The Tom Rose School

What The Tom Rose School does

The Tom Rose School, founded in 1979 in High Ridge, Missouri, is a privately held dog training institution that has historically educated and certified professional dog trainers. It was established by Tom Rose, a professional dog trainer since 1968, who is credited with coining the terms "Professional Dog Trainer" and "Imprinting" and holds the highest IGP score (298/300) ever earned by an American trainer. The school previously offered two structured programs — an 8-week Professional Pet Trainer Program ($10,000) and a 20-week Master Dog Trainer Program ($18,000) — both delivered on-site and combining lectures, video instruction, demonstrations, and hands-on training grounded in behavioral psychology, classical and operant conditioning, and the four quadrants of learning theory.

As of 2026, The Tom Rose School has discontinued its formal certification and multi-week training programs and now operates exclusively through a weekly workshop model (August–December, $1,200/week standard or $1,400/week all-inclusive with housing) covering IGP protection, IGP obedience, IGP tracking, personal protection, scent detection, pet obedience, and behavior modification. Customers are individuals — pet owners, aspiring professional trainers, and working dog handlers — who apply and pay in full upon acceptance; tailor-made workshops are available on request. Ancillary revenue comes from sale of Tom Rose's book "Dog Training with the Touch" via Amazon and from limited on-campus student housing. Distribution is entirely on-site at the school's single High Ridge facility, with marketing driven by the school's website and word-of-mouth within the professional dog training community. The operating entity is The Tom Rose School LLC, a Missouri-domiciled, founder-owned LLC with no parent company, institutional investors, or outside funding disclosed.

Name

The Tom Rose School

Legal name

The Tom Rose School LLC

Website

https://www.tomrose.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Short description

The Tom Rose School is a privately held dog training institution founded in 1979 in High Ridge, Missouri, now offering hands-on weekly workshops in IGP, protection, obedience, tracking, scent detection, and behavior modification for pet owners, aspiring professional trainers, and working dog handlers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

High Ridge

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Workshop Training Programs: Week-long intensive workshop programs at $1,200 per week covering various training disciplines including IGP Protection, IGP Obedience, IGP Tracking, Personal Protection, Scent Detection, Pet Obedience, and Behavior Modification
2. All-Inclusive Workshop Package: Workshop package including housing at $1,400 per week with $300 refundable housing deposit
3. Master Dog Trainer Program: 20-week intensive professional training program costing $18,000, preparing students for employment in the dog training industry
4. Professional Pet Trainer Program: 8-week professional training program costing $10,000 for pet owners, pet trainers, and existing dog trainers seeking to advance their knowledge
5. Book Sales: Sale of Tom Rose's book 'Dog Training with the Touch' published through Amazon

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

The Tom Rose School is a canine training institution that delivers in-person, hands-on dog training workshops and seminars at its High Ridge, MO facility. It teaches pet obedience, IGP sport disciplines (Protection, Obedience, Tracking), personal protection, scent detection, and behavior modification using proprietary imprinting and behavioral psychology methods developed by founder Tom Rose. Programs are structured around weekly workshop enrollment ($1,200-$1,400/week) with optional on-site housing, and the school also sells educational publications.

Product overview

The Tom Rose School is a dog training institution founded in 1979, offering professional certification and educational programs for aspiring and existing dog trainers. The core offerings consist of two structured training programs: the Professional Pet Trainer Program (8 weeks, $10,000) for foundational pet training skills, and the Master Dog Trainer Program (20 weeks, $18,000) for advanced comprehensive training. These programs are supplemented by flexible weekly workshop programs ($1,200–$1,400 per week) with various training objectives, published educational materials including the book 'Dog Training with the Touch,' and on-campus student housing accommodations. The school no longer offers formal professional certification programs but focuses on knowledge-sharing through hands-on workshops and seminars.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Weekly Workshop Program A flexible weekly workshop (Monday-Friday, August-December) in which each participant is assigned a dedicated working spot and may select one focus area from IGP Protection, IGP Obedience, IGP Tracking, Personal Protection, Scent Detection, Pet Obedience, or Behavior Modification. Two hands-on sessions per day plus guided discussion and feedback are included. Priced at $1,200 per week, or $1,400 per week for an all-inclusive package with housing. Tailor-made workshops are also available on request.
• Master Dog Trainer Program A 20-week intensive program historically priced at $18,000 that prepared students for employment in the dog training industry. The curriculum included lectures, video instruction, hands-on training, demonstrations, independent study, and workshops covering tracking, scent detection, agility, pet obedience, competition obedience, search and rescue, protection, service dog skills, client interaction, and police K9 work.
• Professional Pet Trainer Program

Quantifiable outcome

• Graduates receive Professional Pet Trainer Certificate or Master Dog Trainer certification upon completing graduation requirements based on nationally recognized tests
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• K9 Training Institute: K9 Training Institute is a newer, online-focused dog trainer education provider that competes in the same professional trainer certification space as Tom Rose but with a digital-first delivery model, representing the emerging online alternative to legacy in-person schools.

Direct peers

• CATCH Canine Trainers Academy: CATCH Canine Trainers Academy offers structured, multi-week professional dog trainer certification programs with a hands-on curriculum similar to The Tom Rose School, serving aspiring professional trainers across the U.S.
• Starmark Academy: Starmark Academy is a long-established brick-and-mortar professional dog training school offering multi-week certification programs in a comparable format to The Tom Rose School, with similar pricing structure and on-site delivery model.
• National K-9 School for Dog Trainers: National K-9 School for Dog Trainers in Columbus, OH is one of the most established professional dog training certification schools in the U.S., offering multi-week residential programs comparable to Tom Rose's Master and Professional Pet Trainer programs.
• Von Stephanitz Dog Training Academy: Von Stephanitz Academy focuses on IGP/schutzhund training and offers professional certification programs in a comparable specialty niche to The Tom Rose School, targeting serious working-dog and sport competitors.
• Michael Ellis School for Dog Trainers: Founded by renowned trainer Michael Ellis, this school delivers professional dog training education built around a proprietary methodology, paralleling Tom Rose's imprinting-based approach, and serves a similar niche of serious sport and working-dog trainers.

Broad incumbents

• Tarheel Canine Training: Tarheel Canine is a larger, established professional dog training company offering services across police K-9, sport, and pet segments. While not purely a school, it competes for the same working-dog and professional training market Tom Rose addresses.
• Jordan Dog Training: Founded by Tyne Brown and based in Australia, Jordan Dog Training is an established force-free professional training brand with strong global brand recognition in the pet training space, broadly comparable to Tom Rose as a high-profile dog training institution.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

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 Tom Rose School