How on earth do we find dog trainers we can trust?

The unregulated dog training industry is full of conflicting voices. (And even fields with expected schooling, exams, and certifications are often more nuanced than we give them credit for.) While “work with a professional” is truly great advice—especially for severe behavioral issues—it’s not always simple to act on. In a world of name calling and abuse allegations and method wars, how are we dog owners supposed to know who to hand our leashes to?

Paying close attention to Scout’s quirks and preferences has given me a solid foundation, but I have a lot to learn from experts (and will never pretend to be one myself).

How can I find the right experts, though? How can I choose environments that set my dog up for success? What are the risks of a bad training consult setting us back in our training journey?

Sometimes it’s paralyzing to imagine all the work we’ve put in being “undone” by someone I thought I could trust and realized too late I couldn’t. The stakes feel particularly high becaus…