I'm a bit late to the party but I wanted to share my experience with JR Dog Training…read more
I adopted a 3 year old Swiss mountain dog mix about 6 months ago. She has problems with reactivity and anxious behavior, but overall is the sweetest girl. We've been working on positive reinforcement, counter conditioning etc, and we're able to make some decent progress. But we were still dealing with some intense reactivity on walks, so we decided to look for a trainer.
I spoke with JR on the phone a couple of times. He said that he didn't believe in the positive reinforcement philosophy. He mentioned that he did use a choke chain, but that it was only meant to "shock" the dog into listening. I read alot of reviews and most seemed positive. Coupled with the fact that he offered a lifetime guarantee and group classes (which would allow my dog to socialize with others) I figured I'd give it a go.
First, JR came to my house to "assess" my dogs situation. This was meant to be a one hour session. He spent 45 minutes rambling on about miscellaneous stories and testimonies, which got pretty exhausting after a while. He then demanded up front payment of the full 600$, and had us sign a contract which removed any liability on his part if our dog were to get injured (major red flag). In hindsight, I should have decided not to pursue this any further, but I was really desperate for help. Upon payment, he told us we needed to purchase a choke collar and leash from him (another 60$). He then proceeds to put the collar on my dog and hold her close to him. He instructed us to call her over to us to see what his technique entailed. Once she got close, he literally yanked her as hard as he could back towards him. My dog was SO scared and visibly shaken up after that, and she kept trying to come back to me, but he kept yanking her away. She finally stopped and sat next to him, but her body language showed pure fear.
The first group class was all about leash training. JR took turns showing everyone how to properly "correct" their dogs by pulling on the leash. When people had difficulty applying the technique, he would yell at, and flat out verbally abuse them. It was sickening to watch. But the method worked, as my dog was walking much better on leash, so I figured we should just tough it out.
During the 2nd class, my dog got curious about another dog close by, and she wanted to approach him. I was ecstatic as she's never done this before. JR immediately came over, grabbed the leash and pulled her away. I was in complete disbelief. When I asked why he would correct behavior that we actually wanted to encourage, he said "he wanted to see how my dog would react". Just pure nonsense.
He then spent the next 45 minutes explaining his next technique: the throw chain. He essentially uses a metal chain to hit the dog and force them into submission. The idea is that overtime, they associate the sound of the chain with the act of submitting and stopping whatever it is they are doing. He then proceeds to tell my dog to sit, which she immediately does, but whips her with the chain at the same time. The fear in my dog's eyes broke my heart. He applied the same technique to the other dogs, and went as far as throwing it in their faces when they wouldn't comply. I've seen him whip dogs as hard as he could and visibly hurting and scaring them.
JR also told us he believed shock collars and electric fences to be appropriate methods to train dogs. I don't think I need to say much more on that.
I could go on and on about JR's barbaric dog training methods, and his abusive treatment of his clients, but I'll leave it at this: if you love your dog, do not trust them with this man. I have stopped going to his classes out of fear that he would cause permanent psychological damage to my dog. There are so many trainers out there who will train your dog with positive, pain-free methods. It will take more time, but the payoff is worth it.