My name is Bruce Mahler. I am a refugee from Hollywood, California. You may have seen me as the rabbi on "Seinfeld" (1995); the accident-prone Sgt. Fackler in the six Warner Brothers "Police Academy" movies (1983 - 1988), ABC-TV's late night comedy series "Fridays" (1980 - 1982) and a lot more but I digress... After retiring from the insanity of the entertainment business, I moved to northern Virginia five years ago seeking a bit of peace and tranquility, but that was turned upside down when I adopted a young German Shepherd rescue. (No good deed goes unpunished...) The first few weeks were a delight as Luka began to bond with me, romping playfully in our garden and adjusting to her new home, our five cows and bucolic surroundings. A shy, delightful, sweet, seemingly even-tempered dog until... ...a dog on a leash lunged at Luka while I was walking her. Disaster and chaos ensued. Over the next weeks, my dog became increasingly hyper-active and extremely stressed. New behaviors which I had never seen came bubbling up. She barked loudly at strangers, lunged violently on the leash, tried to chase any and every car or truck that passed us during walks. This behavior carried over into my car, as she jumped at the windows of my car at any vehicle that passed us. Deafening barks were directed at any and every Fed Ex, UPS or post office truck that pulled up in front of our house. Home repair people entering our house triggered a nightmare. After 10 months of this, I was unable to work at my home office, quite depressed and ready to "re-home" my dog. I discussed this with my wife, who had begged me to get professional training at the outset of the problem - advice I am ashamed to say I ignored. (Please, dear reader, do NOT make the mistake of delaying training. You will only make your problem worse). Enter Bridget Taber. I can only say that Bridget Taber is a priceless resource for anyone who wants to save their sanity. Yes, there are other "trainers" out there. Personal and anecdotal experience has taught me that a large number of these are lightweights. Some will take your dog off your hands for a few weeks (and not tell you they use shock collars to whip the dogs into shape). Tell me you called Bridget Taber and I in return will tell you your search has ended. As well as your problem. Bridget is a force to be reckoned with. I speak from personal experience. To see Bridget approach a lunging, agitated and loudly barking dog is awe-inspiring. She is fearless, authoritative and exudes a competence and confidence that leaves you breathless. Within 15 minutes of our initial visit, Bridget had Luka sitting like a polite young girl at a high school dance, crouching down on her haunches as quiet and still as the Great Sphinx of Giza, Egypt as well as other behaviors. Here's the thing: It is YOU who needs teaching. Dogs are easy. Owners are hard! Getting a problem dog to behave properly is easily within Bridget Taber's gearworks & wheelhouse. The larger challenge is transferring that talent to YOU. Not something that happens in a day, mind you! Entrust yourself (and your dog) in Bridget Taber's capable hands and count yourselves among the lucky few. read more

Highly recommend! If you are looking for a trainer for your dog and to learn along with them, Bridget will be a stellar fit! Bridget is who you and your pet are looking for! Our family was going to purchase 2 puppies from the same litter. Before bringing them home, I called Bridget to inquire about training. During our conversation, I shared with Bridget we were looking for training for 2 puppies. Bridget asked if I had heard about littermate syndrome. I shared I had not heard of littermate syndrome, and Bridget explained there can be major challenges associated with getting 2 puppies from the same litter or 2 puppies from different litters who are close in age. She shared with me that I should really do some homework to look into this syndrome on the internet before making our final decision to bring 2 puppies home at the same time. Bridget suggested getting 1 puppy and adding another once that puppy had matured more (around 2 years). She explained her services and took the time to educate me and point me in the right direction to collect more information about littermate syndrome. Wow! I am soo glad she told me about littermate syndrome! After talking to Bridget and reading more about littermate syndrome per her suggestion, I realized my husband and I had lived a littermate syndrome scenario with 2 prior dogs (needless to say, we had major issues with those previous dogs). I had no idea! Because Bridget took the time to educate me, we made the decision as a family to bring home 1 puppy and hired Bridget as his trainer. If you are looking to bring home 2 puppies or 2 puppies close in age, I really recommend just listening to Bridget's advice and waiting. Bridget is incredible--she is knowledgeable, professional, and really took the time to train both our new 7 week old puppy as well as myself so I could reinforce our time together at home too. At 7 weeks, he learned to sit, began proper socialization and leash training, settle in his bed, began appropriate potty training, and so much more. Bridget even tested our puppy for his ability to handle strange/new noises. Initially, he did not do well with the new noises at all. I am so thankful she knew what to do to test him with his ability to handle noises. Bridget worked with our puppy and myself to help him positively overcome the noises. Had she not done this, it would have taken us much,much longer to realize noises was something he needed to work on. In just 2 sessions, he made incredible improvements with handling new noises and is continuing to improve. Seriously, the psychology behind her expertise is amazing! read more

Bridget has been an amazing help for me learning how to interact with dogs. My girlfriend has had dogs before but I haven't and Bridget's classes this year have really made me more comfortable. She not only helps your puppy learn good manners and habits, but also gave us insight at every step; telling us what exactly we were doing and how it worked all as a part of positive reenforcement training. (No shock/choke/prong collars) Bridget did more than train our dog, she also trained us every step of the way. We brought our puppy home at 9 weeks and immediately started with the level 1 puppy kindergarten class, where we learned the basics like sit, down, and getting him used to walking next to us in a harness. Bridget is very clear in her direction and will correct you when you are making a mistake that will lead to bad habits...which we both greatly appreciate. With the success we felt in the first puppy class we went on to take every class Bridget had to offer us, including the very fun out on the town class where we walked Harper's Ferry and built up both our and our puppy's confidence of walking on leash, from trails with deer and squirrels to crowded town streets with other dogs and traffic. Thanks to Bridget's instruction, our puppy is now AKC Canine Good Citizen Certified! He is very well behaved out on our walks in Frederick and Harper's Ferry and I feel much more confident taking him anywhere we go. read more

I am a Positive Rewards Based dog trainer located in Loudoun County Virginia, serving the Northern Virginia Area and parts of Maryland and West Virginia. I provide in-home training for all breeds of dogs on house training, loose leash walking, behavior issues and/or basic manners training. My goal is to help dog owners better understand their canine companions, and how to communicate with them better through positive re-enforcement training. I want to help educate owners on how their minds work based on the science of how dogs learn, understand what you want from them and how to communicate to them what you expect of them through positive re-enforcement training. Positive re-enforcement training is rewards based training. I will help you learn how to socialize your dog, exercise your dog, and train your dog for his/her and your best possible happiness as a companion dog with positive rewards based methods. I want to teach owners there is a kinder and gentler way to train dogs without the old fashion ways of the past with choke collars, prong collars and shock collars. A well trained dog is a happy and calm dog, an exercised dog is a well behaved dog, a mental stimulated dog is a happy dog which equals a happy owner! Bridget A Taber CPDT-KA Certified Professional Dog Trainer Knowledge Assessed read more

I highly recommend Bridget at Pawsome Pups! Lola, my three-year old mixed breed dog who had never been formally trained, loves Bridget and has made great progress since we started training classes. Bridget is obviously an animal lover and she instantly recognized my dog's fearfulness and timidity. When Lola is scared to try something new, Bridget always comes up with a way to make Lola feel more comfortable. Bridget never forces the Lola to do something that she isn't comfortable with - she just patiently tries new ways to introduce concepts and work with Lola until they're second nature. We initially went to Bridget because Lola was terrorizing my boyfriend's cat after we moved in together. We scheduled a private, in-home training (highly recommended) and Bridget was able to teach us methods that would allow Lola and the cat to develop a positive relationship. She expertly explained why the methods we were using weren't working (keeping the animals separated all the time and tying Lola up with a leash in the house). Within four weeks, our house was completely transformed and now Lola can peacefully co-exist with the cat. We are so grateful for Bridget and her positive training methods! read more

Bridget has been truly amazing to work with! I rescued a puppy that was extremely fearful of people as well as life outside of my property. It was recommended that I purchase the 10 day private session package and I am so glad I did. We are currently on day 5 and Norman already knows how to sit, lay down, settle, leave it, touch, watch, wait, and loose leash walk! He understands all of these commands given three different ways (sign language, body language, and verbal commands). He also understands up, off, and through. Bridget is so knowledgeable, and is the perfect blend of gentle and assertive. When she introduces a new command, Norman learns it within a few minutes! I work closely with horses in a similar capacity, and I have been amazed at the pace and ease at which we move through each session. Norman has also already shown progress in his interactions with people and other dogs since last week! The second half of our sessions will be more focused on socialization; he will be working with Thomas (Bridget's service dog) around town! If you are looking for positive, kind, and effective training for your dog, I would highly recommend contacting Bridget! read more

Where do I even start. I have been working with dogs myself for over 15 years. I have worked with several trainers over the years but Bridget is by far my favorite. I recently met her due to several of her clients raving over her. I have seen first hand how her clients and their dogs have been transformed by her positive reinforcement training. I recommend her to anyone no matter what the issue is. Weather it be just meer training or a behavioral issue, or for a want to be therapy dog. Everyone who I have encountered, that has been to her, can not believe how great she is with their dog. In the past I have encountered trainers who use prongs, chokers, and electronic shock, I have also witnessed dogs being hit, yanked on by the neck, and traumatized by other training methods. But Bridget is gentle and takes her time to understand the dog and their owner. I have met all of her own dogs and have seen her transform a aggressive dog that was terrorized by a man, into a sweet and trusting animal. If you are willing to listen to her advice and follow through with what she asks, I guarantee you will have a amazing dog as well. read more

I can not thank Bridget enough! My dog Duke is 1 year and 4 months. He is a Coonhoud and Plotthound mix. He barked and would go crazy when he saw other dogs on leashes. Bridget gave me the tools and techniques to get Duke under control. Duke is still a work in progress but he is getting better. The commands she gave me to make him behave in the home and out are fantastic and working. Bridget is extremely knowledgeable about how a dog's brain works and what they need to be able to communicate with their owner. I tried a harness, choke collar and a gentle leader and nothing worked with Duke. The behavior was only getting worse with those types of collars. Bridget showed me the Euro collar and a halter collar that has made a HUGE difference in Duke. NO MORE PULLING! We are still working on when Duke sees another dog on a leash but he is getting better. All of this after 1 private training session. It is beyond worth the money for Bridget's services. She is professional, prompt, friendly, and most importantly she understands Duke. read more

I've taken my daughter's wildly energetic rescue pup (Helen) to several training sessions at Pawsome Pups. We started with a private session in our home when she was 10 weeks old and at the end of the session she had learned sit, down, and leave it with voice command and with hand signals alone! We then attended sessions at the training center where she could interact with other puppies as well as continue her training. She loved these sessions! She also loves Bridget. The early socialization with other puppies reinforced her love of all other dogs and taught her how to play appropriately. The positive rewards method worked perfectly for this super high energy and joyful pup and I will never use any other training approach. Helen is now 14 months old and has just passed her Canine Good Citizen test and achieved her novice trick certification through her training with Pawsome Pups. I can't recommend it highly enough. read more

Bridget is exceptional! She has worked with our dog Maggie during a few private sessions to curve her reactive behavior towards other dogs. When we first adopted Maggie, she would go crazy when passing other dogs on walks (jumping, noises, the whole nine yards). During our last session, we went on a walk around the neighborhood with Maggie (in the rain--Bridget is a trooper!) and both Maggie and my family and I learned more than we even thought possible. After just a few sessions with Bridget and the correct harness (also from Bridget!), I'm so thankful and happy to say that Maggie has improved SIGNIFICANTLY with her reactivity. Just today we took her on a walk and she showed off her new skill of understanding "wait," which we have her do when we see/pass another dog. She did a great job and will only continue to improve from public sessions to give her even more exposure to other dogs! Thank you so much!!! read more

We've had Bridget Taber of Pawsome Pups Dog Training working with a 3-yr old spayed Rottweiler rescue from a puppy mill breeder. This sweet dog has had NO prior training, endured terrible neglect, and suffered some abuse. We soon learned that she's also negatively reactive to other female dogs, some people, and any vehicle that resembles a mail truck! As is often the case, Bridget's training and education is as much for owners as the pooches! She is incredible with this dog, gentle and compassionate, patient, yet firm. The dog is a quicker learner than am I, but Bridget's constant encouragement is beyond measure. She uses only positive techniques and keeps the dog's wellbeing at the forefront of each lesson. Her approach is the very reason I was drawn to hire Bridget and I highly recommend her services to anyone in need of help with their pet! Barbara J Zimmerman, Purcellville, 05/10/2018 read more

We brought our new puppy to Bridget's Puppy Kindergarten class and when we were pretty much near the end of our rope. She spent the first 8/10 weeks of her life in a pen in a barn and probably didn't get too much interaction. As a result, she was destructive and very disobedient. We've had 4 puppies before and managed them well but this time, our hands were full. After only 1 class we noticed an instant change in repressiveness to basic commands. Bridget then came to our house for an in home consultation to help with our puppy's interactions with our two 5 year olds and saw immediate results. As a result, we will be going back for a second round of classes to help keep the positive training going. I would highly recommend Bridget's training classes to anyone who may have their first puppy and people who have had several. Either way, she will show you techniques to make it much easier! read more

Bridgette's training is such a success due to her creative way to think like a Pup! Her training is enforced behaviour based on positive reinforcement. My fiance and I found Bridget on a last minute split decision on needing training when our 18 week (at the time ) Sheppard pup decided it would be fun to get into a strangers car. We were not familiar with trainers in the area. We turned to the internet and found Bridget. Based on her reviews online, and the fact that she has her own set of Sheppard pups, we figured this was our girl! We got more than we could have hoped for. Bridgette's free spirit and love for dogs really shows through her trainings. Her classes range from elementary all the way to adult specialty training! We could not be more pleased and happy to continue training for our pup ad long as Bridgette feels he can learn. 5 Yes's to pawsome pups dog training !!!! read more

A dog trainer in my neighborhood saw that we had a puppy and suggested taking him to Pawsome Pups for Puppy Kindergarten. I contacted Bridget via email and she was extremely responsive. Our puppy had so much fun socializing with other pups. Bridget was great about explaining the dog's different behaviors so that we could learn to recognize it for ourselves. Our puppy LOVED going to class so much we did the program twice! We feel it's important to put in the work now, so we can have a loving, healthy, and fun life long relationship. It's so cool to watch and learn from Bridget. It turns out that it's us humans that need most of the training. You can tell that she loves animals and wants to see them be their best possible selves. We will DEFINITELY continue taking classes from Pawsome Pups! read more

We just adopted a young Great Pyrenees dog with a gruesome history. At a year and a half he has had no socialization or training. As he is a large breed known for their stubbornness, and having owned 5 of these dogs previously we understand the need for training, even though he basically seems a very sweet dog. Because of his horrible start (left to starve in a field where his sibling and some goats were found dead) we wanted to work with someone who emphasized positive reinforcement. Bridget has fit the bill perfectly with a calm, encouraging, but firm touch. She has gained his trust and, just as important, communicates well to us what we need to do. We look forward to having a happy, well-balanced dog at the end of the leash! Thank you, Bridget! read more

I highly recommend Bridget for your dog training needs! I asked for her help with my newly adopted cocker spaniel, Mystic, who is a bundle of energy. I don't think she had had any previous training. Bridget was able to get her doing Sit, Down and Leave It within the hour. Her approach was very positive and patient, yet consistent and effective. I already feel that Mystic is calmer and more attentive. I also appreciated the fact that Bridget didn't make me feel like an idiot for not being as skillful as she is. She also gave me great advice on how to handle some of the issues I'm having with Mystic, such as pulling on the leash. I'm looking forward to doing more training with Bridget! read more

We met with Bridget for a 90-minute private lesson. Bridget was very patient with our American Bulldog and with us. Our dog was very stressed and anxious and getting her to focus was proving to be a little difficult. Bridget adjusted her training style to accommodate our dog's needs. By the end of the first lesson our dog, Lexi, was looking to us for direction on four new cues. We appreciate the positive behavior reinforcement training style. We tried prong collar training with another trainer in the past and that proved to be more harmful than helpful. We are definitely scheduling more lessons with Pawsome Pups Dog Training to continue the training for all of us. read more

We worked with Bridget 4 years ago to have our dog complete a CGC with several training classes and work on dog reactivity and his prey drive. Unfortunately our dog was involved in a dog fight recently and animal control was called. I reached out to Bridget for advice and was pleasantly surprised that she remembered us. She gave me advice over the phone on how to navigate the situation and how to prevent it from happening again. She even gave us recommendations on other Behavior specialists to follow up with. I so apppreciated her taking the time out of her Saturday morning to help out an old client!! 10/10 professional and amazing dog trainer! We llove Bridget! read more

Our nearly 2-year-old Lab/Blue Heeler, BeBe, has had some issues with fear, anxiety, and reactiveness. After one behavior consultation with Bridget, we are already seeing wonderful improvement in our girl. Given BeBe's fear and nervousness, I was amazed to see how quickly she warmed up to Bridget and started showing trust in her. Bridget is educating us on breaking bad habits that we sometimes fall into as a family and on positive reinforcement strategies that are already helping BeBe's progress. I was not sure what to expect going into this experience, being new to dog training, but I am so happy - relieved actually - to have found Bridget and Pawsome Pups! read more