Top Notch Dog Training

Top Notch Dog Training Top Notch Dog Training supports families with expert puppy training, therapy dog prep, and service dog foundations.

Warm guidance, clear steps, and real-world results.

Poppy is running into summer with plenty of excitement and a wagging tail to match.As she wraps up her training, she wil...
05/29/2026

Poppy is running into summer with plenty of excitement and a wagging tail to match.

As she wraps up her training, she will spend part of her summer with us and part of her summer with the family she will be living with when she officially starts school in August.

One thing we always remind people is that while facility therapy dogs have an important job, they are still dogs first. They spend their school year supporting students, staff, and their organizations, but they also need time to relax, play, explore, and simply enjoy being dogs.

Summer break is a great example of that balance. Many of the facility therapy dogs we have placed will spend the next few months enjoying family time, going on adventures, taking walks, playing fetch, and recharging before another busy school year begins.

Poppy has worked hard to prepare for her future role, and we are excited for her to enjoy a well deserved summer while continuing to grow and mature along the way.

We cannot wait to watch her start her journey in August and see the impact she will make.

What are your dogs’ favorite summer activities? Tell us in the comments.

Lutheran West

05/28/2026

As part of Ben and Jerry’s ongoing employee review… we would like to point out that Ben has once again inserted himself into training sessions.

The dogs were working on calmly relaxing on their place cots while learning how to settle around distractions.

Ben decided he also needed to participate and lined himself right up with the dogs like he was officially part of the class.

To be fair… he did remain calm and hold his place the entire time.

Jerry, however, was nowhere to be found and was most likely curled up somewhere sleeping on the job once again.

At this point, we are not sure if Ben deserves partial credit or if Jerry needs another write up.

What do you think?

We’re starting to think Miss Bethany may spend just a little too much time with puppies around here.Today she looked at ...
05/28/2026

We’re starting to think Miss Bethany may spend just a little too much time with puppies around here.

Today she looked at little Wesson running around and her first thought was, “You know… a crate would probably solve this.”

To be fair, crates work wonders for puppies. We’re just not totally sure Wesson’s parents would appreciate the training advice.

The good news is Bethany is amazing at teaching puppies how to settle, relax, and make good choices. The bad news is she may occasionally forget small children are not actually puppies.

Good thing Wesson is cute because we’re pretty sure Bethany was already planning his enrichment schedule and nap time.

Happy Birthday to Vincent.Vincent officially turned ONE a couple of days ago, but today we celebrated at training and th...
05/26/2026

Happy Birthday to Vincent.

Vincent officially turned ONE a couple of days ago, but today we celebrated at training and this boy made sure to show up ready for the party. He even brought treats to share with all of his friends today which made him pretty popular around here.

It has been so fun watching Vincent grow from a young puppy into a fun loving young dog that keeps us all smiling. He has been working hard on his training and we are excited to continue watching him learn, mature, and enjoy life with his family.

Help us wish Vincent a very Happy 1st Birthday in the comments.

Everyone help us welcome Irish to our Puppy Day Training program.We might be wrong, but we have a pretty strong feeling ...
05/26/2026

Everyone help us welcome Irish to our Puppy Day Training program.

We might be wrong, but we have a pretty strong feeling his family could be Notre Dame fans. We feel like his name may have given us a clue.

Irish is getting started learning all the important puppy basics like crate training, leash manners, confidence building, socialization, learning how to settle, and beginning obedience skills. Puppyhood is such an important stage and taking the time to build a strong foundation now can make a huge difference as puppies grow up.

Right now a lot of what we focus on is helping puppies learn how to be calm, confident, and successful in everyday life while making training fun and easy to understand.

We are excited to have this handsome boy hanging out with us and cannot wait to share more of his journey with all of you.

Welcome to the crew, Irish.

If you are thinking about getting your puppy started with training, send us a message to learn more about our Puppy Day Training program.

Charli and Pax are showing everyone just how fun training can be.These two participate in our Day Training Program and a...
05/26/2026

Charli and Pax are showing everyone just how fun training can be.

These two participate in our Day Training Program and are working hard toward off leash freedom. One of the biggest goals we have with training is helping dogs learn that they can still run, play, explore, and enjoy life while also listening and making good choices.

Reliable obedience is not about taking the fun away from being a dog. It is about creating freedom through communication, consistency, and trust. When dogs understand expectations clearly, they are able to enjoy more adventures safely with their families.

Our Day Training Program is a great option for busy families who want continued structure, training, and socialization throughout the week while still having their dogs home with them each night. Dogs spend time working with trainers on manners, obedience skills, engagement, and real world training while also getting time for play, enrichment, and rest.

Right now, this program is being offered exclusively to past clients who have completed a training program with us. This allows us to continue building on the foundation their dogs already know while helping families navigate adolescence and real life challenges as their dogs mature.

Charli and Pax would like everyone to know that being able to run, play, and still listen is a pretty cool way to live.

If you are a past client interested in learning more about our Day Training Program, send us a message.

Marshall is kicking off Memorial Day learning an important life skill with his family… pool safety.Since his new home ha...
05/25/2026

Marshall is kicking off Memorial Day learning an important life skill with his family… pool safety.

Since his new home has a pool, making sure Marshall learns how to safely and confidently navigate the water is incredibly important. From learning where the steps are to building confidence around splashing and movement, these early experiences help create safe habits for the future.

While this little guy has a very big future ahead of him, right now he is still very much a puppy learning about the world around him one experience at a time. Every new experience is helping build confidence, problem solving skills, and trust.

For now, we are just enjoying watching Marshall be a puppy, have fun, and soak up all the adventures that come with growing up.

We cannot wait to share more of what the future has in store for this handsome boy, but until then… enjoy his cuteness floating in the pool.

Cookie first started coming to Puppy Day Training when she was just a tiny little cutie pie, and now she is over a year ...
05/25/2026

Cookie first started coming to Puppy Day Training when she was just a tiny little cutie pie, and now she is over a year old. Watching dogs grow from young puppies into confident young adults is one of the most rewarding parts of what we do.

As Cookie grew, her family continued bringing her for Day Training when it fit into their schedule. This gave us the opportunity to continue coaching her family through adolescence, work through new challenges as they popped up, and help maintain the foundation she learned as a puppy.

Our Day Training program is designed for past training clients who want continued support as their dogs grow and mature. Dogs spend the day with us enjoying structured play, walks, time working with a trainer on manners and advanced obedience skills.

Adolescence can be one of the hardest stages of dog ownership, but having continued guidance and consistency can make such a big difference.

We are so proud of Cookie and thankful her family continues to trust us with her training journey.

If you are interested in learning more about our Puppy Day Training or Day Training programs, send us a message.

Today, we pause to remember and honor the brave men and women who gave their lives in service to our country. Their sacr...
05/25/2026

Today, we pause to remember and honor the brave men and women who gave their lives in service to our country. Their sacrifice gave us the freedoms we enjoy every day, and we are forever grateful.

As we spend time with family, friends, and the dogs we love, we also remember the true meaning of Memorial Day and those who never made it home.

From all of us at Top Notch Dog Training, we thank the heroes who made the ultimate sacrifice. ❤️🤍💙

We hope everyone has a safe and meaningful Memorial Day.

Finn and Lola have been hard at work in class learning one of the most important foundation skills we teach, place.In th...
05/23/2026

Finn and Lola have been hard at work in class learning one of the most important foundation skills we teach, place.

In the dog training world, “place” means teaching a dog to get onto an object, such as a cot or bed, and learn how to relax and remain there until released. Right now, Finn and Lola are in the beginning stages of learning that the place cot is a boundary. The goal is simple in the beginning. Get on the cot and stay there.

What many people do not realize is that obedience training is broken down into very small steps to help dogs clearly understand what we are asking. We often think of training like building tiny photographs for the dog’s brain. Each successful repetition creates another clear picture that helps the dog understand the behavior more confidently over time.

For dogs like Finn and Lola, learning place is about much more than simply staying on a cot. It helps build patience, relaxation, impulse control, and clear communication between dogs and their owners.

Both of these dogs are making progress, and it has been fun watching them start to understand the concept more each week.

Sometimes, part of responsible training means having difficult conversations and making hard decisions that are truly in...
05/22/2026

Sometimes, part of responsible training means having difficult conversations and making hard decisions that are truly in the best interest of both the dog and the family they were originally intended to serve.

Reo was originally part of our Service Dog Program. As she continued through adolescence and advanced training, we carefully evaluated her temperament, confidence, and long term success for the type of work required of a service dog. While Reo is an absolutely wonderful dog, we ultimately felt she would be happier and more successful outside of full time service work.

This is where our Career Changed Program comes in.

Our Career Changed Program is designed for dogs that began training for advanced working roles but would thrive better in a different type of home or lifestyle. These dogs still receive extensive training, structure, and socialization, but may not be the right fit for the specific demands of service work.

Reo will continue training with us and is expected to be available to the right family the first part of August.

She is a Standard Poodle with so much potential, and we are committed to finding the perfect fit for her next chapter.

We are now accepting applications for Reo.

If you are interested in learning more about Reo and our Career Changed Program, please send us a message.

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Edwardsburg, MI

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

+15746073245

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