The Dog Mentor

What The Dog Mentor does

The Dog Mentor is a UK-based, founder-owned education services company founded in 2013 by Jenny Duckworth that trains dogs and school staff to safely deploy therapy and wellbeing dogs in educational settings. Its core product, The Dog Mentor Programme, is delivered directly to schools and consists of a one-day on-site training course, a proprietary dog personality assessment, a tailored per-school risk assessment, an equipment kit (coat, collar, lead), 12 months of ongoing support, and access to a Padlet resource hub of more than 700 targeted materials covering consent templates, pupil exercises, and dog training guidance. The underlying 'technology' is a behaviour-and-welfare methodology refined over more than a decade rather than a software platform, with dog welfare positioned as the central design principle.

The company makes money primarily through a one-time professional services training fee per school team, complemented by an annual programme membership and a Shopify-backed shop, with pricing quoted on application rather than published. Go-to-market is sales-led and community-led: schools contact the business directly, training is delivered on-site, and growth compounds through referrals from the existing network of 700+ schools, 900+ working Dog Mentor dogs, and 1,900+ trained education professionals, reinforced by an annual conference (next 18 June 2026), blog content, and social channels on Facebook and Instagram. Research collaborations with the University of Lincoln's LEAD team, peer-reviewed publication in the Behavioural Sciences journal, and presentations at the International Society for Anthrozoology (ISAZ) in 2024 and 2025 provide third-party validation and a credibility layer for education procurement.

The Dog Mentor operates as a micro-business with 1-10 employees based in High Halstow, Rochester, Kent, has no disclosed external funding, and serves customers across England and Wales (including Cardiff, Anglesey, Swansea, Bridgend, Caerphilly and Blaenau Gwent). Select named customers include Willow Brook Primary School, The Beacon School, Ysgol Glantaf, Halifax Academy, Tulip Academy, Reepham Primary School, Sunny Skies Nursery, and a Blaenau Gwent cluster of schools. The business has no software product, mobile app, or AI component; its defensibility rests on methodology, brand, community, and research evidence rather than technology.

Name

The Dog Mentor

Legal name

The Dog Mentor

Website

https://thedogmentor.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Dog Mentor is a UK-based education services company founded in 2013 that trains school dogs and staff to safely deploy therapy dogs in UK primary, secondary, nursery, and specialist schools, serving 700+ schools with a one-time training programme plus ongoing support.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Animal-Assisted Education Services

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (611430), Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services (81291), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Service & Emotional Support Animal (ESA) Accommodations Management (EDALAGAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Autism Parent/Caregiver Education & Training (School-Linked) (EDAKAKAJ), Training-Integrated Dog Daycare (Day Training) (HSANAFAE)

Keywords

• School dog training
• Therapy dog programme
• Animal-assisted education
• School wellbeing services
• Dog welfare assessment

Headquarters

HQ city

Rochester

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. School Dog Training Programme: Schools pay for a comprehensive training programme that includes a full 1-day training course, dog assessment, tailored risk assessment, resources, dog equipment (coat, collar, lead), access to resource hub, and 12 months of ongoing support. This is a one-time training fee per school team with annual programme membership.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Dog Mentor delivers a specialist school dog training programme to UK educational settings. Schools purchase a one-time training package that includes a full 1-day on-site training course, a dog personality assessment, a tailored risk assessment, teacher/pupil resources, a Dog Mentor equipment kit (coat, collar, lead), access to a Padlet Resources hub with 700+ resources, and 12 months of ongoing support. The programme enables schools to safely deploy dogs for student wellbeing, emotional regulation, social development, and curriculum-based learning outcomes.

Product overview

The Dog Mentor offers a unified programme called The Dog Mentor Programme, a specialist school dog training service for UK educational settings. The programme consists of multiple integrated components: a 1-day training course, dog personality assessment, tailored risk assessment, teacher resources and pupil booklets, a Padlet Resources Hub with 700+ materials, equipment kit (coat, collar, lead), and 12-month ongoing support. The programme helps schools implement therapy dogs to support student wellbeing, emotional regulation, social development, and educational outcomes.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Dog Mentor Programme A specialist school dog training programme for UK schools that trains dogs to work safely in educational settings, supporting student wellbeing, stress reduction, emotional regulation, social development, and curriculum-based learning. Delivered as a packaged service to school teams.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 700 schools implemented with the Dog Mentor Programme across the UK
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• International Society for Anthrozoology (ISAZ)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2024Professional association dedicated to advancing scientific study of human-animal interactions. The Dog Mentor presents research findings at ISAZ annual conferences, contributing to the international research community discussion on dogs in educational environments.
• University of LincolncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch collaboration with University of Lincoln's LEAD team (Laboratory for Animal-assisted Interventions Development) to explore benefits of school dogs in educational settings. The partnership combines practical experience with scientific research to provide evidence-based insights. A peer-reviewed research paper has been published in the Behavioural Sciences journal, with ongoing collaborative research projects.
• Cardiff City CouncilminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDan Salter, Emotional Health and Wellbeing Specialist for Cardiff City Council, originally trained Cosmo the Dog Mentor. Partnership supports expansion of Dog Mentor programme across Welsh-medium schools.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Dogs for Good: UK charity training assistance dogs and running community dog projects, including in schools and family settings. Comparable in training rigour, welfare-first methodology, and UK school/customer overlap, though Dogs for Good is more established and broader in scope than The Dog Mentor's school-only focus.
• Pets as Therapy: UK charity providing therapeutic visits with dogs (and other animals) to schools, hospitals, and care settings. Most direct comparable to The Dog Mentor in mission and target audience, although Pets as Therapy is volunteer-led and free for hosts, whereas The Dog Mentor sells a structured paid training programme.
• Support Dogs: UK charity training assistance dogs for children and adults with medical or developmental needs. Comparable in evidence-based training approach and welfare-led ethos, with overlap in families and schools touched by their work.
• Therapy Dogs Nationwide: UK charity providing therapeutic visits by dogs to schools, colleges, universities, hospitals, and care homes. Competes in the same therapy-dog-in-schools space but operates a volunteer model with assessment and visitation rather than a paid training curriculum.

Broad incumbents

• The Kennel Club: UK national body for dog welfare, training, and breed standards, with established education and training accreditation programmes. Broader than The Dog Mentor but overlapping in dog training methodology and education-sector reach.
• Dogs Trust: Largest UK dog welfare charity, running school education programmes and community dog safety initiatives. Indirect competitor for school dog training budgets and a potential partner or threat given its scale, brand, and free education resources.
• Medical Detection Dogs: UK charity training dogs for medical detection and assistance work, with a strong research arm and university partnerships. Comparable in research-led methodology and UK base, but operates in a different end-application (medical) rather than education.

Emerging players

• Pet Partners: US-based therapy animal organisation registering volunteer therapy animal teams for visits to schools, hospitals, and other settings. Comparable in mission and school-deployment model but operates in the US rather than the UK market.
• Canine Assisted Learning: UK provider of canine-assisted learning and therapy services for schools and other settings. Closely comparable offering (dogs deployed into schools for wellbeing and learning outcomes) but smaller scale than The Dog Mentor.

Regional players

• Therapet: Scottish-based therapy animal charity placing volunteers and dogs in schools, hospitals, and care homes. Operates in a similar therapy-dog-in-schools niche but is geographically concentrated in Scotland and relies on volunteer visits rather than a paid training programme.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xfacebook.com/TheDogMentor
• Facebookfacebook.com/TheDogMentor
• Instagraminstagram.com/the_dog_mentor
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-dog-mentor

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Dog Mentor