Snake Aware

Snake avoidance training can be a lifesaver for dogs that live in areas with venomous snakes. Learn snake avoidance in this 3-week course using effective positive reinforcement training for teaching dogs to detect, indicate, and avoid snakes. You will also learn how to adapt this protocol to help keep your dog safe from a wide variety of other environmental dangers and odours, including kangaroos, foxes, and other critters.

A training program to protect dogs from snakes and snakes from dogs

  • Group Class

    There will be a maximum of 6 dogs per class. The Snake Aware Group Training Class is suitable for dogs of all ages who are fully vaccinated. Dogs must be comfortable in close proximity to unfamiliar dogs and unfamiliar people. If your dog is not suitable for a class environment, you can choose to attend without your dog (observer spot) or opt for private lessons.

    Venue: Blackwood Uniting Church

    Course Structure:
    The course is held over three consecutive weeks, but each lesson is of different length. You will receive detailed training notes after lesson one and three.

    Week 1: During this 1 hour lesson you will learn the foundational behaviours that are essential to a fluent snake avoidance behaviour. We will also discuss how to create a safe environment for your dog in snake-prone areas, and what to do if you encounter a snake!

    Week 2: This is a 30 minute lesson where we review the foundational behaviours to ensure you and your dog are on the right track.

    Week 3: This lesson is approximately 1.5 hour long, depending on the number of dogs in class. We go through how to build an effective behaviour chain in response to visual and olfactory snake cues. We will also discuss the intricacies of handling odour to avoid contamination.

    Tuition:
    -Attendance with dog: $195
    -Observer spot (no dog): $100

    Course Dates:
    21 September at 11.30am (Please note, week 3 will be held at Sherwood Forest, Glenalta)

    12 October at 11.30am (There will be a break on the 26th of October. The last class will be held at Sherwood Forest, Glenalta, on the 5th of November).

    The Snake Aware Group Class can be offered privately if you have a group of 3 to 6 friends with dogs who want to complete the course. Please contact me for more information.

    Terms & Conditions

    Make a Booking

  • Private Course

    Do you prefer to learn in the comfort of your own home? Do the class times not suite your schedule? Does your dog feel uncomfortable in a group setting? Or perhaps you have a cat who you want to teach snake avoidance? Then the Private Class option is for you!

    You will receive all the information we cover in the group class as well as tailored training strategies for your dog and situation.

    Venue: Your home and Skype

    Duration: The course runs for 3 consecutive weeks, pending instructor and your availability. You choose the date and time for the first lesson that suits you through the booking system.

    Course structure:

    Week 1: This lesson takes place in your home and is approximately 60 minutes long. During this lesson we learn the foundational behaviours of snake avoidance training and how to generalise these behaviours. We will also discuss how to create a safe environment for your dog at home, and what to do if you encounter a snake!

    Week 2: You submit a training video for me to review. We then have a phone appointment where I provide feedback on the video and we troubleshoot issues that you might have encountered.

    Week 3: The last lesson takes place in your home and is approximately 60 minutes long. We go through how to build an effective behaviour chain in response to visual and olfactory snake cues. We will also discuss the intricacies of handling odour to avoid contamination.

    Tuition: $360

    Terms & Conditions

    Make a Booking

Frequently Asked Questions

  • It absolutely is! There are trainers all over the world who are using these techniques successfully to keep their dogs safe from snakes.

    If we use aversive pain-based methods, such as shock collars, we are hoping that the pain that is inflicted when the dog sees the snake teaches the dog to fear snakes. However, it does not teach the dog which behaviour we want him to do.


    Fearful situations induce the fight, flight, or freeze response. With aversive methods, people are hoping that the dog chooses the flight response. However, it is not unusual for a dog to choose the fight response instead. The dog will then attack the snake instead of avoiding them after such training! The dog wants the scary thing to go away, so they use aggression to try to make the snake go away!

    Furthermore, when pairing a painful experience with a particular stimuli (e.g. snake) we want the dog to fear the stimuli. However, other stimuli are also present during such training, including the dog’s lead, harness, the owner, other people, other dogs etc. It is common for dogs to associate the owner, the lead, and other things present during the training with the pain they feel. Thus, many dogs become anxious around their owners or the presence of their lead after aversive training.

  • If we focus on telling our dog what not to do, they still have a range of behaviours available that they can do. For example, they might freeze close to the snake, run around the snake, or bark at the snake. By focusing on what our dog should not do, we are letting our dog decide what to do instead. They may not make the right decision!

    This course will teach your dog what to do, so that they are equipped with a safe behaviour when they see or smell a snake. Through this training, the snake becomes a cue to tell your dog what to do when they see a snake.

  • No. It is too much of a risk to the snakes and the dogs. Furthermore, the training can be quite stressful for the snakes who would have to be handled and removed from their usual habitat.

    During the training we will use rubber snakes and scent gathered from Snake Catchers Adelaide of various venomous snake breeds.