This holiday season, give the gift of a well-mannered dogTraining & boarding gift bookings with Model K9 — fill out the form below to learn moreTraveling for the holidays? Your dog can spend them with usAsk about our holiday boarding optionsThis holiday season, give the gift of a well-mannered dogTraining & boarding gift bookings with Model K9 — fill out the form below to learn moreTraveling for the holidays? Your dog can spend them with usAsk about our holiday boarding optionsThis holiday season, give the gift of a well-mannered dogTraining & boarding gift bookings with Model K9 — fill out the form below to learn moreTraveling for the holidays? Your dog can spend them with usAsk about our holiday boarding options

Special events

Gatherings, workshops, and seasonal training days.

Name: Confidence Building Day
Start: 2026-11-29
Location: Arlington, Texas

Throughout the year Model K9 hosts small-group events for clients and their dogs — focused, unhurried sessions with limited spaces so every handler receives attention. Choose an event, pick a date, and reserve your space below.

With our Fast Track Training Program™, you combine vacation with training all in one — a two-day training weekend you can plan a trip around.

Available now · training gear

Thumb Trainer™

Black leather training leash

$50

Hand-finished black full-grain leather with tone-on-tone embossed branding, solid brass hardware, and a control loop sized for your thumb at 5 ft × 5/8 in. It is called the Thumb Trainer because the loop fits a thumb, not a wrist. When a dog lunges, you pull your thumb out and the leash releases before it can pull you down. The same leash used in our programs.

Size: 5 ft × 5/8 in
Thumb-size release loop — never your wrist
Embossed Model K9 logo
Solid brass clasp

View the Thumb Trainer

Delivery address collected securely at checkout. Ships within the United States.

Calendar of events

Upcoming weekends, beginning late October.

Every event is held on a Saturday or Sunday in Arlington or Granbury. Spaces are limited — reserve yours below.

October 2026

24Fast Track™ Arlington

25Fast Track™ Arlington

November 2026

Gold dates are scheduled event weekends — hover a date for details.

Oct 24–25Sat – Sun

Fast Track Training Program™

Arlington, Texas

Our signature program

Fast Track Training Program™

October 24–25, 2026 · Arlington, Texas

A two-day training weekend you can plan a trip around — combine vacation with training all in one.

Handlers walking calm dogs on leashes past small-town storefronts

We take your dog from A to Z in this two-day event, addressing all areas of concern and training you and your dog together. The Fast Track Training Program™ is reserved for dogs six months and older.

Every session is limited to three dogs and their owners, and that cap is deliberate rather than logistical. With no more than three teams in the room, Amie can watch each dog's handling closely and give every handler corrections in the moment, instead of addressing a room.

It is also where everything we do at Model K9 begins. Over two guided days, Amie walks each handler through the core language of her method — leash mechanics, place work, and the calm household manners that make a dog a pleasure to live with rather than a project to manage.

You will work your own dog throughout the session, with individual coaching at every step. We cover loose-leash walking without pulling, a reliable place command that holds through real distraction, polite greetings at the door, and the handling habits that keep progress going long after the workshop ends.

Arlington, Texas

More special event categories

Choose the experience made for your dog.

Scent Work Lab

Two hours · Six dogs

A Border Collie searching wooden boxes for hidden odor during a scent work session

Scent work gives a dog a job, and a dog with a job is a calmer, more confident dog. In this two-hour lab, Amie introduces the foundations of odor games and search patterns — the same discipline behind her professional detection work, scaled down to a format any pet dog can enjoy.

Dogs work one at a time in short, carefully paced turns so every team stays successful. Handlers learn to read the subtle body language that tells you your dog is on odor, and how to let the dog lead the search rather than the other way around.

No experience is needed, and shy or reactive dogs are welcome — the one-at-a-time format makes this one of the gentlest group settings we offer. You will leave with simple starter games to practice at home.

Itinerary

· First thirty minutes — Introduction to scent work; how dogs use their noses; safety and setup.
· Next sixty minutes — Rotating search rounds: every dog works individually with coaching on each pass.
· Final thirty minutes — Handler handling skills, reading your dog's alerts, and home practice games.

$500per dog

Puppy Social Hour

Ninety minutes · Puppies 8–20 weeks · Veterans Park, Arlington

A group of young puppies playing gently under a trainer's supervision

The window for easy socialization is short, and how it is done matters more than most owners realize. Puppy Social Hour replaces the chaos of a dog park with carefully supervised, structured play — matched by size and temperament, interrupted at the right moments, and always kept positive.

Between play rounds we work on the handling skills puppies need for a lifetime of vet visits and grooming: calm acceptance of being held, touched, and examined. We also practice startle recovery and polite greetings, so new experiences stay adventures rather than anxieties.

Amie is on the floor with the puppies the entire session, narrating what she sees so you learn to read play styles and know when to step in. Every family leaves with a short socialization plan for the weeks ahead.

Itinerary

· First fifteen minutes — Welcome; gentle handling exercises; settling puppies into the space.
· Middle forty-five minutes — Supervised play rounds matched by size and temperament, with coaching throughout.
· Final thirty minutes — Startle recovery and polite greetings; questions answered; take-home socialization plan.

$100per dog

Real World Field Trip

Two hours · Public setting

Training that only works in the living room is not finished training. The Real World Field Trip takes a small group of handler-and-dog teams into the places life actually happens — patios, storefronts, and busy sidewalks — where distraction is the curriculum and calm behavior is the goal.

We move as a group through a planned route, stopping to practice loose-leash walking past foot traffic, settle work under café tables, and neutrality around other dogs and strangers. Amie coaches each team in real time, adjusting the difficulty to the dog in front of her.

Teams should have basic leash skills before attending — this is the proving ground, not the starting line. You will leave knowing exactly how your dog handles the real world, and exactly what to work on next.

Itinerary

· First twenty minutes — Meet and warm up; loose-leash practice in a quiet staging area.
· Middle eighty minutes — Guided route through storefronts and patios; settle work, neutrality drills, and real-time coaching.
· Final twenty minutes — Cool-down walk; individual feedback for every team; homework for the week ahead.

$300per dog

Service & Comfort Dog Seminar

Full day · Lecture and lab

A golden retriever in a service dog vest resting at its handler's feet during a seminar

Drawn from years of placements in the field — including service and comfort dog training and work with military service members — this full-day seminar is an honest look at what this work truly requires, for the dog and for the handler.

The morning is a lecture covering temperament assessment, task training, and public access expectations: what a service dog must be able to do, how suitability is evaluated, and why the hardest part of the work is knowing when a beloved dog is not the right candidate.

The afternoon is a working lab. Participants observe live task demonstrations, practice public access scenarios, and learn the day-to-day maintenance that keeps a working dog sharp and happy for a career of service.

Itinerary

· Morning — Lecture: temperament assessment; task training fundamentals; public access standards and expectations.
· Midday — Lunch break with informal question-and-answer.
· Afternoon — Working lab: live task demonstrations, public access scenarios, and handler practice with coaching.

$300per dog

Private Group Booking

By arrangement · Weekends only

A trainer demonstrating leash handling to a circle of neighbors and their dogs on a lawn

Some lessons land better with familiar faces. A Private Group Booking gathers your neighbors, rescue group, club, or extended family for a session built entirely around the behaviors your dogs actually need — hosted at your location or ours.

Before the date, Amie talks with your group about goals: leash manners for a walking club, calm greetings for a neighborhood of visiting grandchildren, foundations for a rescue's new fosters. The session is then planned around those answers, not a fixed script.

Groups of up to six handler-and-dog teams keep coaching personal. Private group bookings are available on Saturdays and Sundays only, and every team leaves with notes on what to practice between now and the next gathering.

Itinerary

· Before the date — Consultation call to shape the session around your group's goals.
· First thirty minutes — Welcome and individual assessments; priorities confirmed for the day.
· Main session — Focused coaching rounds on your group's chosen behaviors, rotating so every team works individually.
· Final thirty minutes — Group review; written notes and practice plans for every team.

$1,000per group

(214) 843-2905

Private consultation

Find the right training path for your dog.

Begin your consultation