K9 Courage Dog Training

Board & Train (most popular). Your dog lives and trains in the K9 Courage home for two to six-plus weeks. Puppy Foundations covers socialization, crate and house training, bite inhibition, leash manners, and basic commands for puppies under six months. Start Fresh On Leash builds solid on-leash obedience for dogs over six months. Off-Leash Freedom adds full off-leash recall, heel, and stays in real-world environments. Reactive & Aggressive Rehab is a customized six-plus week behavior modification program for reactivity, aggression, and resource guarding.

Private Sessions. One-on-one lessons where you hold the leash and learn the handling yourself, sold as 4-session Starter, 6-session Builder, and 8-session Complete packages, plus single tune-up sessions. Sessions run about an hour at parks, in public, or at your home.

Puppy Training. Board and train or private sessions for puppies from 8 weeks to 6 months.

Also offered: day training, group classes, basic and advanced obedience, and doggy daycare.

Pricing Summary

K9 Courage quotes each program after a free in-person evaluation, since the price depends on your dog and the program length. The one rate published on their site is $150 per single private session for tune-ups or a specific issue; private lessons are otherwise sold in 4, 6, and 8-session packages. Every package includes lifetime support.

Call or text (209) 247-1193 for a quote on board and train or puppy programs.

Policies

Every program starts with a free in-person evaluation, with no commitment and no sales pitch. Board and train dogs stay in the family home rather than a kennel, and only a few dogs are taken at a time.

During a board and train stay you get daily photos and videos. At pickup you go through a hands-on go-home session where the trainer walks you through everything your dog learned and practices it with you, followed by a return session within the first week. Every program includes a written plan for keeping the results and lifetime support afterward.

K9 Courage Dog Training is a husband-and-wife dog training business in Manteca, California. Daniel and Lily run every program out of their own home rather than a kennel, and they take only a few dogs at a time so each one gets real individual attention.

Board and train is their most popular program. Your dog lives with the family, trains every day, and works in the places obedience actually has to hold up: parks, sidewalks, stores, and busy public spaces. Programs run from two weeks of puppy foundations through six-plus weeks of reactive and aggressive rehabilitation, and every stay comes with daily photo and video updates.

They also offer private lessons for owners who want to do the training themselves, puppy programs starting at eight weeks, day training, and group classes. Daniel has been training dogs since 2019 and works with every breed, every age, and every issue, from leash pulling and jumping to reactivity, aggression, and resource guarding. He and Lily also train their own two working-line German Shepherds, Sage and Vader.

Every program ends with a hands-on go-home session so you can handle your dog yourself, a follow-up session in the first week, and lifetime phone support. As Daniel puts it, the job is not finished until the leash is in your hand and the dog still listens.

Accomplishments

Voted Best Dog Training in the Best of 209 readers’ poll, and named the Manteca Bulletin’s Choice favorite dog training business.

Rated 5.0 on Google. Training dogs in Manteca since 2019, with dogs of every breed and behavior level coming through the home each year.

How to Get Started!

Start with the free evaluation. Call or text (209) 247-1193, or use the request form at k9couragedogtraining.com/pages/contact-us.

Daniel or Lily will get back to you, usually within a few hours, then meet you and your dog in person to assess behavior and goals and recommend the program that fits. No pressure and no commitment before you decide.

Their Training Philosophy

Most dogs aren’t bad, they’re just never been told clearly. I train in a real home, not a kennel, so what your dog learns actually transfers to your life. Only a few dogs at a time means real individual attention. And I don’t just train the dog. I teach your whole family how to keep the results long after pickup.

A Tough Case They Solved

A family in Stockton had a young shepherd they loved but couldn’t walk. Their wife wouldn’t take him out at all and they’d stopped going anywhere as a family. Three weeks with me: loose leash, recall, and an actual off switch at home. At the go-home lesson I put the leash in her hand, first time she’d walked him without being dragged. That’s the whole job.

What New Clients Can Expect

We start with a call to talk through your dog and your goals. Your dog stays with me in my home, training daily in real-world settings. You’ll get progress updates while he’s here. Pickup isn’t a handoff, it’s a lesson where I teach you to handle your dog, plus a written maintenance plan and ongoing support.