About
We train all dogs to an exacting standard whether they are headed to service, sports, work or just as a pet. We believe that dogs can learn self control, impulse control, problem solving, resilience, creativity and industriousness. There should not be a need to micro manage your dog. He can learn the rules and how they apply to his life whether there is a human around to nag them or not.
The look on the clients face the first time their dog alerts. It's priceless.
Photos and videos
Reviews
Katrina C.
odile w.
Tori S.
Loretta L.
Frequently asked questions
What is your typical process for working with a new customer?
We connect, we do a FREE evaluation, we decide what the dog and the humans need and want and them set up a program with everyone's agreements.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
University in marine mammal behavior. Years of attending seminars, workshops, apprenticeships in dog training of all sorts. Tons of reading and watching videos and even creating my own methods of training based on structured games. The same type of training that Montessori, Summer HIll, Delphi and other progressive schools use to teach kids.
Do you have a standard pricing system for your services? If so, please share the details here.
Standard pricing is $100 per session. Discounts and packages are available.
How did you get started in this business?
I wanted to be a marine biologist and sail with Jacques Cousteau. But he passed away while I was in college. So I changed to dog training. Along the way I also learned to program computers and applied Game Theory and Chaos Theory to dog training and came up with a unique way of training dogs that makes it easy for the dog and the human.
What types of customers have you worked with?
In the far past, it was just obedience with either pet dogs or dogs that would eventually enter sports.
In the more recent past it was obedience and a few sports - agility, Treibball, Rally obedience and Musical Freestyle.
For the last 15 years however, I have mostly trained Medical Alert Service Dogs and BioDetection Dogs (Cancer, Mold, Parkinson's, Alzheimers, Kidney Disease, Valley Fever and most recently COVID 19).
I still train pet dogs, especially puppies.
Describe a recent event you are fond of.
A Medical Alert Service dog I delivered almost 2 years ago continues to surprise all of us. When delivered she already knew 7 scents to alert on. Since that time she has deduced 7 more on her own.
The latest is COVID 19. A friend of the family caught the virus and recovered. He came over for a visit a few days ago (everyone outside and doing the protocols). Keeva would not leave him alone and kept alerting on him with her "I don't know what's wrong with you but something is" alert.
She is amazing and keeps the whole family diagnosed, not just her particular human. She does keep an eye on HER human all the time however and never misses an alert.
What advice would you give a customer looking to hire a pro in your area of expertise?
The best advice I can give anyone looking for a trainer is to ask a zillion questions about what they are going to do TO the dog, what the dog will be expected to endure, whether you will be part of the process and what kind of relationship between you and the dog will be created.
If the answers are all within your personal ethical outlook, your morals and customs and the final product fits your lifestyle, then go for it.
What questions should customers think through before talking to pros about their needs?
Because I train dogs that save people's lives on an almost daily basis, I would counsel people to make sure that what they need and want for their dog to do is thoroughly understood by the trainer and agreed upon that that is what will be trained for.
There are way too many trainers out there that only do obedience training and call it a service dog.