(242 reviews)
Expert In-Home Dog Training in Pinellas County, Florida
- Trusted by Local Dog Owners Since 2007
- Personalized Training for Any Dog, Breed, Age & Issue
- Lasting Results Backed by Our Life of Dog Support Guarantee
- Natural, Dog-Friendly Training Methods
- Contact your local trainer, Sharon Kondash, for a free phone consultation.
Professional Dog Training in St. Petersburg & Clearwater, FL
Bark Busters St. Petersburg & Clearwater has been helping Pinellas County families transform their dogs’ behavior for nearly 20 years with professional in-home dog training. Serving St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Treasure Island, Dunedin, Seminole, Largo, and surrounding communities.
We come to you and work in and around your home and wherever you need help with your dog's behavior. No driving to group classes. No treats needed. No sending your dog away. No harsh methods. No group agenda. We quickly help you resolve the issues that matter most to you: front door and leash reactivity, aggression, separation anxiety, jumping, barking, nipping, housebreaking, house rules and more. Safe socialization included. With nearly 500 five-star reviews, families across St. Petersburg and Clearwater trust Bark Busters for personalized dog training with lasting results. Get started today and call for a free phone consultation.
How it Works: Start Home Dog Training in St. Petersburg & Clearwater
Looking for dog training in Pinellas County? Sharon provides personalized in-home training for barking, leash pulling, aggression, puppy training, and other behavior challenges, including issues that occur outdoors and in public places.
Step 1: Tell Us About Your Dog
Complete the form and let us know what challenges you’re experiencing with your dog.
Step 2: Speak with a Specialist
Get a free phone consultation. A training specialist will call you the same day about your training needs.
Step 3: Book Your First Session
Schedule your lesson with Sharon. Choose a convenient date and time for your in-home lesson.
Bark Busters Dog Training Services in Pinellas County
Home Dog Training
We provide personalized, in-home dog training in Pinellas County tailored to your dog’s unique needs. We work with you where behavior happens—at home—building lasting obedience, reducing stress, and strengthening communication.
Separation Anxiety Training
Separation anxiety often comes from unclear leadership or unmet needs. We address the root cause by understanding your dog’s environment, behavior, and relationship with their owner to restore balance and confidence.
Aggression Training
Dog aggression often stems from fear, uncertainty, or unclear boundaries, not personality. Understanding the cause of your dog’s aggression is the first step to a safe and calm home. Bark Busters Pinellas County, Florida can help.
Puppy Training
Our puppy training builds trust, respect, and positive habits from the start. We guide you through crate, potty, and leash training, addressing nipping, chewing, and barking to set the foundation for lifelong obedience.
Stop Excessive Barking
Excessive barking often signals stress, anxiety, or confusion. Bark Busters in Pinellas County, Florida helps you correct barking from the root cause with dog barking training that uses body language and voice tones dogs understand.
Severe Dog Behavior Issues
We specialize in resolving issues like aggression, separation anxiety, sibling rivalry and more in St. Petersburg & Clearwater. Our canine behavioral training will help you, and your dog, achieve lasting results.
Meet Sharon, Your Local Professional Dog Trainer
Home Dog Training in St. Pete, Clearwater & Surrounding Areas
Welcome! I'm Sharon Kondash, your Bark Busters Dog Trainer for Pinellas County serving families throughout the county, including St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Largo, Seminole, Dunedin, Palm Harbor, Tarpon Springs, and surrounding communities.
I have been a Certified Dog Behavioral Therapist and Master Dog Trainer for Bark Busters since 2007. I have owned Bark Busters, Pinellas County since 2019 and for 13 years before that, I owned the Bark Busters in MD. I have helped thousands of dogs overcome behavioral challenges and strengthen their relationships with their owners.
I provide personalized in-home dog training for dogs of all breeds, ages, and temperaments. Whether you have a new puppy, rescue dog, senior dog, or an adult dog with longstanding behavior issues, I can help. I work with families to resolve common challenges such as excessive barking, leash pulling, jumping, separation anxiety, aggression, reactivity, sibling rivalry, poor manners, and other unwanted behaviors.
My training approach focuses on teaching owners how to communicate with their dogs using clear, natural methods that dogs instinctively understand. By working together in your home and wherever problem behaviors occur, we can create practical solutions that deliver lasting results.
After more than 20 years as a dog trainer, I still love helping dogs feel calmer, more confident, and understood. When owners learn to communicate naturally, unwanted behaviors often improve, and families build stronger bonds.
People often ask about my favorite breed, but I love working with all dogs. Helping owners understand dog body language and communication reduces stress and confusion. I'd love to help you and your dog every step of the way.
If you're ready to transform your dog's behavior and create a calmer, happier home, contact me today to schedule your training session.
Dog Training Reviews & Testimonials
With nearly 500 five-star reviews, see why Clearwater and St. Pete's dog owners trust Bark Busters.
Let's Get Started!
Connect with us
Call 1-877-500-BARK (2275)
or enter your zip code.
Dog Training Tips for Every Need
Clients across Pinellas County trust Bark Busters for expert dog training—from daily habits to behavior and safety. If you have any questions about your dog's behavior, I'm here to help. Contact me today!
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Dog Training FAQs
When you contact Bark Busters, we'll schedule a private session in your home at a time that works best for you. During that first visit, I take the time to understand your dog, your household, and the specific behaviors you’d like to improve. Then I’ll show you how to communicate in a way your dog naturally understands.
There are no group classes, no sending your dog away, and no kennels. Training takes place where the behavior is actually happening — in your home. Most families see noticeable improvement during the very first session.
Yes. In fact, early puppy training is one of the smartest investments you can make. I help new puppy owners with:
- Potty training
- Crate training
- Biting and nipping
- Jumping
- Socialization
- Preventing future aggression or anxiety
The goal is not just short-term obedience. It is building clear communication from the beginning so small problems do not turn into bigger ones later.
I work with dogs of every breed and age, helping families overcome issues such as:
- Excessive barking
- Reactivity to dogs
- Reactivity to people
- Front door reactivity
- Separation anxiety
- General anxiety
- Socialization
- Obedience
- Destructive behavior
- Recall and listening issues
If your dog’s behavior is making daily life stressful, chances are I've worked with the same issue before and know how to fix it. Not sure what the root problem is? Take our dog behavior quiz.
Most families notice a real difference during the very first session, something many clients mention in their reviews. Long-term success, however, comes from consistency at home.
My goal is to give you clear, practical guidance and simple daily exercises that fit into your routine. I’m also available between visits if questions come up along the way. The more consistently you apply the training, the faster and more lasting the results will be.
Bark Busters’ Gold Service provides in-home dog training support for the life of your dog, with no additional training fees. We don’t just run a set number of sessions and leave you to it. We continue to schedule follow-up lessons proactively until all behavioral issues are resolved, ensuring you feel confident every step of the way. Even if a completely unrelated behavioral issue arises in the future, just call us and we’ll be right back to help.
Between visits, I’m always available by phone or video if you have questions or need guidance. This support is there to complement your in-person training, not replace it.
If you move to another area served by Bark Busters, your support moves with you. A local trainer can continue your program seamlessly, either in person where available or remotely.
Common Dog Behavioral Issues We Address
Our expert puppy training, dog training, and dog behavior services in Pinellas County resolve the most challenging dog behavior issues including:
- Aggression
- Adjusting to New Home
- Barking
- Biting
- Chewing
- Destruction
- Digging
- Focus & Listening
- Housebreaking
- Improving Confidence
- Jumping
- Leash Pulling
- Marking/Peeing
- New Baby Preparation
- Obsessiveness
- Respecting Other Pets
- Running Away
- Separation Anxiety
- Sibling Rivalry – in House Tensions/ Fights
Not sure where your dog could use improvement? Take our free behavioral quiz today.
Do I Need to Train My New Puppy?
Raising a puppy can be challenging for new owners. Puppies, like infants or toddlers, need guidance to learn good manners and develop a pleasant nature. Whether you're struggling with a new pup or preparing for one, Bark Busters Pinellas County is here to help. I'm here to give you all the tools you need to successfully train your puppy at home, including how best to deal with:
- Potty Training
- Chewing
- Stop Playful Biting
- Stop Stealing
- Stop Digging
- Stop Jumping Up
- Separation Anxiety
- Sleep Through the Night
- Respect Other Pets and People
- Crate Training
Bark Busters trainers have been helping clients for over 35 years with these types of challenges that new puppy parents are experiencing. We come to your home where your puppy is most familiar, feels the safest and most comfortable while not competing with outside distractions.
You can begin training just a few days after your puppy has settled into their new home. Starting early and staying consistent helps establish the leadership your puppy needs to develop good behavior—so don’t wait to get started!
Help for Your Reactive or Aggressive Dog Starts Here
Does your dog bark, lunge, growl, snap, or become difficult to control around other dogs, people, or unfamiliar situations? You're not alone. Many dog owners struggle with their dog's reactive or aggressive behavior. If left unchecked, behaviors tend to get worse.
Reactive and aggressive behavior typically develops when a dog feels threatened, fearful, confused, or uncertain about their role within the family. Dogs may display aggression by:
- Lunging
- Barking
- Growling
- Snapping
- Biting
- Resource Guarding
- Acting Territorially
Recognizing that your dog needs help with his or her reactive or aggressive behavior is the first step toward creating lasting change.
How to Resolve Reactive and Aggressive Behavior
At Bark Busters Pinellas County, I provide personalized in-home dog training designed to uncover the root causes of your dog's behavior. Rather than simply managing symptoms, I teach you how to communicate with your dog in a way they naturally understand.
It's not about distracting with treats or making your dog fear what you will do to him or her. It's all about teaching them to trust your lead, manage their excitement, and understand that they don't have to protect or chase everything that moves. If you're ready to have calm and stress-tree walks, contact me today.
Is Your Dog Suffering from Symptoms of Separation Anxiety?
If your dog howls, whines, barks, or becomes destructive when you leave, they may be experiencing separation anxiety. This condition is essentially a fear of being alone. A dog with separation anxiety often feels stressed the entire time you're gone, day after day. They need to learn that it's okay for you to leave—that they're safe while you're away and that you will always come back.
Symptoms of Separation Anxiety
Separation anxiety can materialize differently in different dogs and in different situations, but may include:
- Excessive vocalization (howling, barking)
- Inappropriate toileting
- Destructive behavior (chewing, digging)
- Excessive panting
- Pacing and drooling
Separation anxiety in dogs can have several causes, one of the most common being unintentional conditioning by owners. This often happens when puppies are over-indulged and never given the opportunity to get used to being alone. Over-indulgence can include letting the puppy inside as soon as they cry or giving them immediate attention the moment you come home, reinforcing the idea that they should always have constant access to you.
How to Relieve Separation Anxiety
At Bark Busters Pinellas County, we specialize in addressing separation anxiety in your dog's home environment. If your dog exhibits anxiety upon your departure, professional intervention is vital. Contact me today.
What Makes Bark Busters Pinellas County Unique
Bark Busters is the worldwide leader of in-home dog training, helping over 1 million families and their dogs around the globe since 1989. We wholeheartedly believe in our methods and 30+ years of results. At Bark Busters Pinellas County, we clear up the miscommunication between dogs and humans at the root of many behavioral issues by teaching everyone to speak the same language – dog!
Our nurturing, dog-friendly approach teaches you, the pet parent, the same natural communication methods that dogs understand instinctively. Our efficient, results-oriented, training program prioritizes clear communication and leadership while addressing issues in the locations they occur.
This means faster, longer-lasting solutions for you and your dog.
Dogs learn best in a familiar, safe environment, free of outside distractions and disruptions. That is why we come directly to your home, on your schedule to build an effective foundation for better behavior. We work first to build an effective foundation for better behavior. We teach you how to communicate with your dog. Dogs naturally live in families and look to their family leaders for guidance, safety, and love. Most people don't know how to appeal to a dog's natural sense of leadership or communication. We teach you how to use friendly, canine leadership and to "speak dog" using your body language, voice tones, and timing so you and your dog communicate better! You will see results. You want to see a change in your dog’s behavior, preferably sooner rather than later.
Any Breed. Any Age. Any Issue. Get Started Today!
We customize our training sessions to achieve your specific goals and meet your dog’s unique needs. When you learn to "speak dog" the Bark Busters way, you get real results – and nurture positive relationships and lasting emotional bonds with your canine family member.
Our Services
Bark Buster trainers conduct the one-on-one training in your home, without the distraction of other dogs or the stress of being sent away for dog obedience training at a kennel. After learning in your home, our behavioral therapist and trainer will work with you as needed outside and around real distractions, once you and your dog are ready.
Life of Dog Support Guarantee
Bark Busters Home Dog Training provides a Life of Dog Support Guarantee that is unique in the industry. It is designed to help owners resolve their dog's behavior and obedience problems and to provide customers with the satisfaction of ongoing support and peace of mind.
Tips & Advice
We're here to help. From general dog training tips, to puppy toilet training best practices, to learning about various dog breeds we've worked with, Bark Busters offers our free tips and advice on common dog behavior problems and more.
Professional Dog Training Near You!
Servicing: Belleair Beach, Clearwater, Clearwater Beach, Crystal Beach, Dunedin, Holiday, Indian Rocks Beach, Largo, Oldsmar, Ozona, Palm Harbor, Pasadena, Pinellas Park, Redington Beach, Safety Harbor, Saint Petersburg, Seminole, St Pete Beach, Tarpon Springs, Tierra Verde, Treasure Island
Stay Connected
Learn more about Bark Busters in Pinellas County, Florida!
Get Started Today!
CALL 1-877-500-BARK (2275) OR ENTER YOUR ZIP CODE TO SEND US A MESSAGE.