Raising a puppy can be one of the most enjoyable and rewarding experiences you will have in your life…

Or it can be overwhelming, frustrating, and counter-productive

Easy, Effective, and Enjoyable Puppy Training

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When it comes to puppy training, there’s a lot of confusing and conflicting advice out there. It can be really hard figuring out how to balance all the different considerations and put it all together and come up with a plan.

If you try to follow your gut or you follow the wrong advice it’s all too easy to end up with a puppy that:

  • Pees and poops all over your home
  • Chews and destroys your furniture, shoes, bags and other valuable objects
  • Bites, scratches, and jumps up on anyone and everyone with no control
  • Runs away when you try to pick them up
  • Barks uncontrollably at people, other dogs, and other animals
  • Cries in their crate, cries at night, and cries when left alone
  • Becomes fearful, reactive, and aggressive toward unfamiliar people and dogs


But with the right plan, it’s EASY and FUN to train your pup in such a way that you can prevent all of these problems.

The Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training Course is the best plan you can get. 

It is the world’s most comprehensive and cohesive online puppy training course and it will guide you, step-by-step through this amazing journey with your pup.

Lifetime Access to the Information You Need

Enroll now to get instant, on-demand access to all of the content and resources you need to train your puppy. Learn and train at your own pace. Feeling ambitious? Look ahead! Need a refresher? Go back to revisit past lessons as often as you need. When you need the answers, they will be there waiting for you.

  • Over 100 videos that demonstrate, step-by-step, all of the essential exercises and explain all of the crucial concepts

  • Downloadable and printable documents to help you keep track of key aspects of your pup's training

  • Short quizzes to help you review and retain essential ideas

  • All organized into 5 developmental stages to make it crystal clear what you should do and when

  • Stage 1 - Household Training

    Train your pup to use their Potty, Crate, and Chew Toys, and to enjoy spending time settled down alone

  • Stage 2 - Confidence Training

    Socialization, Desensitization, Outings, Handling, Grooming. So your pup is comfortable and confident in any situation, and stays that way, into adolescence and beyond

  • Stage 3 - Lure-Reward Training

    Teach your pup to perform useful skills on cue so you can communicate with your pup and manage their behavior

  • Stage 4 - Motivation and Reliability

    Phase out food lures and start using powerful Life Rewards so that your pup learns to listen to you and do what you ask, happily and promptly!

  • Stage 5 - Life Skills

    Prepare your pup for navigating the real world by practicing in the face of challenging distractions in progressively more difficult training set-ups

100% Satisfaction Guaranteed

If you're not completely satisfied with the Top Dog Academy just let us know within 30 days and we'll provide a full refund

What people are saying

“This course is a life-line, sanity saver and the best education any dog owner can have! We brought Marley home 3.5 weeks ago and after the first week, I didn't think it would work out with him…. I felt lost, confused and overwhelmed with a big case of Puppy Blues… This course is what saved me from returning the puppy... The length of the videos are nice and short and bite-sized, the introduction at the start of each video and the recap summary afterwards ties up each learning segment with a neat little bow, and each step forward feels like we are truly making progress in a specific and measurable direction.”

Ashley G.

“The Essential Puppy course is absolutely wonderful! In the best Dunbars' traditions. It is very thoughtfully designed. The guidelines are crystal clear and precise. Kelly's demonstrations are immensely helpful and Jamie's summaries are very pointed. The comments that are provided in writing are absolutely valuable and quizzes help to run a good self-estimate of what I learn. I can't THANK YOU all enough for this work! ”

Olga B.

“The first half of the puppy course has been phenomenal. It all makes so much sense and you both explain and demonstrate things beautifully. I’m a first-time dog owner and was actually quite stressed about doing things right. Now we’re both feeling excited and confident. Heartfelt thanks to you all 😊”

Chris G.

“Everything is so well laid out and easy to follow along. Thanks so much for the lessons, tips and tricks in the Essential Puppy course. ”

Debbi T.

“I think the puppy course is amazing and wonderful! I like the way your videos are short, simple and to the point. I really appreciate the summaries as there is a lot of information there. The videos are a great lesson in not getting flustered and are just enough. I’m glad you showed the video where Eve started to have an accident - made me feel reassured that it happens to the best of us so it’s okay if it happens to me. I would 100% recommend this course.”

Kelly D

“This course is wonderful. I love how it was filmed in a regular home environment instead of a big doggy playroom facility type place. It shows the challenges and how to correct them as you go. It’s not about training robot dogs but watching the puppy's behavior and showing through your training sessions what to watch for and work with based on what you see. I am an in-home breeder and I will 100% recommend this course to all of my clients in the future. I live in a rural area and it is such a relief having access to such high quality puppy training help.”

Heather K.

The Dunbars Have Been Featured In:

Forbes
The New York Times
NPR
Mashable

You can also access the Essential Puppy Training Course with our monthly membership

Join the Top Dog Academy to get access to the Essential Puppy Training Course, plus over a dozen additional courses for just $20/month. Cancel any time.

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You can also access the Essential Puppy Training Course with our live SIRIUS Classes

Upgrade to a SIRIUS class and you'll also get live weekly sessions with one of our expert puppy training instructors

Meet Your Instructors

The Dunbars INVENTED modern puppy training


In 1982,  Dr. Ian Dunbar  invented off-leash puppy training and socialization classes and revolutionized the world of dog training forever, when he founded SIRIUS® Puppy Training.

Since then, SIRIUS puppy training classes have been imitated all around the world, and at SIRIUS we have now trained more than 100,000 puppies! Ian has gone on to produce multiple books and videos, host a television program in the UK, found the world's largest professional association of dog trainers (The APDT), and give thousands of seminars and workshops about puppy and dog training.

In 2016, we created this website, Dunbar Academy to make our puppy and dog training content available online and on-demand, to students all around the world.

We have been refining and reinventing the best puppy training methods over the past four decades and now, with the Essential Puppy Training Course, Kelly Gorman Dunbar and Jamie Dunbar have taken all of our collective  puppy training experience and expertise and distilled it into a single, simple, easy-to-follow course.

This is the most comprehensive and cohesive puppy training course in the world, created by the same team that invented and popularized modern puppy training classes.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Who is this course for?

    This course is for anyone who is thinking about getting a puppy, or anyone who already has a puppy. Ideally, you should start using this course when your pup is 8-16 weeks old, but this course will provide plenty of useful information for pups and dogs who are older.

  • How much does this course cost?

    You can purchase this course for a one-time fee of $200 and receive lifetime access to all of the content in the course. Alternatively, you can access this course on a monthly basis by joining the Top Dog Academy membership program. For just $20/month you’ll get access to the Essential Puppy Training Course, plus over a dozen additional courses, plus access to a private Facebook group exclusively for Top Dog Academy members.

  • How long will I get access to the content in this course?

    If you purchase the course on this page, for a one-time fee of $200, you will get lifetime access to all of the content in the course. If you join the Top Dog Academy for $20/month, you will have access to this course for so long as you remain an active member of the Top Dog Academy.

  • What payment methods do you accept?

    You can use any major credit card or Paypal to purchase the Essential Puppy Training Course for a one-time fee of $200. Unfortunately, we are unable to accept PayPal for any subscriptions, including the Top Dog Academy membership.

  • If I join the Top Dog Academy, how long will I be required to remain a member?

    You can cancel a Top Dog Academy membership at any time. It renews automatically on the same day of the month, every month until you cancel, which you can easily do by emailing us or canceling yourself from your Account page.

  • What if I don’t like the course?

    We offer a 30-day money back guarantee. If you’re not completely satisfied with the Essential Puppy Training Course, just let us know within 30 days of your purchase and we will give you a full refund.

  • What is SIRIUS Puppy Training and how is it related to Dunbar Academy?

    SIRIUS Puppy Training is the puppy training school Dr. Ian Dunbar founded in 1982. SIRIUS teaches in-person puppy classes in the SF Bay Area and Live Online via Zoom. All SIRIUS students receive access to the Essential Puppy Training Course at no additional cost when they enroll in a SIRIUS class.