Danene Brown News Today

The people who got puppies were in over their heads Danene Brown and Darryl Powell thought adding a third dog to their home in Richmond, Va., would be easy; the first two were a cinch to train. But when the couple picked up Hopper, a French bulldog puppy, last February, that assumption was almost immediately challenged. “The pandemic made it nearly impossible to socialize him,” said Ms. Brown, a physical therapist, and Hopper developed a “Napoleon complex.” “Any time that we would try...

Now professional dog trainers are all booked up. While you wait, they have some advice to share.

Ann Becnel, a dog trainer in New Orleans, is busier than ever these days. “I am getting so many requests for training that I can barely keep up,” said Ms. Becnel, who got into the business 35 years ago. “It’s overwhelming.” April Chillari, the owner of Core Canine in Northern Virginia, is in a similar position. “Prior to the pandemic I would book up three to five weeks in advance,” she said. “Now I have a 10-week waiting list.” Dog trainers are in high demand, thanks to a boom...