Mystic Mutts Owner-Assisted Service Dog Training
Are you a disabled individual in need of a service animal? Are traditional program fees and waitlists stopping you from accessing a trained dog who can truly meet your needs and assist you? Are you anxious about putting your trust in a facility to train a dog for you?
Mystic Mutts offers a unique Owner-Assisted format of training, enabling disabled individuals to train their own service dog in their home. We conduct regular 1-1 private lessons, allowing a more affordable and flexible program structure while providing a high level of support and personalized guidance.
We also offer a very limited number of traditional program spots, taking on puppies for foundational, started, or full programs and delivering them after training is complete. We placed 2 program dogs in 2025 to Texas and Maryland. Please contact us directly for more information on our traditional program dogs.
Why Owner-Assisted Training?
Owner-training (or owner-assisted training) is a process in which a person with a disability acquires a puppy or adolescent dog, and raises & trains that dog in their own home to become their task-trained service animal. This is often done with the help of a trainer or short stays at a facility.
For disabled individuals with the capability to raise a puppy in their home, an owner-trained dog can come with several benefits over a traditional program dog.
More control over your dog’s breed, where your dog comes from, how they are trained, and what tasks they learn to perform.
Lower cost than a traditional program- Mystic Mutts often helps individuals owner-train dogs from start to finish for as little as 1/6th of traditional program prices.
More understanding of and connection with your trained dog. When you owner-train a service dog, especially alongside a trainer like Mystic Mutts, you gain a deep understanding of how your dog learns & functions, and the ability to touch up or add onto your partner’s training for the rest of their career.
Private Lessons
In a private lesson structure, we begin with an onboarding session (whether you have your dog yet or not!), and help match you with a dog who is suitable for the role if needed.
We conduct 1-1 sessions every 1-4 weeks, providing you with the guidance, accountability, knowledge, and skill you need to owner-train your service dog to your exact needs and specifications!
This is a wonderful and incredibly affordable option for disabled individuals or caretakers of disabled individuals who have the time, physical ability, resources, and energy to raise a dog themselves, but lack the knowledge, skill, or confidence to do it without guidance.
We also offer smaller blocks of lessons for existing teams working on specific skills.
Typically, a service dog can be trained start to finish in this format for $3,000-$5,000, paid over time as you complete lessons and determine your ongoing needs for support.
Full Program
Typically, we have the space to work with 1-2 full program dogs per year, or 3-5 started puppies. In a full program, we handle everything from breeder pickup to puppy raising, socialization, and public access + task training, and spend several full days of training and several lessons of follow-up after training concludes to ensure all of your dog’s skills transfer smoothly to you.
This program is an excellent option for disabled individuals who do not have the support system, physical or mental ability, or time/resources to raise a service dog themselves, but could benefit from the lifechanging assistance of a trained dog. Local handlers are welcome to come observe and work with their dog as they grow and learn, without the pressure of the thousands of hours of at-home work that go into an effective service dog.
These programs are highly individualized and can be customized to fit a full-ride program, the hardest part of puppyhood, or something in the middle. Please contact us via email or phone to learn more about how we can help you.