About Obedience Training Club

A training club in Lake Park

The Obedience Training Club of Palm Beach County is a nonprofit dog training club licensed by the American Kennel Club, founded in 1953 and made up of roughly 100 members. Since 2013 it has owned its own building at 1250 Gateway Road in Lake Park: a 5,000 square foot climate-controlled space with a full-sized agility field. The club says it has trained tens of thousands of area dogs, including dogs at Palm Beach County Animal Care & Control.

Classes

All classes are open to the public and taught by experienced club members. Foundation classes include S.T.A.R. and intermediate puppy (puppies start at 10 to 18 weeks) and basic and intermediate obedience. From there, students move to tricks, Canine Good Citizen and Therapy Dog work, and into sports: agility, scent work and nose work, competition obedience, rally, tracking, disc dog and conformation. Registration and payment happen online, and classes close 72 hours before they start.

Testing and trials

The club hosts more than 40 trials a year in AKC disciplines and offers Fit Dog, three levels of AKC Canine Good Citizen testing, Tricks testing, the AKC Temperament Test, Therapy Dogs International tests and NACSW Odor Recognition Tests. Members include AKC judges and evaluators.

What to ask

Ask which class level fits your dog before registering.