Experienced Dog Behavior Specialist in Harrisonburg, VA

Dog Training for Peaceful & Obedient Companionship

Our mission at Peace of Mind Dog Training is to enhance the relationship between a dog and their humans to create a full and peacefully harmonious life. Whether you’re thinking about getting a dog, bringing home a new puppy, or needing some guidance for a dog already established in your home, now is the perfect time to partner with an experienced dog behavior specialist. We’ll work together — along with your four-legged best friend — to create a stronger bond, build a better behavioral foundation, or break existing bad habits to eliminate shared man-dog frustration in your home.

Creating stronger companionships.

Results-Driven Dog & Puppy Training

Achieving a Peaceful Pack — One Dog at a Time

Our Customers Love Us!

Creating a Stronger Relationship with Your Dog – Together

Personalized Dog Obedience Training Services

Each Peace of Mind Dog Training service is thoughtfully designed around your unique situation, goals, and – of course — your dog. Whether you’re a seasoned canine owner and only need some guidance, or you’ve just brought home your first puppy and need all the help you can get, I have a dog training service designed for you and your best friend.

Basic Obedience

In-Home Private Dog Training

For dog owners who want self-training tools

First visit: $225
Follow-up visits: $180

This program is ideal for those who have owned dogs before and need some guidance on self-training to modify minor behavioral issues or on how to introduce a new puppy to the pack. I will come to your home, where I will work privately with you and your dog. This allows me to watch a typical interaction between you and your dog, as well as see in-home behaviors that may not be displayed in other settings.

This 2-hour, in-home training session includes:

Private obedience training with your dog behavior specialist
Basic obedience & command training
Behavioral analysis & modification solutions
Addressing owner-defined unwanted behaviors & how to manage them
Follow-up training videos for on-demand learning
Unlimited support via call and/or text

This 2-week board-and-train package includes:

Private obedience training with your dog behavior specialist
Owner- & trainer-identified mild behavioral correction
Command-based foundational obedience training, like:
- Sit
- Stay
- Down
- Heel
- Come
Proper on-leash etiquette
Distraction management basics
Appropriate greeting manners (i.e. not jumping)
Basic healthy socialization

Foundational Obedience

2-Week Board-and-Train

For dog owners who seek foundational training and/or mild behavioral correction

Full session: $2,000

This engaging, 2-week board-and-train program focuses on foundational obedience, commands, leash training, healthy socialization, and mild behavioral correction. It’s ideal for owners who are looking for structured, 1-on-1 dog obedience training outside your home. After just 2 weeks, your four-legged best friend will return to you with a happier, more obedient disposition.

After completing this 2-week session, you will receive these free resources:

Advanced Obedience

3-Week Board-and-Train

For dog owners who seek advanced training, off-leash reliability and/or moderate behavioral correction

Full session: Full session: $2,700

This advanced, fully immersive 3-week board-and-train program focuses on complete obedience, commands, off-leash training, and healthy socialization. It’s ideal for owners who are looking for reliant obedience through a structured, individualized training program outside the home that unlocks their dog’s peaceful and dependable companionship.

After completing this 3-week session, you will receive these free resources:

This 3-week board-and-train package includes:

Private obedience training with your dog behavior specialist
Owner- & trainer- identified behavioral correction
Command-based obedience training, like:
- Sit (& Extended Sit)
- Stay (& Extended Stay)
- Down (& Extended Down)
- Heel
- Come
- Off
Proper on- & off- leash etiquette
Multi-distraction & multi-environment obedience
Healthy socialization
Appropriate greeting manners (i.e. not jumping)

This 2-week puppy board-and-train package includes:

Private obedience training with your dog behavior specialist
Owner- & trainer- identified puppy behavioral correction:
- Biting/chewing
- House training
- Pulling
- Jumping
Command-based obedience training, like:
- Sit
- Stay
- Down
- Heel
- Come
- Off
Proper on leash etiquette
Multi-environment confidence
Healthy socialization
Appropriate greeting manners (i.e. not jumping)

Foundational Obedience

Puppy Board-and-Train

For puppies 12 weeks-1 year and up seeking foundational puppy training & behavioral correction

Full session: $2,000

This is a fun-filled, fully immersive 2-week board-and-train program focused on laying a firm foundation of behavioral expectations and command training for your puppy. It’s ideal for owners who are looking for basic etiquette and obedience through, individualized training program outside the home that unlocks their puppy’s inner peace and helps jump start an obedient companionship from an early age.

After completing this 2-week session, you will receive these free resources:

One in-person owner training (valued at $225) to review in detail your dog’s learnings & how to handle them moving forward
In-person refresher training sessions for up-to one year after completion (valued at $225 each)
Lifetime support via call and/or text
Discount for future training services upon completion of Puppy Program

*Note that additional training methods and tools are up to the discretion of the trainer and will be discussed during consultation and intake. Tools used in training will be yours to keep.

It takes a pack.

Meet Your Professional Dog Trainer

Peace of Mind Dog Training by Kate Stevens

Hi, I’m Kate Stevens, the owner of Peace of Mind Dog Training! My number one passion in life is helping dogs and their owners create a connected, confident foundation for a lifetime of peaceful companionship. Since 2008, I have worked professionally with dogs in the veterinary field, as well as in doggy daycare and obedience training settings. After a year of devastating loss within my own pack, I decided it was time for me to open a dog training program as a way to spread the love I have for animals to other dog families in need of support.

In 2021, I took part in a competitive shadow program with internationally recognized dog trainer Sean O’Shea of The Good Dog Training and Rehabilitation, and completed an internship with The Balanced Dog, LLC. Shortly after, I opened Peace of Mind Dog Training, LLC.

Kate Stevens

Mission, Vision & Values

My main goal with Peace of Mind Dog Training is to help create a better, more harmonious connection between dogs and their humans. Whether you have a new puppy and want to start off on the right paw, or you have an established dog with some unwanted behaviors, I am excited and ready to work with you and your four-legged best friend. I will not only correct behaviors, but also explain why your dog is displaying them and what you can do to modify these mannerisms on your own.

In my many years of professional dog training experience, I have found the most effective way to work with dogs (and their humans) is through a proven balanced training method that combines positive reinforcement for behaviors we desire and correction for unwanted mannerisms. Since you are your dog’s pack leader, your dedication to the training process is the most important factor in creating the companionship you seek. Through working with both you and your dog, we will — together — create the relationship you have always dreamed of.

Get Started

Click below to schedule a free consultation by phone to see how we can work together to create a better relationship with your dog.

FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

Will my dog really benefit from this training program?

Absolutely! In fact, both you and your dog will benefit from any of our training programs. Most behavior problems, and challenges with listening to commands, are rooted in a lack of exercise, discipline, and general boredom. With our dog training services, you’ll learn not only how to correct unwanted behaviors, but also why they are happening and what you can do to help manage them on your own. Dogs love to work, and continued training is work that is key to your shared success. Together, we’ll find a training program for you that keeps your dog engaged, obedient, and happy.

Which Peace of Mind Dog Training program is best for a puppy?

Bringing home a puppy is one of the most exciting and rewarding experiences, but an unregulated puppy can cause big problems in a little package. Puppies from the age of 12 weeks can greatly benefit from our Puppy 2-Week Board-and-Train program. This training session will set correct expectations from a very early age and provide an obedient foundation for a lifetime of good habits and behaviors (rather than having to correct them down the road). If you’re an experienced dog owner and your pup is a mild-mannered breed, I recommend our Basic Obedience: In-Home Private Dog Training session; I’ll come to you to see your puppy in their home environment, and provide in-the-moment tips for even the trickiest puppy.

Can my older dog benefit from training?

Old dogs really can learn new tricks; it just takes time, consistency, and patience to break long-standing bad habits or unwanted behaviors. Contact us today for a free consultation by phone to discuss the best program for your unique old-dog behaviors and habits.

Can my aggressive dog be rehabilitated?

At Peace of Mind Dog Training, we believe any dog can be trained with the right balance of positive reinforcement, correction, and hard work. A truly aggressive dog can be rehabilitated using a more intensive and immersive board-and-train experience. Our Advanced Obedience: 3-Week Board-and-Train session can be specially curated to help you and your dog find a more peaceful path forward through our proven balanced behavioral modification program.

What does a day of board-and-train look like?

At Peace of Mind Dog Training, our board-and-train program is personalized, immersive training where your dog comes to our facilities for an all-day, multi-week behavior modification experience. During this program, our days are packed with structured skill building, physical exercise, healthy socialization with my training dogs, obedience training, confidence building exercises, and public distraction training both inside dog-friendly establishments and outdoors in busy public spaces; we also build in plenty of downtime for you dog to rest and reset their busy brain and body. This advanced training program is designed to connect your dog’s breed instincts, learned behaviors, and unique personality traits with our proven balanced training method, so your dog will be seeking better, more rewarded behaviors.

How many dogs are trained at a time during board-and-train?

For extremely straight-forward cases, I accept a maximum of two dogs at a time. However, in most cases, your dog will be the only one at the facility for this advanced board-and-train program.

My dog hates walking on a leash. Can you help?

You’re not alone! Many owners believe their dogs have trouble on a leash. But just like humans, there is no one-size-fits-all behavior. Some dogs pull, some sit down and don’t want to walk, some are leash reactive and may run away, or some behave more aggressively on a leash. All of these behaviors can be corrected with patience and understanding of your dog’s needs. Together, we will learn what these are and how to be a good walking partner by the end of our training.

Do you have a guarantee?

No; there are no guarantees in dog training, which is why Peace of Mind Dog Training also does not have a guarantee. Every dog has a different genetic makeup, different skill sets, and different jobs they were bred to do. They are not robots, so there’s no way to guarantee a behavioral outcome ( just like humans). I will work hard with you and your dog, keeping your canine’s unique characteristics in mind, and openly communicate with you on how to best maneuver even the most challenging situations.

Where is Peace of MInd Dog Training located?

While we proudly serve the entire Harrisonburg, VA, area, our training facilities are located in Fulks Run, VA.

Contact Peace of Mind Dog Training

Your Peaceful Companionship Starts Here

Sign up today for your free phone consultation, and learn how working with a professional dog trainer can improve your relationship with your best friend.