Canine Good Citizen (CGC) and STAR Puppy Testing

The Canine Good Citizen (CGC) is a certification from the American Kennel Club (AKC) that recognizes basic good manners for dogs and responsible pet ownership for their owners. The AKC also offers a certification for well-trained puppies called STAR, which stands for Socialization, Training, Activity and Responsibility.

At Southland K9, we offer CGC testing by appointment for clients as well as non-clients. $50 for clients who have completed one of our training programs and $100 for non-clients. We also offer STAR Puppy testing for puppies between the ages of four to 12 months that have undergone training with us.

The Canine Good Citizen program promotes responsible pet ownership and good dog manners by recognizing dogs that can pass the following 10-step test:

1. Accepting a friendly stranger
2. Sitting politely while being petted
3. Appearance and grooming
4. Walking on a leash
5. Walking through a crowd
6. “Sit” and “Down” on command and staying in place
7. Coming when called
8. Reacting to another dog
9. Reacting to distraction
10. Supervised separation

Though not a requirement for testing, many owners find that their dog needs some      formal training in order to prepare for the CGC test. There is no age requirement for the Canine Good Citizen program.  

STAR Puppy is a program designed by the American Kennel Club to promote training and responsibility for young dogs. Only puppies up to one year in age may test for the STAR Puppy certification, and only after going through one of our training programs.