Dog Training in
Hoboken and Jersey City
A dog in Hoboken or downtown Jersey City lives on the sidewalk: the elevator or the stoop, a narrow block, strollers and scooters, a crowded dog run and the waterfront on a Saturday afternoon. That is why understanding dog psychology and how to be the leader and parent figure for your dog is the first thing we teach, and we learned it on these streets.
Pack Leader Dogs started on these sidewalks. In 2010 Steve was the walker in Hoboken who was handed the dogs other companies had let go, and the packs he walked through town, ten to fifteen dogs at a time, are where the method was worked out. A Hoboken or Jersey City dog's day is still the same route: the apartment door, the stairs or the elevator, the stoop, a sidewalk shared with strollers, bikes and cafe tables, the run and the waterfront, and every one of those is a place where someone has to be leading.
A dog who does not view their human as a leader, based on dog psychology, will have no one to rely on and guide them, often creating pulling, lunging at dogs on a narrow sidewalk, barking from the stoop or the window, panicking at a stroller or a skateboard, or planting their paws at the door of the building. Owners tell us they've tried other trainers, veterinarians, behaviorists but still don't see results. What's often missing is an understanding of dog psychology and exactly how to develop a relationship where the human leads as a calm and confident parent figure and the dog happily follows.
We work with Hoboken and Jersey City families on exactly this, on eight quiet acres about an hour from the Hoboken waterfront.
Why Hoboken and Jersey City dogs develop the habits they do.
Reactivity is a geography problem before it is a behavior problem. Hoboken, the Mile Square City, has around 28,000 households. Downtown Jersey City is the same picture with taller buildings.
On a Hoboken block the sidewalk is a few feet wide, with stoops on one side, parked cars on the other and a cafe's tables in between. Dogs pass head-on, on leash, at arm's length, and there is nowhere to go around. Add the strollers, the scooters and the delivery bikes, and a dog who has not learned to follow is making a hundred decisions a walk, most of them in a hurry. In the towers along the water, in Hoboken and in Jersey City, the elevator and the lobby join the list. And the dog run is often the only off-leash ground a dog gets, so it fills with dogs who have been holding it in all day.
None of that is the dog's fault, and none of it is the town's. The dogs we see from Hoboken and Jersey City tend to arrive with the same short list:
- Lunging or barking at dogs on a narrow sidewalk
- Losing it at strollers, scooters, skateboards and delivery bikes
- Barking from the stoop or the front window at everything that passes
- Freezing at the building door or losing composure in the elevator
- Getting tense or nervous walking by different people
- Trouble with guests coming over
- Integrating a new baby with the dog
What we do about it.
The Pack Leader Residency
Four to eight weeks living at the ranch, about an hour from Hoboken. State of mind first, obedience second, with weekly sessions for you during the stay, a go-home session, a two-week follow-up and support for the life of your dog.
Explore Prevention, not interventionThe Puppy Residency
Two to four weeks between twelve and twenty weeks old, before the habits set. Leash, crate, housebreaking, place, and calm around other dogs and people, which a puppy on a Hoboken sidewalk needs from the first week.
Explore One on onePrivate Sessions
An initial ninety-minute session at the ranch with Steve or Dave, on its own or followed by two sixty-minute sessions, for puppies, adolescents or adults. For families who want the work in their own hands.
Explore Anywhere in the worldVirtual Sessions
Forty-five minutes with Steve, one on one, from your apartment. Most of the work is for the human, and a camera carries that faithfully.
ExploreThe walk starts at the top of the stoop.
Most Hoboken and Jersey City families come to us about the sidewalk, and most are surprised that we start inside, before the door opens.
The walk is where the relationship is either established or lost, and here it is decided before you reach the sidewalk. A dog who doesn't listen inside the apartment, rushes out the door first, drags you down the stoop, has already decided who is leading, and no amount of correcting or treats on the street undoes a decision made at the door or inside the apartment.
This is where our approach is different, and it is why the results hold once the leash is back in your hand. We start with the principles of dog psychology, so you understand how a dog sees the world. Then your own dog: why they are behaving the way they are, on your block and in your building. Then the relationship, and what has to change in it so that you can give your dog leadership. And last, the exact tools and techniques that suit you, your dog and the relationship between you.
Where Hoboken and Jersey City dogs walk.
For families who want to practice between sessions, these are the places worth knowing, and the rule that covers all of them: an off-leash run is a test, and a test is for a dog that is ready.
One practical note. Hoboken and Jersey City both require a leash no longer than six feet everywhere outside a signed dog run. Dogs seven months or older, or with permanent teeth, need a license from the city where they live: in Hoboken from the Health Department at 124 Grand Street, in Jersey City online or at the animal shelter, for one year or three. On the PATH, pet dogs ride in carriers; service animals are exempt.
“We adopted Cookie 7 weeks ago and were not able to take him out for a walk due to his fear of wheels, loud noises, strollers, shopping carts… Today, after his first session with Steve, Cookie walked for 40 minutes on the same streets that he dreaded.”
“I have gone from worrying everyday wondering if Cookie will ever get over his fear to feeling confident that I can help him be a happy, balanced dog.”
Payal & CookieJersey City. Afraid of wheels and strollers, walking again
It started here.
What we teach is not just a theory. It was developed from experience: first walking large packs of dogs through Hoboken every day for years, then helping thousands of dog owners achieve balance with their dogs for more than fifteen years.
The method puts psychology ahead of obedience: a dog that sits on command and lunges at a stroller has not been trained, they have been drilled. We work on the state of mind that holds up when nobody is asking.
The real thing.
For more than fifteen years, Steve Del Savio has helped thousands of people in the New York City metropolitan area, from everyday families to celebrities. He is also an educator on social media, with more than two million followers across Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube. His approach is unique: he uses dog psychology to help owners understand their dogs and get to the root of the problem, for lasting results.
A pack you may recognize.
We are honored to have worked with so many remarkable dogs, and their owners too.
Bethenny Frankel
Debra Messing
Watch the film
DJ Camilo
Vinny Guadagnino
Watch the film
Dina Manzo
Camila Cabello
Minka Kelly
Dexter Lawrence
Julian Love
Kyle Palmieri
Ninja
Mariale
“Do not hesitate to reach out if you need help with your dogs… I seriously don’t know what I would’ve done without Steve’s intervention. I highly recommend Pack Leader services because this team is truly excellent.”
Bethenny Frankel, Biggy & SmallzReal Housewives of NY
Questions families ask
Do you take dogs from Hoboken and Jersey City?
Yes, and we always have. Pack Leader Dogs began in Hoboken in 2010, and Hoboken and Jersey City families still come to us for The Pack Leader Residency, The Puppy Residency and Private Sessions. The ranch is on eight private acres in Northern New Jersey, about an hour from the Hoboken waterfront outside rush hours. The address is shared with accepted families.
We do not have a car. Can we still work with you?
Yes. Families bring their dogs to the ranch themselves; we do not run transport from Hoboken or Jersey City for any program. Clients without a car often rent one, or use a car service like Uber, for Private Sessions and for Residency training dates. Virtual Sessions need no car at all.
Our dog panics at strollers, scooters and skateboards. Is that fixable?
Yes. Hoboken is a town of strollers, and a dog who is afraid of wheels is a dog who has no one to look to when the wheels come, so they decide for themselves: freeze, bolt or lunge. The work is on who is leading, so that when the next stroller comes your dog checks in with you instead of deciding alone. Cookie, in the story above, walked for forty minutes on streets that had been impossible, after one session.
My dog is fine at the dog park and impossible on the sidewalk. Why?
Because on a leash your dog is connected to you, and the relationship comes into play. At the dog park a dog is often not connected to their human at all; they can turn away or make distance on their own. On a sidewalk, passing head-on at arm's length, they can do none of that, and they look to the other end of the leash. If no one is leading there, they make decisions themselves, and often they react. It is the most common thing we see from Hoboken and Jersey City, and one of the most fixable.
Can you help with the elevator, the lobby and the building door?
Yes, in every program. The elevator, the lobby and the door onto the street are thresholds, and what a dog does at a threshold comes from the relationship. In a Private Session or a Virtual Session we teach you how to lead your dog through doors, hallways and tight spaces, and you practice it in your own building the same day. In a Residency your dog learns to wait calmly at thresholds at the ranch, and we hand that over to you in the weekly sessions and at the go-home session.
Do you come to the apartment?
All initial training is held at the ranch, whether you choose Private Sessions or a Residency, because there we have full control over the environment and can assess your dog away from the habits of home. Follow-ups at your apartment are available on a case-by-case basis for an additional travel fee. Virtual Sessions reach your apartment by camera.
We are bringing a puppy home to a Hoboken apartment. When should we start?
Right away, and ideally before the puppy arrives. A Virtual Session before you bring a puppy home helps you prepare the apartment and the first days, and can even help you select the right puppy. Once the puppy is home, a puppy training session at the ranch gets you started hands-on. The Puppy Residency, for puppies twelve to twenty weeks old, sets the leash, the crate, housebreaking and calm around other dogs and people over two to four weeks.
How long does board and train take?
The Pack Leader Residency runs four to eight weeks depending on the individual dog and goals. The Puppy Residency runs two to four weeks. We will propose how many weeks after we understand your individual situation and complete the in-person assessment.
What does it cost?
Begin with an application. We discuss the price range for a Residency on the first call, before any assessment fee or travel. Private Sessions are quoted on that call. Virtual Sessions are booked straight to Steve's calendar, and we are glad to talk it through first. A Residency is priced by the number of weeks. The in-person assessment determines fit and how many weeks your dog needs; if accepted, we agree the final quote before booking. The assessment is $295, credited toward any program you book within 30 days. A Residency covers the stay, the weekly owner sessions, the go-home session, the two-week follow-up and support for the life of your dog. Read the full breakdown
Begin an application.
Residencies are limited each season. The application takes five minutes, and you will hear from us within one business day.
An application opens a conversation. Nothing is booked until we have spoken.
Prefer to talk first? 201 528 3647. Whoever answers will know the ranch, the programs and the calendar.