Paws Down and Julie stepped in when another local training facility refused to tailor a program to…read moreget my dog, Kemper, and I where we needed to go before a last minute move overseas. I am a disabled combat veteran, but do not qualify for a 'service animal' from non-profits because I do not have the 'correct' diagnosis, even though I suffer from the same exact symptoms as those with PTSD. My wife's mother, who lives in Europe, recently had a stroke and my wife has been by her side since early August. If I hope to see my wife at all over the next several years, because of her and my commitment to ensure that her mother gets the care and attention she deserves, we needed to be much closer than the Pacific NW, hence our uprooting. In order to have Kemper fly with me in the cabin on a grueling 10-hour trans-Atlantic flight, he needed some several skills which he was lacking when we adopted him from the West Columbia Gorge Humane Society after six years of being abandoned and abused, for no reason, by one owner after another. Even with his unjust and unconscionable treatment early in life, he is one of the sweetest and dogs I have ever known. Julie and Kemper quickly developed a strong bond and she was willing to work with me one-on-one, tailoring a training plan for both of us to get us where we need to be with just two months before boarding the plane. Having a Master's in Psychology, I am an expert in operant and classical conditioning, but lacked the understanding of how dogs think, so Julie was training both of us along the way. Kemper picked-up on things quickly and me, not so much, but we were compelled to get the job done and succeed in our mission, no room for error. Paws Down is not exactly cheap when it comes to private training, but Julie did not charge for travel time to our home and routinely stayed after the allotted one-hour appointment times. Yesterday, less than two months after starting with Julie, Kemper passed his AKC Canine Good Citizen test and his certificate is on the way, arriving well before we need it for travel to our new home. Thank you Paws Down and Julie for helping me ensure that my support animal and I make it safely to Europe, reuniting our family after moths apart. CombatCritic Gives Paws Down Dog Training 10 Bombs Out Of 10 And A Spot On My 'WALL OF FAME' ... More Bombs Are Better ... HOOAH!

Amazing and good! We had a special situation with a rescue dog and she was very helpful. We are…read moreglad we called her!

Antonia is a sage and there is a special place in dog heaven for her. There are a LOT of dog…read moretrainers out there and Antonia is the pinnacle of calm, clear, loving, and knowledgeable. She set exacting, compassionate, and non-judgmental limits for our dog, and for us, in training our pup. I rescued an almost one year old Shepherd. Since I raised other dogs in my life, I would be competent to train this one too, right? Nope. My shepherd is smart and sweet, but also intense, loud, and insecure. She bared her teeth at every dog we saw, went into barking conniptions over most moving things (squirrels, yes, but hummingbirds?!), and threw whining tantrums if she couldn't be playing off leash with my children everywhere. Antonia expertly taught me how to set and communicate clear directions and limits with my dog via positive praise and feedback. She has rescued and rehabilitated far more difficult dogs than my own and will use her own dogs to help your dog learn too. If you are looking for a dictatorial trainer who will teach your dog to tremble under your authority, keep on looking. If, however, you seek a **brilliant woman who understands the nuances of dogs and people** and who guides you into a loving canine relationship where your dog respects and adores you, call Antonia. My whole family, and dog, are smitten with her.

Antonia is the best! She has helped me SO much with my dog Douglas. Any behavioral issue he had,…read moreAntonia had a solution. It's not just about obedience, but helping my dog live his best life! I can't recommend "The Spirited Canine" enough!

Plucky Puppy has been a lifesaver for me and my partner. Recently, we spontaneously adopted two…read morelabradoodle sisters from the same litter. After the fact, we got warned to spend a lot of time socializing them and training them separately if we didn't want them to develop a littermate syndrome. So, I loaded up on puppy socials, booking every social I could get my hands on at Wonder Puppy and Plucky Puppy. I booked over 35 socials for both of them to attend separately between the ages of 8 and 20 weeks. We also signed up for Plucky Puppy's Kinderpuppy class, and have hired the owner Katrin to board and train each puppy separately in her house one day a week per puppy for a couple of months. This review is for all 3 services we use: 1) Puppy Socials, 2) Private Training with Katrin and 3) Kinderpuppy School. I would rate Puppy Socials as 10/10, the private training with Katrin as 10/10 and the School as 8/10. Below is a breakdown of each service. Puppy Socials (10/10): I like them better than the other socials we go to because they involve the owners and teach the owners how to recognize and attune to the behavior and needs of their dog and understand the body language of all dogs involved in the activity. I really like the clear instructions for the owners and the constant narration the trainers are doing with the dogs as the dogs play. Other companies' socials have the owners step outside and look through a window, which is far less engaged and informative. Private Training with Katrin (10/10): I see a huge difference in each dog at the end of their training day with Katrin. They've learned so much we wouldn't have been able to teach them because 1) we're first time puppy owners and 2) we have two of them, which makes it extra challenging to train each if you don't know what they're doing. Katrin also spent time training our family with the two dogs present and working on separating the dogs into different room crates (we have them in separate crates but same room at home for the time being - working towards separating their crates into different rooms). Honestly, if our dogs keep up the trend of being good, sweet and trained dogs, it will all be because of Katrin. She's a life-saver. We are constantly getting compliments on how good our dogs are. Katrin also sends us multiple videos of each day's training and I love how she spends time socializing the dogs to different environments. Her kids love being part of the dog training, so we're getting a whole family involved in their care, which is amazing! Kinderpuppy School (8/10): Great training for dog parents and understanding how to communicate with your puppy and really attune to their needs, body language and emotions. Very hands on and interactive. The only reason I dinged the score a bit is that in the first few classes our school trainer waits for the late comers to arrive before starting class, which wastes valuable puppy attention span and fills up their belly with treats while they wait. The staff is extremely knowledgeable and attentive and I've already given them the feedback about starting on time and not waiting for people who are late, so I am hopeful this issue will be fixed going forward.

We (me, my husband, and our monster Buttons) adore Joanna at Plucky Puppy. She is a saint and so…read moreincredible to work with. Buttons has his fair share of issues (don't we all?) but her faith in his potential really helps me when it's an extra borky day. Her expert guidance has totally defined how we go about our day-to-day with him and she is always there to be our cheerleader or give me pointers when needed. And the fact that Plucky Puppy can take him in for a board and train makes everything so much easier when we need to travel-we know he is going to the best finishing school around.

Before I found out about Sit Stay Fit, I didn't even travel because I worried about some stranger…read morewatching Loki and ive heard negative things about doggy hotels. My baby means the world to me and I would seriously die if anything happens to him. My husbands friend told my husband about how he boards his dog at Sit Stay Fit so we decided to board Loki here as well while we were in Dallas. Jamie took such a good care of him and she sent me updates daily which was why I never worried. Im so happy we found out about Sit Stay Fit because i don't have to worry about where to board him when I travel and I know he'll be in good hands.

We recently brought our 8-month-old pup to the adolescent social sessions here and went in really…read morehopeful that it would be a fun, positive experience for him. On the positive side, the staff were consistently friendly, kind, and clearly care about the dogs. They created a welcoming environment, and we appreciated their kindness. Unfortunately, the experience itself didn't quite work out for us. Our dog is an intact male, and he ended up in a group with all females, one of whom had recently gone through a heat cycle. The facility allows females who have recently been in heat, but unfortunately their scent just isn't conducive to a group social setting like this, especially for young intact males. The first week this happened we assumed it was just a temporary challenge and gave it the benefit of the doubt, but the issue continued during our next session. The scent was simply too distracting for him- and even other females were distracted by the scent. Our dog who normally socializes well in other group settings, became too fixated and overstimulated for any type of learning or appropriate social interaction. We really tried to give this facility a fair shot and came back again hoping for a better experience, but ultimately our dog had to remain leashed the entire session time, which completely defeats the purpose of a social/play session. We have now found a facility with stricter guidelines around females in heat.

Maddy taught the Wonder Puppy Skills 1 class that Tulip, our 4 month old puppy, attended. Maddy is…read morean outstanding teacher - her knowledge and training expertise has helped immensely with Tulip's development. Her clear, concise and hands-on instruction has guided our puppy in the mastery of the fundamental behavioral commands, as well as, helping Tulip to recognize and understand boundaries and expectations. Maddy's teaching style is based on patience, enthusiasm and lots of positive reinforcement not only for the puppies but equally for us parents! Highly recommend both Maddy and Wonder Puppy!

Wonder Puppy came into my life just when I needed them! An absolute GODSEND for new puppy owners…read morelike myself, my husband and I are forever grateful to Heidi at Meat for Cats and Dogs for her enthusiastic recommendation of their services. We recently welcomed a furry bundle of joy into our home, and have found ourselves overwhelmed by her overly-enthusiastic approach to living life. Our little angel is all teeth and claws, and boundless energy! Wonder Puppy group puppy training classes are amazing. We are halfway through their 9-week course now, and already feel we've received valuable return on investment. Trainers Katie and Matt have shown genuine interest in our puppy's well-being and progress. They have a remarkable ability to connect with both puppies and their owners, anticipating any of the crazy questions we might ask. The classes cover a wide range of essential topics from basic commands like sit, stay, to more advanced topics like loose-leash walking and impulse control. Wonder Puppy ensures a positive experience for everyone who walks through their doors, offering personalized guidance and support. I really had no idea puppy socialization is so important. Wonder Puppy enables a safe and controlled environment where puppies can interact and play with one another. I've already seen the value in these socialization experiences as my puppy is beginning to calm down, and to learn appropriate behaviors... most notably, how much is too much? Seriously, those little teeth and claws are really quite sharp! I appreciate the well-maintained and clean facility at Wonder Puppy. There is ample street parking in the neighborhood, though beware of the homeless camp located on the next block. Use common sense when securing your vehicles, and be sure to keep any valuables out of sight or bring them in the building with you. My husband, my puppy and I have all benefited tremendously from our time at Wonder Puppy. It's been a really positive experience, and I'm hoping the lessons we've learned will serve us for many years to come.

Trainers are very kind and willing to answer lots of questions. In group settings, they are very…read morethoughtful of the dynamics between the different dogs to allow more reactive dogs to feel safe and minimizing class disruptions for less reactive dogs. I love that it is a low pressure environment, but still offering many options to add complexity if we choose. It allows us to set our own pace and be as rigid or lax in our training as we choose, or to give our pup extra challenges. We have a dog that needs to be constantly challenged, so we have done a combination of behavior classes and "fun" classes (agility/tricks) and all have been great experiences. If we say it's "time for school" our dog perks up and sprints for the door, so she clearly loves her time there!

We just started puppy manners class (completed second class so far). This place is fabulous! Lucy…read moreis an excellent trainer. The class is small so the pups can really learn to focus. We've all learned so much in just 2 classes. What is really fabulous about HeDog training is the extensive variety of classes they offer for ongoing training. We are going to get our boy Roy thoroughly educated so he can be a good canine citizen and we can have peace of mind with a happy, well/ trained dog.

This is a long overdue review. Also, I think this is more like a thank-you letter to Jen than a…read morereview. As many others have stated, Jen is amazing. Our dog, Shaka, just loved spending time with her and the other pups she cared for. We were a little worried at first about his temperament being around others (humans and other animals) since he gets a little skittish, but he seemed to thrive there. When it was pick-up time, he was always happy and seemed to sleep very well from getting his exercise and socialize in. (He also smelled great on his longer stays. Thank you for the baths!) Jen is super flexible and communicative. We were so appreciative of this since we tend be rather spontaneous and would ask to drop him off the day before sometimes. We also would extend his stay last minute, for example, when we were taking road trips and wanted to stop for the night instead of driving all the way through a town. (Sorry and thank you so much, Jen!) Shaka has stayed over from one day to two weeks (possibly more), and each time, we've received text updates from her and even pictures of him happy with his friends. I always looked forward to those. Shaka passed away early last year, and I've been meaning to write this for a long time to say, "Thank you, Jen!" for being such a wonderful caregiver and trustworthy and friendly person overall. Dog parents, I 1000% recommend Jen.

Jen is without a doubt the we will leave our best friend with. I trust her 100%!…read moreShe is a real lover of animals. My dog returned happy and healthy.

My wife and I were looking to adopt a rescue dog and applied to several rescues in the Portland…read morearea. After a month of running into dead ends (dogs had issues that weren't mentioned in the listings, few dogs available that fit our situation, poor communication) we found One Tail at a Time. Everyone was professional and incredibly helpful, and soon we were offered a sweet girl who immediately won our hearts. She'd been in foster care after arriving from a shelter, and the foster parents gave us a detailed picture of her behavior and personality. We could not have found a better companion than Alexis. If you're looking to adopt a dog in the Portland area I highly recommend OTAT - it's a top notch, professional and ethical organization.

We adopted our dog from them and they were super clear and communicative about the whole process…read more This dog has completed our family.