Specializing in canine behavior and functional movement
★★★★★on Google

Puppy Training Austin, TX

Navigate puppyhood with a practical plan for everyday manners, positive experiences, and a growing partnership with your puppy. Private puppy training in your Austin home, from a certified behavior consultant.

Trainer teaching a black puppy to sit during in-home puppy training in Austin, TX
EXCELLENT
★★★★★
Rated 5.0 from 38 reviews on
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Yessika P
★★★★★

My dog Pedro and I had a great time working with Steven and Hannah. Steven helped my reactive pup calm down. My dog couldn't even look at a toy dog without going crazy for it. Now he can walk by dogs with little to no issues and I can tell my dog is happier. Steven knows his stuff and is great at working with dogs and people as well. There is so much kindness, patience, and education there that is very cool! The knowledge I gained on how to take care of Pedro and help him was also so helpful. I would totally recommend Steven to anyone who has a reactionary doggo that needs some help! Now my dog is able to go out beyond our little neighborhood and hangout with us!

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kaitlyn warren
★★★★★

Steven has been amazing to work with over the past 7 weeks. He didn’t just train my dogs—he taught me how to better understand them and build their confidence. Darci and Trout have both made so much progress, and I’m incredibly grateful for everything we’ve learned. I highly recommend him! Please consider him for any aged pups and don’t be surprised with how fast the progress happens! Services Dog training

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Jacquelyn Llamas
★★★★★

My sweet girl has always had trouble since I got her from the shelter. She struggled with recall, being outside of the house around dogs/small animals, sometimes men, and honestly just listening to me in general. I have noticed milestones that I never would imagine my dog would be able to. I feel like Steven has been so understanding and non judgmental. I was always worried to get into training because I felt like I had no idea how to control my own dog, but he has made this process so nice. It’s been an amazing experience overall and I recommend Steven 1000%!

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Megan Gross
★★★★★

Steven at Venture Dog Training has been an incredible mentor and played a huge role in my growth as a professional dog trainer. He helped me tremendously by deepening my understanding of behavior, structure, and clear communication — not just teaching techniques, but teaching the “why” behind them. His guidance and high standards pushed me to grow in both confidence and skill, and his mentorship contributed greatly to me earning my certification. I’m truly grateful for his leadership and highly recommend him to anyone looking for knowledgeable, structured, results-driven training. Thank you, Steven!!

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Juliana Kiener
★★★★★

We are so impressed with the progress our dog has made after just 8 sessions with Steven from Venture Dog Training! She learned how to sit, stay, lay down, take a breath, and leave it—and she absolutely loves Steven (and so do we)! Steven is not only super knowledgeable and professional, but also incredibly attentive. He’s even helped answer questions outside of our scheduled sessions—which we try not to take advantage of, haha! He’s truly passionate about what he does, and it shows. We especially love that Steven comes to our house, making training so convenient and personalized. He even joined us for a session at our favorite bar to help train our pup in a real-world setting, which was exactly what we needed. Steven is kind, trustworthy, and an all-around great guy. We couldn’t recommend him more!

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Charlie Hackenbruch
★★★★★

I really loved working with Steven! He was a kind, skilled and knowledgable teacher. I'm neurodivergent and can struggle with task switching between processing verbal in person instruction and actually training the dog, but I try to take in person classes as well as online ones because there's so many benefits to training in a controlled environment like a class. In spite of me having a generally harder time with in person instruction, Steven was very patient, encouraging and a joy to work with. He also was always very flexible if I wanted to do something a different way, and was even creative enough to come up with new solutions himself if I preferred training a skill in a different way, which I did not at all expect. I would not hesitate to take a class with Steven again.

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Jennifer Kuvlesky
★★★★★

I hired Steven to help get my corgi Chihuahua mix dog with self control since we are expecting a baby in the family and my daughter moved in with her 2 cats. My dog, Oliver, had selective listening skills prior to training and would hyperventilate and bark constantly around the cats. With Steven’s guidance and consistent training approach we were able to get Oliver to listen, and now he can hang out with the cats without barking at all. At first, it didn’t seem like it was going to work, but with consistent training over a three month period were able to be successful.

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Concelia Cappuccilli
★★★★★

Steven and his team are amazing! They are quick to get you in for a FREE telephone consult and respond to messages with speed. I went with the fitness and nutrition package shortly after my dog was diagnosed with Hip Dysplasia and Inflammatory Bowel Disease. My dog is fearful of new people, especially men, but Steven was able to develop a plan to help with her stance, gait, and rear end muscle building, and coach us entirely virtually! I have seen a massive decrease in her pain since working with him!! His nutritionist, Amanda, was also able to develop a diet to help with her IBD. She is extremely knowledgeable on all things dog nutrition! I’d recommend Steven and team to anyone who is looking for expert coaching and a trainer who cares so deeply for the animals in their care.

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D Duncan
★★★★★

"Working with Steven at Venture Dog Training was a fantastic experience. He was so patient and gave me the tools I needed to truly communicate with Marlo. If you're looking for an excellent trainer, look no further!" Services Dog training

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Nicole Vences
★★★★★

Steven is such a great trainer! He helped me learn techniques and tools to help manage my dog's reactivity. My dog loves working with Steven and I have become better equipped to handle my dogs reactivity. Services Dog training

Professional Certifications & Memberships

Steven Tallas, CBCC-KA, Dip.CBST, CSCC — certified in canine behavior consulting, behavior science & technology, and canine sports conditioning.

Puppy Training

The Puppy Journey

Navigate puppyhood with a practical plan for everyday manners, positive experiences, and a growing partnership with your puppy.

$980
7 Lessons
Total program price

Personalized training and practical coaching for you and your dog.

Also included: weekly check-ins, full phone and email support between lessons, a 10% graduate discount on additional lessons, and an optional virtual follow-up up to one month after your program.

Small puppy learning during an in-home puppy training session in Austin, TX

Who It Is For

Puppy owners who want to build good habits early, navigate common puppy challenges, and help their puppy grow into a confident, well-mannered companion.

What We Work On

Everyday Foundations

Build sit, down, recall, leash skills, and settling.

Puppy Problem Solving

Get guidance on potty routines, chewing, nipping, and jumping.

Positive Experiences

Introduce people, places, handling, and new situations thoughtfully.

Learning through Movement

Explore age-appropriate body awareness and coordination activities.

Calm at Home

Build comfortable routines for crate time, rest, and settling.

Coaching for the Family

Help everyone at home use the same cues and approach.

The Foundation of Your Life Together

Puppyhood can feel overwhelming. The nipping, the jumping, the endless curiosity, the 6 a.m. zoomies. It is also the single most important window for shaping the dog your puppy becomes, and it does not stay open long.

Puppy Training, The Puppy Journey, blends everyday foundations like sit, down, recall, leash skills and settling with guidance through the common challenges of puppyhood. Along the way your puppy explores age-appropriate body awareness and coordination activities, so learning involves their body as well as their brain.

The training happens in your home and around your neighborhood, where your puppy's habits are actually forming, with structured exposure to the people, sounds and surfaces of their new world. You get a certified professional guiding every step, not a photocopy curriculum.

Puppy sitting attentively during puppy training in Austin

Why Movement Matters for Puppies

Most puppy classes treat the body as transportation for the brain. Exploring balance, coordination and body awareness early supports physical confidence, and a puppy who trusts their body can meet the world with more curiosity and less caution.

Every movement activity is chosen for growing bodies by a trainer certified in canine sports conditioning, with a fitness credential from NC State College of Veterinary Medicine. In Puppy Training, movement is one part of the plan alongside everyday learning. If you want a program focused on purposeful movement and physical foundations, see Puppy Fitness on our Canine Fitness page.

Start your puppy off on the right paw. The consultation is free, and it is a good time to talk through where your puppy is today.

Happy puppy giving a high five during training in Austin

Potty Routines and Crate Training

Puppy Training includes guidance on the things new owners lose the most sleep over. Potty training usually struggles for one reason: inconsistency. We help you set up a routine in your home, a schedule matched to your puppy's age, supervision and management that prevent rehearsal of the wrong habit, and reinforcement timed so your puppy understands what pays. Then we coach everyone in the household on running it. No punishment, ever, because scolding accidents only teaches dogs to hide them.

Crate training done well can give your puppy a portable safe place: somewhere to rest at night, travel more easily, and opt out when life gets loud. We use a gradual, positive process: the crate becomes wonderful before it ever becomes closed, duration builds in seconds rather than hours, and we teach you the limits, a puppy can hold roughly its age in months plus one hour, so the crate stays a bedroom and never becomes a punishment.

Adult dogs with accidents, marking or crate baggage are welcome too. Those cases are handled in our private in-home training.

Yorkshire terrier puppy on a hardwood floor during in-home potty and crate training in Austin, TX

Related Programs

As your puppy grows, continue with Dog Obedience Training, focus on purposeful movement with Canine Fitness, or add structured socialization in our Group Classes.

Puppy Training Questions

When should puppy training start?

Now. The socialization window closes around 16 weeks, and what your puppy experiences before then matters for their confidence later. Training can begin as early as eight weeks with age-appropriate methods. If your puppy is older, do not panic, we meet every puppy where they are.

What is included in The Puppy Journey?

Puppy Training, The Puppy Journey, is $980 for 7 lessons of personalized training and practical coaching for you and your puppy. We work on everyday foundations like sit, down, recall, leash skills and settling, guidance on potty routines, chewing, nipping and jumping, thoughtful introductions to people, places, handling and new situations, and age-appropriate body awareness and coordination activities. Every program also includes weekly check-ins, full phone and email support between lessons, a 10% graduate discount on additional lessons, and an optional virtual follow-up up to one month after your program.

How is Puppy Training different from Puppy Fitness?

Puppy Training covers everyday learning and common puppy challenges: foundations, potty routines, chewing, nipping, jumping and positive early experiences, with some age-appropriate body awareness activities along the way. Puppy Fitness is a separate Canine Fitness option, $1,020 for 7 lessons, for puppies up to 4 months old. It focuses on purposeful movement and physical foundations, and it does not include the full Puppy Training program.

Do you cover potty training and crate training?

Yes. Puppy Training includes guidance on potty routines with management and reinforcement, and we can coach you through a gradual, positive crate process. Adult dogs with accidents or crate baggage are handled in our private in-home training.

What about biting, nipping and chewing?

Completely normal for puppies. We coach you through management and redirection strategies for mouthing, jumping, demand barking and chewing, so you have a clear plan for the phase.

Let’s Find the Right Next Step

Book a free consultation and tell us about your dog. We’ll talk through your dog’s needs and find the right training program.