I have known Howard, Marilyn and John for over 30 years! John is training my dachsund puppy "Otto"…read moreright now. This is the third dachsund he has trained for us. I mention dachshund because they are notoriously stubborn and can be very difficult to train. From the first day, all my dogs were magically somehow clued in and listening to John. He truly has an other worldly connection with dogs. I couldn't get my dog to do anything and John had them able to do "sit", "Stay", "come" and "heel" on the first day. He then taught me how to handle my dog and get them to pay attention. The best part is the dogs are so much happier. It's as if they feel someone is communicating with them, and they are not alone. It's incredible to watch and my dogs remembered everything they learned their whole lives. John is the nicest person. He deeply loves and respects dogs and has made his life in the service of training them. It's a worthwhile investment. I actually tried a less expensive option as I am retired now but it was nothing like "Good Dog" and my dog was fearful and cowering. I immediately realized that I was so lucky to know this team and how worthy the investment in my dog is.

Filled out the application for the breeder that was supplied to me, only to find the breeder has…read moreno pups or dogs available and does not plan to have any in the near future. Wasted a lot of time with Good Dog, very poor company!!!

Laura Monaco Torelli and her training staff (Valerie & Maggie) are simply the best trainers EVER!…read more I took my 4 year-old CKCS (Ellie) to a basic manners class at the Rainforest Learning Center in the South Loop. The class was small (Laura limits most of her classes to only 4 dogs) which allowed each team an abundance of one-on-one attention. The class really gave my shy Cav more confidence! By the end of each class she was so zonked! She really learned a lot and I am more than impressed with her training. ABTC does offer private instruction as well. The class is 100% positive reinforcement and introduces your dog to clicker training. I just purchased Ellie's brother and plan on taking him to Laura's class, too!

"Laura Monaco Torelli and her training staff (Valerie & Maggie) are simply the best trainers EVER!…read more I took my 4 year-old CKCS (Ellie) to a basic manners class at the Rainforest Learning Center in the South Loop. The class was small (Laura limits most of her classes to only 4 dogs) which allowed each team an abundance of one-on-one attention. The class really gave my shy Cav more confidence! By the end of each class she was so zonked! She really learned a lot and I am more than impressed with her training. ABTC does offer private instruction as well. The class is 100% positive reinforcement and introduces your dog to clicker training. I just purchased Ellie's brother and plan on taking him to Laura's class, too!"

My partner and I reached out to Megan after realizing that we were in over our head with our…read morenewly-adopted dog Juice, who was having issues with leash reactivity and acclimating to our resident cat. Megan was awesome from the jump - she responded quickly, patiently answered all of our (insane) questions, and showed us different exercises to help Juice learn to stay calm around the kitty. She has remained a fantastic resource through follow-up training and beyond by continuing to answer questions over email. Thanks to all of the insight that Megan gave us into Juice's behavior, continuing to work with our dog has become something we look forward to doing together every day. All of which is to say, Megan is the best and I can't recommend her enough!

Jennifer taught my family different techniques to calm our dog when she got overexcited. She is…read morevery defensive when new people come into our home. Jennifer taught us a command that we are still using and reinforcing with other commands as well. She was a great help!

After a lot of research and trainer interviewing I knew I had found the right fit for my VERY…read morestubborn and active puppy. Wen and the entire team at Back to Basics is welcoming, caring and completely hands on. I felt confident in my little guy learning how to be less Husky/Shepherd mix crazy and more good boy. That confidence was proven right. My pup came so far in a matter of days that I was absolutely amazed. He was like a new dog and let me tell you, walks became a complete joy as opposed to the workout/mini nightmare session they used to be before Wen. Nipping , jumping on people and even potty training was no longer an issue. I received homework and videos everyday showing what he was working on so I could practice with him to keep the good manners and habits going far beyond the training sessions. If you are looking for a trainer, Wen and Beyond Basics is without a shadow of doubt the only one you will need. We love her and cannot thank her enough.

AMAZING value for 4 sessions. We were struggling with our 1.5 year old beagle being…read morefearful/aggressive during her morning routine and some general obedience/leash training. Wen was extremely knowledgeable about different methods we could try that would be most beneficial for our dog's personality. After 2 sessions with Wen, our pup no longer pulls and is getting more confident in her morning routine. Very clear homework each week and our relationships with our dog have never been better. Cannot recommend Back to Basics Dog Training enough!!!

I went back to work in September and wanted a place to send my dog a couple of days a week since I…read morewouldn't have time to hit up the dog park anymore. He loooooves it. The people there are so kind, they go above and beyond. I highly recommend.

Such a great place and our pups love coming here. The staff is super friendly and always makes us…read moreand our pups feel comfortable.

Absolutely incredible daycare for dogs!!! I recently started sending my 4 year old Australian…read moreShepherd, Otis, to Bark and Play and he loves it!! Fernando and his team are the BEST and it is evident that they truly care about all their clients. I feel so comfortable knowing Otis is in good hands with people who truly care. A friend referred me to Bark and Play and I am so grateful that she did!! Best doggie daycare in the city hands down!!

We sent our ~4 year old half German Shepherd, half Husky pup, Wrigley, to Bark and Play for over a…read moreyear! She went to daycare weekly + stayed with Fernando for boarding several times. Wrigley was also SO excited to see Fernando during pick up & always came home wagging her tail. Fernando was also super communicative with pickup & drop-off and absolutely saved us on a last minute boarding request during an emergency. We always knew she was safe and comfortable - we never had any worries leaving her with Fernando! The shuttle service is super convenient & the entire team was always so friendly. We spent quite a while trying to find a great place to send Wrigley and we're so glad we found Bark and Play! Highly recommend them & would say they're the best in Chicago!

I have been working with Rachel since last fall. She is wonderful. She's genius at analyzing a dogs…read morebehavior and providing many different potential solutions, seeing what works best. She's really good with the humans too and creates a plan of things implement in everyday training. She also emails an overview that is extremely in depth and descriptive. I'm lucky to have found her for training with my dog. Shes helped my dog so much!

Janice Triptow and her colleague Megan Ores-Uhrich are, in short, awesome. This is more of a…read morereview of Megan's work because I don't know Janice that well since I have Megan has been my point of contact and my pup's trainer. When Janice was in the class, I was super impressed. And, she works with the Chicago Court Case Dog Program...so awesome! Okay, long story? Here goes: I have wanted a dog for a long time. At my friend's graduation party last year, she recommended that I contact Megan. Megan acted as a dog head hunter for my friend. Wait...that reads/sounds bad. Lemme rephrase: Megan hunted a dog down for my frie...wait. Megan searched for a dog for my friend (okay, better). My friend said that Megan would do the same for me and, dang it, she did! Interestingly enough, she found the perfect dog for me the same day that I adopted the most perfect dog for me! Even more interestingly enough, Megan trained the dog that she originally found for me and my dog. ANNNNDDD, my dog and the other dog are now in the same walking group! It's like 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon, but for dogs! In almost serious, I tell that story to point out that Megan is dedicated to connecting people and dogs so that all parties are happy as clams! Oh! Megan is also a great trainer. She is very attentive to the pups and the people. I think dog training is not only about training the dog, but also - and potentially more importantly - it is about training the people. Since we were learning so many skills each class, she gave us homework sheets so that we could practice the way she taught us in class. If we had questions, we could ask her pretty much at any time. She is also amazingly available on email. I mean, I have sent her frantic emails at 12a asking why the hell my dog won't walk, what type of harness goes with what type of dog seatbelt, why does she insist on chewing the wood in the apartment versus the thousands of chewies I bought, so on and so forth, and she has emailed me back within the hour or by 7a the next morning (disclaimer: she might not do that all of the time, but I was impressed when she did it for me). Overall, I heart Megan and Dog Behavior Solutions. I would be lost without them...in fact, I am about to break into song about my heart-ing of these folks and the way they care about dogs...*nods to Robin Thicke, clears throat* I'm lost without you Can't train my dog Why won't she siiiiit? Down when I ask her to....

I've known the owner Prentice Kidd for years. I loved his program and thought he was great. He has…read moregreat knowledge on dog training. I let him train my dog for basic training. I was able to see how he treats people's dog when they leave their dog with him for weeks of training. Once I started to really look at his program I was able to really see his program for what it is. I've seen him not feed people's dogs for days, leave them in their kennels (crying & barking) for 10 hrs at a time. Ive heard him talk about clients in such a disrespectful way. I've seen him be cruel and abusive towards dogs that were left in his care for training. He told me that results is all that matters. I would never let him train anything of mine again.

Prentice Kidd worked magic with my dog, Jaz, a 110 lb Dutch Shepherd American Bull dog rescue…read more Prentice was my FORTH trainer and within days had my stubborn strong boy listening to commands and heeling. Jaz was dog reactive and sometimes aggressive. Within weeks, Prentice had me training with other large and reactive dogs. He's communicative, funny, fun, and the best dog trainer I've ever had. Jaz enjoys training--and I do. I'm closer with my dog. I trust him. Most importantly, I can now relax on walks--which is the point, for me, of having a dog. Not all dog trainers are equal--and few are superior--but Prentice is all of that--and a bag of treats.