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Dog Training

Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training Course Review 2026: Our Expert’s Opinion

Nicole Cosgrove
By Nicole CosgroveUpdated on June 17, 2026
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Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training Course

Review Summary

Our Final Verdict

We give the Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training course a rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars.

4.5
Ease of Use: 5.0/5
Features: 4.5/5
Cost: 4.0/5
Value: 4.5/5
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What Is the Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training Course? How Does It Work?

If you just brought a puppy into your home and are now struggling to get all those troublesome puppy behaviors in check, you’re not alone. The “puppy blues” are a common problem, and without guidance, it can be an overwhelming situation.

That’s where the Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training course thrives. It’s not a great choice for older dogs, but it can help first-time dog owners struggling with a spirited puppy get on the right track.

Even better, there are two different ways to sign up. You can pay for the entire course at once and get lifetime access, or you can pay for a monthly subscription and only keep it for as long as you need it. If you sign up for a one-month free trial of the Top Dog Academy, you'll get full access to the Essential Puppy Training Course and all of Top Dog Academy's other courses.

Dunbar Academy has many courses to help you train your dog, and the Essential Puppy Training course in particular is an excellent investment for both your puppy and your sanity. And if you use code PETKEEN, you can get your first month for free!

Image Credit: Melounix, Shutterstock

Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training Course — A Quick Look

Pros

  • Subscription or one-time-fee payment options
  • Videos help break down key ideas
  • 30-day money-back guarantee
  • Multiple course options

Cons

  • High upfront cost
  • Still a great deal of work

Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training Course Pricing

Dunbar Academy's Essential Puppy Training course has two different pricing options for you to pick from when you’re signing up. You can either pay the $200 and get lifetime access to the course or sign up for a monthly subscription and unlock everything on the site.

Having this versatility when it comes to payment is a huge perk, so the Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training course can fit into just about any budget, especially with the one-month free trial.

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What to Expect From the Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training Course

One great thing about the Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training course is how easy it is to sign up and get started. Once you put in your information and pay for the course, whether you pay for the course up front or buy the subscription, it’s easy to sign up and start.

The course itself consists of five different levels that you and your puppy graduate through, so you know that you’re on the right track and getting your puppy right where they need to be.

There are also knowledge checkpoints to ensure that you understand the concepts thoroughly; videos that break down the concepts and demonstrate how they work are available.

It’s just like if you were to sign up for a course in person, but you get to complete everything on your schedule and you don’t have to pay nearly as much.

Image by: NotarYES, Shutterstock

Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training Course Details

  • Subscription Cost: $20 a month or $150 a year
  • One-Time Cost: $200
  • Refund Policy: 30-day money-back guarantee
  • Founding Year: 1982 (offline courses)
  • Number of Subscribers: 100,000+

Course Options

One of the best things about Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training is that no matter what problem you’re facing with your puppy, the perfect lesson is available to help you out. This comprehensive course covers everything that your puppy might struggle with and ensures that you will have a well-rounded and well-trained pup when they graduate.

Even after your puppy graduates, there are plenty of other courses. It’s a big reason that we highly recommend the subscription service to unlock all the content and seminars.

Image by: Islavicek, Shutterstock

Pricing

You have two different ways to pay for the Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training course, making it a great choice for every budget. Just keep in mind that while you can go with the monthly payment option, which gives you access to all their courses, your dog isn’t going to graduate in just one month.

If you can pay up front for the full course, you can save money by purchasing the entire course at once for the $200 fee.

Ease of Use and Effectiveness

While Dunbar Academy is easy to use and there’s no doubt that it has valuable tools for training puppies, we do wish that it was a bit more into the 21st century.

While the website itself works great, it’d be nice if there was a mobile app so you could access all the information in the course and keep track of your progress. It’s still easy to use, but you have to pull up a web browser whenever you want access to the information.

Image by: Ovchinnikova, Shutterstock

Is Dunbar Academy's Essential Puppy Training Course a Good Value?

Compared to the cost of a private animal trainer or even enrolling your dog in a group course, you can’t beat the value of the Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training course. You can pay for the course and get lifetime access to the information, or you can pay the monthly fee to access every course available.

No matter which option you choose, you’re getting a great value, and it’s one of the reasons that we like Dunbar Academy so much.

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FAQ: Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training

Now that you know more about Dunbar Academy's Essential Puppy Training course, here are the answers to the most frequently asked questions.

How do you access a course that you have purchased?

Once you sign up for a course, accessing it is easy. Sign into your account, and then click the “My Dashboard” button at the top of the page. This will take you to all your current courses.


What’s better: the Ultimate Dunbar Collection or the Top Dog Academy?

While both services are great, if you want access to the Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training course, the clear winner is the Top Dog Academy. The Ultimate Dunbar Collection gives you access to many great courses, but it doesn’t include the Essential Puppy Training course.


How do you cancel a subscription?

When you don’t need Dunbar Academy anymore, canceling is easy. Log into your account, go to the billing section, and then click “cancel subscription.” That’s it!

Image by: alexei_tm, Shutterstock

Our Experience With Dunbar Academy's Essential Puppy Training Course

We loved the Dunbar Academy Puppy Training course. From potty training to behavior issues, this course covers it all and does a great job correcting a few of the most stubborn puppy behaviors.

Our fellow users also love how interactive the courses are and how thought out and well laid out they are. The courses are easy to follow, and the short snappy videos get the point across.

Finally, users love that the course and videos feel personal and heartfelt, which gives them the connection and confidence that they need to put the lessons to use.

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Conclusion

If you’re worried about whether the Dunbar Academy Essential Puppy Training course is right for you and your dog, keep in mind a 30-day money-back guarantee is available. Even better, you can use code PETKEEN to get a one-month free trial! But the course is useful, we’re confident that once you sign up, you’ll see the value and keep the course.

It’s helped thousands upon thousands of dog owners help get their puppy started on the right track, and we’re sure that it can help you too.

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Nicole Cosgrove
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Nicole Cosgrove

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