I rarely leave negative reviews, but after this experience, I feel obligated to share what happened.
First, I want to say that Marty's wife, who handled our scheduling and communication, was lovely and kind. Unfortunately, our experience with Marty himself was the complete opposite.
My family has owned dogs our entire lives, and my father owned a pet store in Lawrence for over 30 years. We have worked with dogs for decades and have never experienced anything remotely like this.
We contacted Marty because we have two loving, well-behaved dogs, both under 5 1/2 years old. They are not aggressive. Our only concern was their barking when someone comes to the door, an Amazon package is delivered, or another dog appears on the TV. With our first baby due in September, we wanted help managing that behavior.
From the moment Marty walked into our home, the appointment felt off. He didn't introduce himself to us or to either of our dogs. One of our dogs barked, and instead of calmly assessing the situation, he immediately snapped at that dog. That startled our other dog, who has some stranger anxiety.
I started explaining that she gets scared around unfamiliar people and does best when someone approaches her gently and gives her a chance to warm up. Before I could finish, Marty shushed me and told me not to speak.
He then began pursuing my frightened 20-pound poodle with a leash. She ran upstairs into our master bedroom, and he followed her inside and shut the door behind him. She continued barking from inside the room. About two minutes later, I suddenly heard her shrieking in a way I had never heard before, sounding extremely frightened. I immediately went upstairs.
Marty came out of the bedroom and casually said, "You may want to come up--she left you a present."
I walked into my bedroom to find urine and feces everywhere--not just on the floor, but splattered on the walls and all over our bed. This is a dog who has never had an accident in our home. Marty simply said it was because she was "afraid."
My dog immediately ran to me shaking uncontrollably. She was covered in urine and feces and was visibly terrified.
What upset me just as much was the complete lack of concern afterward. There was no apology, no acknowledgment of the damage to our home, and no offer to help clean or make things right. When I politely said that today clearly wasn't the day because my dog needed a bath and was obviously distressed, Marty responded, "If it's not today, then it's never because I'm not coming back."
At that point, I asked him to leave our home.
Every trainer has their own methods, but I cannot understand ignoring an owner's explanation of their dog's temperament, chasing a fearful dog through her own home, shutting yourself in a bedroom alone with her, and continuing until she became so frightened that she lost control of her bladder and bowels.
We sought professional help for a very common issue--doorbell and delivery barking before welcoming our baby in September. Instead, our dog was terrified, our bedroom was left covered in urine and feces, and we were left cleaning our walls, bedding, and floors after what should have been a professional consultation.
I sincerely hope no other family has the experience we did. read more
