COOPERATIVE CARE GROUP CLASS
Small steps toward more comfortable care.
When nail trims, brushing, or handling feel stressful, it can be hard to know how to help your dog without pushing them. This small-group class focuses on building comfort and participation in everyday care.
Over four weeks, you’ll practice breaking care tasks into manageable steps, reading your dog’s responses, and giving them ways to communicate when they’re ready or need a pause. With a maximum of four dogs, we’ll start with what each dog can comfortably manage, rather than rushing to finish a procedure.
We’ll talk about your dog’s needs and whether a group setting is a suitable place to begin.
Does everyday care feel like a struggle?
You may be putting off nail trims or wondering how to help your dog feel more comfortable with brushing and handling. This class gives you a place to start, with guidance on practicing without needing to finish the whole task.
➜ Your dog moves away when the brush or nail clippers come out.
➜ You’re unsure how to introduce handling without doing too much at once.
➜ You want to recognize when your dog is comfortable and when they need a pause.
➜ You’d like to prepare for grooming or vet visits through small practice sessions at home.
Your dog doesn’t need to be comfortable with every care task before joining. We’ll use the Discovery Call to discuss whether a group setting is appropriate or whether private support would be a better starting point.
Participation, not just tolerance
We’ll start with what your dog is comfortable doing, even if that means simply looking at a brush or resting their chin in your hand. From there, we’ll break handling and care into small steps, using positive reinforcement without rushing to complete a task.
I’ll help you notice your dog’s responses and practice clear ways for them to participate or ask for a pause. We’ll adjust the exercises as needed, giving you time to work on your timing and learn what suits your dog.
The goal isn’t to finish a nail trim during class. It’s to build a way of practicing together that you can continue using for grooming, handling, and preparation for veterinary care.
What we work on together
Class exercises focus on the foundations of cooperative care, rather than completing a grooming routine or exam. Each team will start with manageable steps and build from there.
Reading Your Dog’s Responses
Practice noticing how your dog responds to touch, movement, and care tools. We’ll use those observations to decide when to continue, make an exercise easier, or pause.
Building Participation
Introduce simple skills, such as a chin rest or standing on a mat, that can become part of your care routine. We’ll practice inviting your dog to participate and pausing when they move away.
Preparing for Grooming and Vet Care
Practice foundations for care tasks, such as briefly touching an ear or getting comfortable in an exam position. We’ll discuss how to continue at home without turning every practice session into a full procedure.
Introducing Touch and Tools
Work on small steps toward brushing, paw handling, nail-care tools, and other everyday tasks. We’ll separate seeing a tool, hearing it, and feeling contact rather than introducing everything at once.
Kind words from owners:
How the class unfolds
The class meets for four weekly 60-minute sessions, with a maximum of four dogs. We’ll focus on building cooperative care skills in manageable steps; with practice you can continue at home.
Start with a Discovery Call
We’ll begin with a free 15-minute phone call to discuss your dog’s experience with handling, your goals, and any safety concerns. We’ll decide whether the group setting is suitable or whether private support would be a better starting point.
Step 1
Build Foundations Together
You’ll practice reading your dog’s responses, introducing participation skills, and breaking care tasks into smaller pieces. I’ll guide the exercises and help you adjust the pace, touch, or tools for your dog.
Step 2
Plan Your Next Steps
Across the four weeks, we’ll build on what’s working and discuss ways to practice between classes. As the course wraps up, we’ll identify what to keep working on and whether individual support would be useful.
Step 3
What's included?
The cooperative care group class offers guided practice to help you and your dog build a more comfortable care routine. We’ll focus on foundations you can continue developing at home, rather than completing procedures during class.
✔︎ Four weekly 60-minute classes focused on cooperative care skills.
✔︎ A maximum of four dogs, keeping the group small.
✔︎ Step-by-step exercises for participation, touch, and introducing care tools.
✔︎ Coaching on timing and body language to help you recognize when to continue, adjust, or pause.
✔︎ Guidance for practice between classes, with ways to break your care goals into manageable steps.
You won’t need to complete every exercise at the same pace as the other teams. We’ll adapt the practice to what your dog can comfortably manage.
Cooperative Care Class
Six weeks of guided practice in a small group, with room to adjust the exercises for your dog. We’ll start with a free Discovery Call to make sure the class is a suitable fit before you enroll.
Cooperative Care Class
$220 per dog-and-handler team
For handlers who want help introducing grooming, handling, and care tasks in manageable steps, with guidance on reading and responding to their dog.
This includes:
✔︎ Four weekly 60-minute classes
✔︎ Maximum of four dogs
✔︎ Step-by-step exercises for participation, touch, and care tools
✔︎ Coaching on timing, body language, and taking pauses
✔︎ Guidance for practice between classes
A free Discovery Call is required before enrollment. A separate paid consultation isn’t required for dogs approved for this class.
This is a training class, not a grooming service or veterinary appointment. We’ll work on foundations for more comfortable care, without promising that your dog will be ready for a complete procedure by the end of the course.
“For the first time in years, I feel like we're actually a team”
Lana & Peggy
Is the cooperative care group class a good fit?
This class is for dogs who can practice handling foundations in a small-group setting. We’ll use your Discovery Call to discuss your dog’s needs and whether group or private support would be the better starting point.
This class may be right for you if:
✔︎ You want to introduce care skills before grooming or handling becomes difficult.
✔︎ Your dog is hesitant about some care tasks but can participate when they’re broken into small steps.
✔︎ Your dog can settle and practice with other dogs and people in the class space.
✔︎ You’re willing to practice between sessions without rushing to finish a procedure.
Private support may be a better starting point if:
✔︎ Your dog has bitten or attempts to bite during handling.
✔︎ Even small handling steps are difficult for your dog to manage.
✔︎ Being around other dogs or unfamiliar people makes it hard for your dog to participate.
✔︎ Your concerns need more individual attention than a group class can provide.
Answers to your questions
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A free 15-minute Discovery Call is required before enrollment. We’ll discuss your dog’s experience with handling and whether the group setting is suitable. A separate paid consultation isn’t required for dogs approved for this class.
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No prior cooperative care training is needed. We’ll start with foundations and adjust the exercises to your dog’s comfort level. Your dog does need to be able to practice in a space with other dogs and people.
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The focus is on building skills, not completing procedures. Depending on your dog’s comfort, you might practice looking at a tool, offering a paw, or accepting brief contact. There’s no expectation to finish a nail trim or grooming task during class.
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We’ll pause and look at how to make the exercise easier. That might mean changing the position, reducing the amount of touch, or putting a tool farther away. Moving away is information we can use, not something your dog needs to be corrected for.
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This group class isn’t suitable for dogs who bite or attempt to bite during handling. Please mention this during your Discovery Call so we can discuss whether private support or a referral would be more appropriate.
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You’ll be the one practicing with your dog while I coach you through the exercises. We won’t require your dog to accept handling from other class participants or unfamiliar people.
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There’s no guaranteed timeline for becoming comfortable with a particular procedure. The course gives you foundations and a way to keep practicing, rather than a promise that your dog will tolerate a full appointment. We’ll discuss what to continue working on after class.
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Yes. Graduates can book additional 60-minute private lessons for $150 per session, with arrangements based on your dog’s needs. Semi-private lessons are for reactivity work only, so continued cooperative care support takes place privately.
