I found Happy Dog Obedience on Yelp and feel so lucky to have connected with Dawn! She worked with…read moremy Pom-Pug, Titus, over the course of five lessons--and the progress has been incredible. From the very first session, Titus was immediately receptive to Dawn. She has such a calm, confident presence and a clear gift for connecting with dogs. What really set her apart, though, is that she didn't just train Titus--she trained me, too. Once she showed me how to properly work with him using clear, consistent commands and rewards, everything clicked into place. The improvement in his behavior has been fast and honestly kind of amazing. Dawn is patient, knowledgeable, and genuinely cares about setting you and your dog up for long-term success. I can't recommend her enough--if you're looking for a trainer who really knows what she's doing, look no further than Happy Dog Obedience!

Our 11-month old, Sadie, just completed puppy training through Happy Dog Basic Obedience with Dawn…read moreLawrence. Dawn's gentle, loving methods guided both Sadie and us through the commands sit, down, stay, look, and leash walking. She answered all of our questions which went well beyond the scope of the training. We learned that we (the family) were in training right alongside Sadie. Dawn has been training animals most of her life and understands their behavior. She immediately and correctly assessed Sadie's personality, which she then aligned with her personalized training. We appreciate Dawn's patient, gentle methods and are thrilled with Sadie's progress! We can't wait to begin the Good Citizen program in a couple of months!

Emily's knowledge and training is second to none. We recently completed training with an…read moreaggressive dog that we had. She showed us how to increase the dogs confidence, how to control the environment, and adjust the dogs resource guarding tendency. The stress level at our home is almost nonexistent now thanks to Emily

I went to see her for the CGC exam, and we went through all 10 parts. My dog did a great job with…read morejust a few prompts. She tried to nitpick a couple of things, but nothing major. The only part he couldn't complete was staying alone for 3 minutes with the evaluator--which, from my understanding, can be waived since he's my service dog. Then she claimed he failed three portions, which was simply not true. I was so upset I asked her to redo the test. She ran through everything on camera again, and he did great. Then she brought out another dog and started clicking while bringing it over--something no trainer should do. My dog gave a subtle growl but stayed in place. She jumped on that, said he failed, refused to continue the evaluation, and tried to push me into training with her. What a crook. If you use her, I promise issues will come up eventually. I paid $75 for that evaluation, and my dog passed the test with flying colors. WHAT A CROOK! FKIN SCAMMER. I thought I replied to her comment, but I sent her a message directly, so I am sharing with you what I said to her. Please work to uphold the integrity of the business: She contradicted herself, calling my dog sweet while claiming "aggression" was the issue. He passed every requirement except the 3-minute stay, which she refused to complete. Yes, he whined, but the entire interaction felt off from the start. Thank you for the refund, but it was well deserved. The whole process was shady--you were clearly ready to fail him. Completely inappropriate.

I had the pleasure of putting my dog "Toast" in Justin's care for three weeks. I was planning on…read moretraining my dog from the start, but lagged. My wife and I bought a camper van and plan on doing some week long trips and maybe longer. I wasn't confident that Toast had the skills to deal with dogs when they approached. I needed help! Off Leash K9 Trainer Justin was just what we needed. He was professional and has a personality I was looking for to help Toast. Toast is a mixed breed and has quite a "personality". I was in over my head at first. Not! anymore. After 3 weeks with Justin she has turned into a very responsive dog. Follows commands. Isn't aggressive towards dogs on the street anymore. It was so embarrassing to walk her during the day. I resorted to night walks. When I met Justin after her time in training he helped me understand Toast better and couldn't be more pleased with the dog I have now. If the training didn't work she was going up to adoption. Cruel? I know. We can not rave enough about the experience we had. If you're in the same boat as we were, it's worth every penny! "5"

Had a great experience sending our dog for the two week board and train. Our trainer Justin…read moreaddressed all of our concerns, answered all our questions and responded very quickly. We've had our dog back for about a week now and she is listening so much better. I've been able to take her on walks with a stroller, no pulling or tripping. She's been more interested in our kids petting her and playing with her. Overall very happy with the training and happy we had Justin as her trainer!

I contacted Joe regarding our puppy that was about 14 weeks at the time to help with our family. We…read morehave 2 daughters, 4 and 2 that were both terrified of our puppy, Boba. Boba would constantly jump and bite anyone near her. Joe helped us tremendously by teaching us as a family how to interact with Boba. In a 4 hour session, we learned a ton of info and it has taken some work but it has made a world of a difference, it was especially helpful to teach Boba, indoor and outdoor energy. Thank you again. Boba is still jumping and biting but she's much better and we know how to train her to be the family dog we want her to be

I have a new puppy and two older dogs that have been through training in the past. I had Joe meet…read morewith the whole family for a 3 hour session. He does training very different than I know as it is not treat based. His session started out with the puppy and then we introduced the other 2 dogs. He was great and gave some excellent tips to jump start the training, thanks Joe and we will be in touch with further needs!!!!! Highly recommend Joe!!!!

We adopted our dog Tala after she was fostered and trained by Brent at Ace Dog Training, and we…read moretruly cannot express how grateful we are for the incredible transformation he made possible. When Brent found Tala, she was in a heartbreaking situation--essentially feral and abandoned by the side of a highway, just days away from being euthanized. Thanks to Brent's dedication and expertise, she not only got a second chance at life, but she became the most well-behaved and gentle dog we've ever met. Tala is a Husky-Samoyed mix, and from the moment we brought her home, it was clear she had been given an amazing foundation. She walks like a dream--both on and off leash--has zero reactivity, and greets every person and animal she encounters with calm friendliness. She's completely potty and crate trained, follows commands effortlessly, and doesn't jump or vocalize unnecessarily. She's also wonderfully affectionate and incredibly food motivated, which makes bonding with her a joy. What amazes us most is how Brent managed to shape her behavior so thoughtfully without dulling her spirit. Tala still has all the bright, clever, loving traits that make her such a unique and special companion. She's seamlessly become part of our family, and we truly can't imagine life without her. Brent is nothing short of a miracle worker, and we wholeheartedly recommend Ace Dog Training to anyone looking to adopt or train a dog with kindness, skill, and heart. Thank you, Brent, for giving Tala--and us--such a beautiful new beginning.

This is long over-due but I wanted to write review anyway. Two years ago Brent trained my English…read morebulldog because he was refusing to walk on a leash, jumping, whining for food at the dinner table, and not returning on recall. He was not my dog originally and I was having a hard time managing him. It was so hard to leave him but, such a good decision. It made a huge difference in my relationship with him. I received daily pictures and a video of his training. He was responsive when I texted for updates. After three weeks, I picked him up. Brent showed me how to work with him. I have been consistent with the training and two years later, he is still easy to work with and I bring him everywhere with me. This was such a great experience. Thank you again!

Thanks Gwynn for a wonderful grooming experience for our little Shih Tzu. Cooper went in a…read moreragamuffin but after an awesome grooming- came out a Star!

I have been going to Star Mutts for about 7 years. It is a bit of a drive for me, but I really…read moreregretted trying the place closer to my house and quickly returned to Star Mutts! This is not just a "turn 'em & burn 'em" kind of business. It is literally a family that loves dogs, cares about the dog parents and loves what they are doing. Thank you Star Mutts! I appreciate you!

If you would like help training your new, head-strong puppy, I highly recommend Florenza, the…read moreowner of Rooby-Doo Canine Academy in Fresno. She emphasizes the importance of timing and consistency when training a dog. Our puppy got off to a good start boarding with her for three weeks of training before we took over. Teaching us, the owners, what we needed to learn to continue the training she had started, Florenza broke down our tasks into small steps and watched, either in person, via a video or on zoom, as we worked to emulate what she had taught us. She is very good about staying in touch, always writes follow-up notes and answers all questions. In addition, she a very nice person.

Both of my dogs Geralt and jack have both been in training with florenza and she is very talented…read moreand a special trainer and teacher. She has also taught me as well and I have learned so much from her. Florenza has taught us all the way from obedience, trick training, and scent detection as well as sport work! We are very advanced now but all because we had the best teacher and mentor. She is very knowledgeable and detailed oriented as well as only wants what's best for you and your dog. She really cares and it shows! You will have to put time and hard work into training but she helps guide you and makes you such a better dog handler! Thank you so much for not giving up on us and giving us the knowledge and skills I needed to help further my dogs training. Your simply the best!

We recently enrolled our dog in the Ruff Edges Program and I want to share our experience for other…read moredog owners who may be considering this program. For dogs dealing with fear and anxiety, they use extremely intense correction methods. We were initially open to these tools, but things went downhill very quickly. Day one involved towel rolls being thrown at our dog, loud air-canister interruptions, and immediate use of a prong collar. Rather than working at our dog's pace, trainer Mel dragged him along on the prong collar until he submitted. This is not an exaggeration, he was physically dragged while thrashing and panicking. It was shocking and honestly heartbreaking to witness. Right after this forced submission, she handed him to my fiancé, and shortly after our dog jumped up and bit him on the arm. For context: he is five years old and has never bitten anyone in his life. It was devastating. Dogs give plenty of warning signs before a bite (growling, lip raises, body posture) but all of those signals were suppressed as he was forced into submission. In his mind, the only option left was to bite to escape the fear. After the bite we were told, "Oh yeah, that can happen sometimes," and that if it happens again we should "hang him by the prong collar until he sees Jesus." Honestly, we should have walked out immediately, but we trusted the 'professional' and assumed this program was designed for dogs like ours, so it must work. The bite happened again at the next session, totaling three bites under Mel's supervision. We never "hung" our dog by the prong because that is abuse, plain and simple. Meanwhile, his anxiety skyrocketed. He began howling, shaking, and crying at any attempt to get in the car. He even bolted out the front door to avoid going, behaviors we had never seen before this program. By week three, our dog was losing trust in us. He stopped cuddling (which is completely unlike him), avoided closeness, and generally shut down. Heartbreaking, to say the least. After experiencing this firsthand, I truly believe these methods do nothing but force a dog into submission (when they "work") and when they don't, they create dangerous behavioral fallout. The techniques used here are unnecessarily harsh, rooted in impatience, and a blatant lack of respect for the animal. They claim the program is tailored to your dog, but when the methods failed, the only advice was to correct harder: hang him, use an e-collar, throw the towel harder. No alternatives, no adjustments, no real understanding of his behavior. That is not tailoring, that is pushing until the dog breaks. In researching modern training science, I've learned there is simply no justification for these outdated methods. They ignore what we now know about canine behavior and emotional wellbeing. These techniques appeal to owners who want fast control, not true behavior change. I love my dog. After this experience, I'm choosing the slow road, the one that builds trust, not fear. I don't want a dog who obeys because his spirit is broken. I want a companion. If you're considering the Ruff Edges Program, please understand the risks and research these methods thoroughly. I wish we had, and I regret staying as long as we did. "The dominance remedy is so out of proportion that entire schools of training are based on the premise that if you can just exert adequate dominance over the dog, everything else will fall into place. Not only does it mean that incredible amounts of abuse are going to be perpetrated against any given dog, probably exacerbating problems like unreliable recalls and biting, but the real issues, like well-executed conditioning and the provision of an adequate environment, are going to go unaddressed, resulting in a still-untrained dog, perpetuating the pointless dominance program." -- Excerpt from The Culture Clash by Jean Donaldson.

very disorganized.. Wrote me back and forth telling me that I had to pay more than a thousand…read moredollars before letting me know fully about the board and training that I was interested in. Sent a response to me which started with "Hey David" when my name isn't David and then saying that she didn't want to train my Border Collie and cut off communication.

Melody is THE BEST for your dogs training. She has so much insight and experience in where your dog…read moreis coming from! My Golden needs "firm consistency " in his continued training. He's still a teenager at 2, but worth it all. You will appreciate all you learn!

I was told by a number of people that Melody was the best. So called for some puppy training. Was…read moregiven a date for Michele. She called on 2 different occasions to cancel because of illness. When she did arrive almost could not get out of car, and almost could not get in mobile home. She sat immediately before even looking at puppy. Had a very difficult time breathing and sitting. She gave two or three suggestions all of which we tried and no luck. Finally she left with message if we needed any thing more feel free to call. She had extremely difficult time getting out to car hanging on all the way and when she reached end of drive couldn't go on. My daughter helped he to car and then had to lift her legs back in car. Why is this woman advertising as dog trainer and why with so much difficulty maneuvering does she even try home visits. We would have gladly if we had know situation come to training site. After all this she charged $100 for nothing. Taken me some time to decide to write this since I'm 84 and not in such good shape either. But I don't advertise for something I can't do.

Shayne was amazing! She is so knowledgeable and provided us with helpful information and advice. We…read morefill better equipped to train our new puppy.

Shayne is an absolute life saver. My Lab/Golden mix had excessive barking, separation anxiety, was…read morepulling on walks, and major jealousy issues. After he spent 5 weeks with Shayne in her Board & Train program, he came back home with all those issues resolved. I'm so grateful as I'm able to take him places I hadn't dreamt of only a few months ago. Do not be afraid of the tools that are used: E-collar and prong collar. When used correctly, they're safer than other "normal" tools such as harnesses. It's also important to take Shayne's advice and keep up with the training and structure she instills in your puppy. This will make your dog's and your quality of life so much better! Thank you Shayne! I definitely recommend reaching out to her if your dog is showing any sort of behavior you'd like to correct!