Pawsitively Service Dogs Inc.®
NSBook in Nova Scotia BCBook in British Columbia
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Owner-trainer curriculum

One-Year Owner-Trainer Service Dog Training Program

Based on the Canadian Association of Service Dog Trainers (CASDT) Recommended Training & Certification Standards.

Pawsitively Service Dogs does not issue provincial service dog certification. Where applicable, handlers apply through the relevant provincial service dog program; CASDT testing is separate.

Train your own service dog with 104 hours of individual training and guidance tailored to you and your dog.

01 · Program philosophy

A humane foundation for dependable partnership.

  • Humane, evidence-based training methods
  • Emotional regulation before obedience speed
  • Public safety and neutrality
  • Disability mitigation through trained tasks
  • Handler education and advocacy
  • Ethical representation of service dogs

02 · Program goals

Skills that hold up in the real world.

  • Prepare teams for public access
  • Develop reliable trained tasks
  • Create emotionally stable service dogs
  • Educate handlers in canine learning theory
  • Build confidence in public environments
  • Prepare teams for certification testing

03 · Program requirements

A careful start protects the whole team.

  • Disability documentation required
  • Dog must be between 6 months and 4 years at intake
  • Veterinary and vaccination records required
  • Doctor letter requiring a task-trained service dog to mitigate the disability
  • Temperament assessment required
  • Dogs displaying severe aggression or fear are not suitable
  • Breed/size suitability for tasks

Dogs showing severe stress, fear, or aggression are disqualified.

Dogs are not considered “service dogs in training” until probation is successfully completed. The probationary period is the first 20 sessions.

04 · The 12 months

The 12 months

Each stage builds on the last, with room to slow down when a dog needs more time to feel safe and successful.

Shared trainer notes

How progression is guided at every stage

These principles apply to every month of the program.

  • Watch for signs of stress or shutdown
  • Progress only when dog is emotionally stable
  • Maintain short successful sessions
  • Reinforcement should remain consistent and humane
  • Prioritize calmness and neutrality
01

Month 1 – Engagement & Relationship Building

Core skills

  • Marker training
  • Name recognition
  • Eye contact
  • Food motivation
  • Calm reinforcement
  • Handling exercises

Homework & progression

  • 3 short engagement sessions daily
  • Practice calm leash handling
  • Reward calm offered behaviours
02

Month 2 – Foundation Obedience

Core skills

  • Sit
  • Down
  • Stand
  • Loose leash walking
  • Recall foundations
  • Settle on mat

Homework & progression

  • Practice obedience in low-distraction areas
  • Begin duration work
  • Introduce short public exposures
03

Month 3 – Public Access Foundations

Core skills

  • Parking lot skills
  • Doorway manners
  • Calm loading/unloading
  • Public neutrality
  • Ignoring distractions

Homework & progression

  • Visit pet-friendly stores
  • Practice calm entrances
  • Reward focus around distractions
04

Month 4 – Emotional Regulation

Core skills

  • Impulse control
  • Longer stays
  • Noise recovery
  • Startle recovery
  • Calm settling

Homework & progression

  • Practice settle in public
  • Exposure to controlled noises
  • Reward quick recovery
05

Month 5 – Advanced Heeling

Core skills

  • Speed changes
  • Direction changes
  • Crowd navigation
  • Tight spaces
  • Shopping cart exposure

Homework & progression

  • Practice heeling in public
  • Navigate narrow aisles
  • Track pulling and focus
06

Month 6 – Restaurant & Food Neutrality

Core skills

  • Ignoring dropped food
  • Under-table settling
  • Restaurant manners
  • Long duration down stays

Homework & progression

  • Patio settling practice
  • Food leave-it exercises
  • Increase duration
07

Month 7 – Dog & Human Neutrality

Core skills

  • Dog neutrality
  • Controlled greetings
  • Ignoring strangers
  • Public composure

Homework & progression

  • Parallel walking
  • Observation exercises
  • Neutrality around dogs
08

Month 8 – Advanced Public Access

Core skills

  • Elevators
  • Escalators if appropriate
  • Busy stores
  • Public transit
  • Hardware store exposure

Homework & progression

  • One advanced outing weekly
  • Practice calm positioning
  • Monitor stress signals
09

Month 9 – Individualized Disability-Mitigation Task Training

Core skills

Service dog tasks are selected and trained according to the individual handler's disability-related needs, abilities and circumstances. There is no universal set of tasks that every service dog is expected to perform.

During this stage of training, handlers learn how to build, strengthen and generalize the tasks identified as appropriate for their individual training plan.

Homework & progression

Depending on the handler's needs, examples may include retrieval, interruption or response behaviours, deep pressure, mobility-related assistance where appropriate, alert or response behaviours, and other specifically trained actions that mitigate the effects of a disability.

Training emphasizes reliability, clear criteria, appropriate reinforcement and the dog's ability to perform trained tasks safely across relevant environments.

10

Month 10 – Task Reliability & Generalization

Core skills

  • Task proofing
  • Public task performance
  • Emergency scenarios
  • Multi-environment reliability

Homework & progression

  • Practice tasks in public
  • Track reliability
  • Increase distractions gradually
11

Month 11 – Mock Public Access Testing

Core skills

  • Full public access simulation
  • Restaurant simulations
  • Crowd work
  • Transit scenarios
  • Noise testing

Homework & progression

  • Focus on weak skills
  • Practice certification items
  • Increase duration and consistency
12

Month 12 – Certification Preparation

Core skills

  • Full test rehearsals
  • Handler confidence
  • Task fluency
  • Stress management
  • Certification readiness

Homework & progression

  • Daily review
  • Rest and decompression
  • Final proofing exercises

05 · Certification standards

Safety, reliability, and welfare come first.

Certification standards

  • Dog must demonstrate safe public access behaviour
  • No aggression permitted
  • No uncontrolled barking or lunging
  • Dog must remain calm in restaurants and stores
  • Dog must ignore food and distractions
  • Dog must demonstrate reliable trained tasks
  • Handler must demonstrate understanding of access rights
  • Handler must demonstrate appropriate dog care and welfare

06 · Handler education modules

Learning theory and reinforcementCanine body languageStress signals and trigger stackingFear periodsPublic access etiquetteNova Scotia Human Rights ActService Dog Act overviewService dog ethicsWorking dog welfareRetirement planning

07 · Trainer documentation

  • Progress evaluations
  • Session notes
  • Public outing logs
  • Task progression trackers
  • Behaviour observation forms
  • Certification readiness checklists

Important note

Pawsitively Service Dogs Inc. reserves the right to remove any dog from service dog training programs if the dog demonstrates aggression, severe fear, unsafe public behaviour, or inability to perform safely in public settings.

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