Scholars in Collars Academy

Scholars in Collars Academy offers several training programs. Group Classes are five-week sessions for pet parents and their dogs, with four levels ranging from beginner to therapy dog.

Day School is a five-week program held on Tuesdays and Thursdays, providing all-day training, socialization, and outings tailored to specific goals. Private Packages offer guaranteed results, focusing on training the owner to train their dog with flexible scheduling and the convenience of home.

Their Day Camp (Dog Daycare) is designed to address a dog’s physical, mental, and emotional needs through mental enrichment, small monitored play groups, and structured rest periods. During rest, dogs are offered frozen Kong toys. The day camp also incorporates work on recall, doorway behaviors, and not jumping, while reinforcing previously learned training.

Policies

Clients are advised to familiarize themselves with the “Policies, Terms and Conditions” before registering for services.

Scholars in Collars Academy is a dog training business located in Erie, PA, offering a variety of services to help dog owners build strong, communicative relationships with their pets. They provide group classes, day school programs, and private training packages.

Their approach emphasizes positive reinforcement training methods and focuses on addressing dogs’ physical, mental, and emotional needs. They aim to help dogs overcome common issues like leash pulling, reactivity, jumping, and lack of manners, enabling owners to confidently take their dogs anywhere.

A key differentiator for their Day Camp (dog daycare) is its balanced model, which includes mental enrichment, small monitored play groups, and structured rest periods, contrasting with typical all-day play daycares that can lead to over-excitement or injury. The staff, including the accredited trainer, have years of experience with dog body language and positive reinforcement.

Beyond training, Scholars in Collars Academy also offers dog daycare and dog photography services. They also have an online shop where clients can purchase branded merchandise.

Accomplishments

The trainer and owner, Nikki McGaughey, holds KPA CTP and SDC certifications. She has over ten years of experience running group and private dog training sessions in the Erie, PA area.

Nikki graduated from Gannon University with a biology degree in 2014. She trained at the largest pet retailer in North America for nine years, where she was also entrusted to train other trainers across multiple states. She attended Karen Pryor Academy, passing her training and teaching assessments with perfect scores. Additionally, she is a Canine Good Citizen and Therapy Dogs United evaluator.

How to Get Started!

To get started, clients can call the business directly or submit a contact form. It is recommended to review the “Policies, Terms and Conditions” before registering for any programs.