About iDog Academy

Meet Alex the dog trainer.

Bloodhounds for search and rescue in 2006. Service dogs for disabled children and veterans for nine years after that. iDog Academy since 2019.

“Although I've trained my own dogs to do tricks since I was a child, I began my professional career training bloodhounds for search and rescue in 2006 and completely fell in love. A few months later, while still working trails with the hounds, I started training service dogs for disabled children and veterans — which became my specialty for the next nine years.”
Alex Alvarez · #alexthedogtrainer

Credentials

Certified, accredited and still studying.

Alex is a member of the CCPDT (Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers) and an AKC (American Kennel Club) Canine Good Citizen Evaluator, and has received more certifications from service dog programs and rescues than are worth listing here.

He was the first to use “THEdogtrainer” after his name — and is amused that others now use it too.

The story

More about Alex the dog trainer

From search-and-rescue bloodhounds to a Miami academy with its own service mark.

1
2006
Bloodhounds and search & rescue
Alex began his professional career training bloodhounds for search and rescue — and completely fell in love with the work.
2
2006–2015
Service dogs become the specialty
Months later, while still working trails with the hounds, he started training service dogs for disabled children and veterans. That became his specialty for the next nine years.
3
2009
Training the trainers
He began teaching other trainers to train service dogs — mobility work, turning lights on and off, bringing the wheelchair, bringing the meds, calling parents after a fall. He learned there is nothing you cannot train with positive reinforcement.
4
2012
Shelter dogs and behavior work
Focused on adoptability, he began training sheltered dogs to become service dogs — a great success, and the door into behavior modification, which he fell in love with.
5
2019
iDog Academy is born
Alex incorporated iDog Academy and shortly after received a US service mark, then moved into an air-conditioned space and grew through word of mouth.
6
Today
A team trained personally by Alex
Alex trains every team member himself and makes sure they are properly equipped for the dogs assigned to them. "I love my team, my clients and their pets, and I make sure that they know it."

What makes us different

Personalization is the whole point.

The concept for iDog Academy was a dream Alex had for a long time. In 2019, that dream became reality. What makes our process unique is the personalization we offer with customizable packages for your pet.

We extend that expertise beyond training into boarding, transportation and doggy daycare — and we build custom services for whatever our clients actually need.

We strive to be a household name while keeping a warm, personalized atmosphere where clients feel right at home. The business runs professionally, with cutting-edge software and a dedicated management team.

Read about our culture