Since 1 June 2025 everyone keeping a dog for the first time in this canton has to complete two courses: a theory course with an exam, and a practical course over six lessons. It applies whether the dog is a puppy, a rescue or a ten-year-old you took over from a friend – and it applies to you if you have never been registered as a dog owner here before, even if you have had dogs for years somewhere else.
We teach both of them in English. Not translated on the fly – as their own courses, with their own dates.
And if you would rather just ask someone: call. We take the time, and it costs nothing.
Two hours in the room, plus the exam required by law, on the same day. Coffee, something to nibble, and half an hour set aside for questions – because the exam papers come from the cantonal veterinary office and they are not a formality.
You also get your own learning portal with the official 120-page booklet and audio chapters we recorded ourselves. Every exam topic to listen to, as often as you like.
The course has to be done before your dog moves in.
Six lessons of 55 minutes, in groups of no more than six dog-and-owner teams. There is no exam at the end – each learning goal is signed off the moment your dog shows it, and you can see the state of play in your customer portal at any time.
We train whatever the weather: an air-conditioned indoor room, or outside on the field. No mud, no freezing hall.
You have twelve months from the day the dog moves in.
Puppy groups, social walks, scent work, open training evenings, one-to-one coaching, and a grooming salon – those run in German. That does not mean you are shut out: in a small group we switch, and one-to-one sessions are in English whenever you want them.
Just ask. The German pages are one click away in the menu, and if something there looks interesting, call or write and we will sort it out.
🌐 A note on the exam
The theory exam papers are issued by the cantonal veterinary office. We are an approved examination centre, but we do not write the papers. If you are unsure what that means for you, ask before you book – we would rather tell you straight than have you find out on the day.
Darling Dogs Hundezentrum
Bahnstrasse 10, shopfront
8603 Schwerzenbach
Phone and WhatsApp: +41 78 602 29 29
E-mail: hundezentrum@darling-dogs.ch
Opening hours: from 11:00, and by arrangement
Phone hours: 11:00 to 19:00
Ten minutes from Zürich main station, right at Schwerzenbach railway station – S-Bahn S9 and S14, eight bus lines, Park&Rail at the door.
