Career In Dog Training

Fred Hassen
Sit Means Sit Dog Training

Fred with his pal 'Tank'

Have you ever considered a career in dog training? This fascinating field offers a lot of opportunity to not only work with dogs as a professional dog trainer, but to be ones own boss as well.

Fred Hassen is the owner and founder of Sit Means Sit Dog Training, which is the largest U.S. based dog training company in the history of the United States. His knowledge, passion, and experience in teaching the art of training, shows itself in this interview he kindly granted us.

A. It's really my pleasure to have this interview with you Rich. You are providing a great service to dog enthusiasts everywhere by providing a wealth of information, of which the people can make choices on what suits them best.

I guess we all have our reasons for getting into the dogs that we love so much, and into the careers that each of us choose. In my case, I was into outdoor activities and sports growing up, loved to have my freedom, and loved to be in the sunshine. Once I noticed how athletic dogs could be, and the various things they could do, it was a natural match for me to get into the dog world, have my own business, and move to Las Vegas Nevada where there is more sunshine than just about anyone could possibly handle!

It really wasn't until I stumbled across an ad for remote collars one day years ago, that my excitement really began. My first thought was "Wow, an invisible leash.....how cool!", and when I purchased my first one, it was a never ending whirlwind of exciting ideas, passion, and lots of hard work daily to a constant evolution of what is now known today as the 'Sit Means Sit Dog Training System'.

I can almost imagine what it must have felt like after years of having to be restricted to a corded telephone hanging on a wall, and being introduced to a cell phone, and the advancements and freedom's that came along with that. This was no different. I was just so passionate and head over heels about what I was doing, and so happy to just be able to do it, that we started doing all of our demonstrations right in the middle of people's streets and in public areas where everyone could see us! I was already very well aware that in the dog training community a lot of the dog trainers could talk the talk, but always had excuses in why they didn't actually have their dogs out there doing the things that they said that they could do.

I had developed a communication language that made it possible for the dogs to perform happily and reliably anywhere, and like any business.........it's all about your product, and you have to be able to show it. The dogs are our product, and it was just so much fun taking them everywhere and showing them wherever you go. I've never had any kids, but I understand to some degree how happy parents are when they show off their children's pictures to their friends. In a way, that is what I was doing day in and day out, by having people see my dogs no matter where I went.

It wasn't long afterwards that we opened a school for those interested in a career in dog training and it made me very happy to see the life changes in the people, and the happiness of the clients and their dogs.

Q. What you offer on the web is a unique opportunity for one to start their own career in dog training as a franchisee. Tell us more specifically about what you offer.

A. Sure! Over the years, we have developed an outstanding program to help people become successful as a business. In January of 2009, we just went the franchise route, which was the obvious next step in our development since we have all the training and marketing in place for someone to step right in and go through our strenuous 3 week program and begin making a living immediately. I also retired from doing public seminars about a year ago to spend all of my time in the development of our franchisees in Las Vegas.

We actually just look for the business minded, hard working individual because the training portion we have had tremendous success in teaching to those that come ready to soak in all the information and hands on training that we have. I'm a big believer that people learn the most by hands on. Our internet marketing is already very well known, as are the hundreds of videos that we have out on the internet, so it's easy for people to hop on board this already very well established freight train that is running at full steam. Your readers can find a lot more detailed information on our franchise at our website.

Q. Can anyone become a trainer? Surely there must be some prior skills one needs…and how long does it take to learn?

A. That is really an outstanding question Rich! This is one of the main reasons that we feel that with people that are researching becoming a Sit Means Sit Franchise, is that they research the 'product', which in our business is the actual training of the dog. The reason that we show a lot of videos on our website, is that when people call around and talk to these people that are trainers, they are amazed that their dogs look so unbelievable and they just started training dogs a year ago! We actually prefer people without much background, because they don't come with the bad habits, and our training style is so much different than traditional stuff and works so much faster, and the clients rave a lot more because they can experience immediate transformations.

Those that will succeed are sharp, business minded people looking to take over their community in a very exciting field. Hard to teach work ethic, they either have it or they don't. The schooling process is 21 straight 10-12 hour days of hands on learning, and teaching you so you will be confident when you get out. You'd be amazed at what these people's dogs look like when they graduate, and that's why we keep putting the videos up!

Q. Because of the economy, how has this affected the dog training field?

A. The economy has certainly been a problem for a lot of people, but fortunately people will always spend money on their pets. One thing about this economic crisis, is that you really have to have a product that shines.

Fortunately for us, we have a product that is way ahead of the rest of the playing field of dog training because of technology and the things that we can do, and transfer over to a client way faster and easier than any sort of traditional dog training. Again, you just need to look at the videos, product and work of other companies, and it's very obvious that they just simply can't do what we can do, and people will always spend money on their pets provided they see value in the product. We have the ability to show huge immediate changes, and the people see the higher quality of life that we will bring them immediately. I think these are the main reasons that the economy hasn't really affected us at all. We just continue to grow, and to put out top trainers, and to change people's lives and make things easier for their family members and their pets.

Q. Once someone becomes a franchisee, and learns dog training techniques, what additional support do trainees receive from you, and why would they need it?

We also have a yearly get together which we refer to as 'The Main Event', and everyone brings their dogs to that as well and we train and market there also. The people that are the most successful, and have the best trained dogs, are also coincidentally the very same people that come to the events the most, and use the support the most. We have a great network of trainers that is very much like a big family, and of course nothing can beat mass marketing. I think the support is the main thing that makes them so successful.

Q. With so many websites offering training tips online, why would someone hire a professional trainer, when they could train their own dog?

A. Dog training is a funny thing. Almost everyone that you run into that has a dog, has read some sort of book, or magazine, or web article on how to train their dog. As a matter of fact, the people that call you for training, are always quick to point out the commands or tricks that their dogs already know. Despite everyone having received previous knowledge somewhere, we very rarely see a well trained dog, and I think people love to have a well trained dog and the freedom that it brings.

There are also a lot of problem dogs out there, and puppies that can make their lives a little tough, and they want to learn it hands on, so that they can maintain it better, and have a person there that they can ask questions to when problems arise that is familiar with their dogs. Also with the technological advances that we use in our training, it's very hard for someone to get to the level that we can take them to, and we can do it in a short amount of time. Also, almost all of our classes are 'unlimited' and for the life of the dog, so they love that they can pop in anytime that they like. Also, we do a free demonstration for the people before they make any decisions, and along with letting them see our dogs, we do a demo with their dog as well. We think the consumer should do comparison shopping for a family member like your dog, and in this economy, you want to be sure that you are getting what you are paying for and that the company can produce. That's where we shine.

So yes, sometimes they have read some online stuff and got results, and they call to see the demo to see if it's worth it to get a trainer. We love the opportunity to show them value. Our motto is "Talk is cheap, we SHOW you".

Q. Many frustrated owners feel that their dog is beyond training help, so they don't even try. This leads to the question…can all dogs be trained?

A. All dogs can be trained, and their situation improved with work. The nice thing about dog training is that every dog owner has a different set of standard, and where they want to set the bar. A dog that drags them down the street, they are ecstatic if the dog learns to just walk with them, while others want their dogs to be very good at everything. Some people just want the best of everything and want to have the best trained dog on the block.

Making the owners and family happy with their situation, and giving them a higher quality of life is where we come in for the basic pet owners. The success of our off-leash program, and the fact that we don't let anyone raise their voices to the dogs, gives them a lot of freedom that they never had before and it's very politically correct to watch as well. Successful dog training has to be pleasant to the eye, and that's why we do demonstrations in the middle of people's streets, because we want the neighbors and friends to also see the incredible results, and to see how happy their neighbor has just become, and in a lot of places they get to see the transformation of the nuisance dog right in front of them. We also specialize in problem dogs, so we get a lot of dogs that other trainers just won't take. We have never run into a dog that we couldn't train yet, and of course we are always ready to prove it with a free demonstration before the people decide. Talk is cheap.

Q. Any final thoughts you'd care to share about developing a career in dog training, and having this as a profession?

A. Rich, I'd really like to thank you for having me on your informative site for this interview. The more information that is out there for people to make educated decisions about their dogs, which are undeniably a family member, the better off we all are. I hope some of your visitors take the time to watch some of the hundreds of videos that we have on our site by our many Sit Means Sit business owners, and a lot of them were also sitting out there not too long ago dreaming about having a successful dog business, and being a top dog trainer in their community. Sit Means Sit can make that happen.

Be sure to check out his website at www.sitmeanssit.com where additional questions you might have about this field can be answered.

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