We live in DC and it's a 45-minute drive to Your Dog's Friend, but chose them anyway after *lots*…read moreof research about the best puppy kindergarten and dog training classes in the DC area. I love that they are a nonprofit organization, how experienced their trainers are (with all relevant certifications), and that they are positive-only (as recommended by AVSAB- American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior - and is best supported by research). We started with puppy kindergarten with our golden retriever (6 sessions, starting around 14 weeks) and LOVED it. I can't say enough good things. The trainers at Your Dog's Friend are so knowledgeable about research-based, positive training and socialization. Everything we learned from Sarah Stoycos and the other trainers we have put into practice with our puppy, Griffey. After puppy K, we signed up for puppy first-grade and will be starting this weekend. We hope to keep going all the way through Canine Good Citizen and potentially do some of their nosework and agility classes, as we think Griffey would enjoy them!

We had a great experience with the basic obedience class! The instructions were really clear and…read morethe lessons moved quickly enough that my dog stayed engaged the whole time. I'm already seeing improvement in her recall when we're at the park! Highly recommend these trainers and will be back for more classes.

The staff is great! They are very accommodating for my pup who has turned anxious as she's gotten…read moreolder and no longer likes daycare (she figured out how to open their door and just leaves when she feels like it ). They recommended she did day boarding and she loves it! They know us by name and are always happy to see her. Definitely recommend for anyone looking for a place for their pet to relax while you are at work.

Three years ago I raved about Olde Towne Pet Resort to every dog owner I knew. Now I wouldn't board…read morea houseplant here. Great to horrible, entirely self-inflicted. Every booking, every pet, every time: more signatures and "agreements" than a mortgage closing. Somewhere there's a lawyer who's never met a dog and decided the real threat to this business is the guy who's paid them loyally for three years. You carefully fill out the entire grooming form online, pick every option -- then show up and they shove a paper copy across the counter to sign the exact same thing again. And after all that paperwork, they still claim they don't have the phone number they've had on file for three years and called me on before. Let's put this in perspective. I can order dinner to my door in two taps -- Reorder, Apple Pay, done. A stranger drives hot food across town on the strength of my thumbprint. But dropping off dogs these people have known for three years apparently requires a signing ceremony and a fresh liability waiver every single visit. In 2026, that's not caution. That's a business that's forgotten how to trust its own customers. And then there's the membership -- the crown jewel of contempt. They took a system that worked and actively torched it. Gone are the daycare credit packs: fair, flexible, buy-what-you-need, the way a business treats people it respects. In their place, a pricier monthly "membership" that auto-drafts your card whether your dog walks through the door or not, with no rollover for the days you paid for and never used. Read that again: you pay, they keep it, your dog gets nothing, and they call it a perk. It's not a membership -- it's a standing withdrawal from your bank account with a bow on it. It punishes the exact people who kept this place in business: the regulars whose lives don't run on a fixed weekly schedule. Some months my dogs come once, some months five times, because that's how actual life works -- and this program is built to make sure I lose either way. It doesn't serve pets. It doesn't serve owners. It serves a spreadsheet, and it treats every loyal customer as a recurring charge to be maximized rather than a person to be valued. It is, top to bottom, the most openly hostile "loyalty" scheme I've ever been asked to fund. When customers spend more time signing forms and fighting your billing than petting their dogs, you're not a pet resort -- you're a law firm with a kennel attached. Take your pets somewhere that still remembers what the word "customer" means.

Attended a training at Paw by Paw Dog Training and while I have been around dogs my entire life,…read moreDavid not only enhanced my knowledge he also taught me new ways to work with and handle and understand the dogs that I walk and have over nights with. David made the training easy to understand and gave practical demonstrations. David and everyone at Paw by Paw Dog Training were friendly, professional, extremely knowledgeable and patient. I am looking forward to putting into practice all the new techniques and additional knowledge learned. Thank you!

My husband and I have 2 very reactive hound mix dogs, and we have worked with a handful of other…read moretrainers without any improvements. We've been attending weekly, private, behavior-modification lessons with David, and not to sound cliche, but the training has changed our lives. My dogs would lunge, bark, and bite when bicycles, dogs, kids, cars, etc. would pass by on walks, and now I can confidently walk them without fear of them reacting. We can comfortably walk our dogs on a loose leash, and also, put our dogs in 'place' when guests come over. The pricing for training is extremely fair and the results speak for themselves. Highly recommend Paw by Paw for any training needs!

Brittany helped us do an incredible 180 with our two adopted dogs, which has, without exaggeration,…read moreimproved the overall quality of our life. Five weeks ago, we couldn't let visitors into our home through the front door, walk past other dogs, or be in-the-midst of little ones without major stress for both dogs and humans alike. Fast forward to now, and our dog-reactive pup can pass other dogs on walks with minimal (and occasionally, no) reaction; our kid-fearful pup can hang out near the chaos of little ones playing at the park without stressing out; and we can do introductions with guests visiting our home that don't make us dread having visitors. Prior to Brittany's help, I hadn't walked one of the two in more than a year because the experience was always so stressful. Now, I'm proud every time he turns to me for cues and reassurance as we go on more confident walks together. Our training experience with Brittany really strengthened our trust of, and bond with, both dogs. Like I said, life-changing. Here's what we loved most about working with her: 1. She genuinely cares about our dogs and treated them like she'd treat her own fur-child. It put all of us at ease. 2. She does 100% positive reinforcement behavior training, so we knew (and believed in) her methodology. 3. She customized the training plan for our dogs. We got to pick our top priorities, and she chose the specific activities that would help us and our fur-children accomplish those goals. I could go on and on... we're just so thankful we found her. Thank you so much, Brittany!

Brittany ROCKS! If you need positive reinforcement in your life (with your pups), I highly…read morerecommend calling Brittany and Dances With Dogs. Her training and patience will change your pup(s) and your relationship/interaction with him/her. She is life-changing. Call her now!

Strangers always comment on how well-trained my dog is and friends always ask me to train their…read moredogs for them. The truth is that a well-trained dog is just as much about training the handler as the dog. My family has taken 5 dogs through Dog Sense, 3 all the way through Advanced Obedience, and our dogs were taught to follow US instead of us chasing after them. My mother took our first family dog there and when my sister and I returned with our dogs, some of the same experienced trainers were still there 19 years later, a testament to their years of experience. Don't waste your money on the pet store classes, Dog Sense is the place to go in Montgomery County. A well-behaved dog is a real gem to have around!

l like it a lot because they attend to my puppy promptly and do keep him caged like in other places…read more they are very professional

When I first got French Toast in December of 2019, I was intent on having her trained like a well…read morekibbled machine... a puppy that works for nobody but me hey hey hey. I read books on dog training, watched countless youtube videos, and spoke with a number of friends who were dog owners to soak in any tips or tricks that could lend my pup to be the most obedient servant... F.Toast bum bum bum bum. Well... "I looked back on where I failed, and in every place I checked, the only common thread has been my [certain inept]" Now, I was able to train toast on a handful of things: Sit, down, paw, stay ohhhhhhhh ohhhh (even before Biebs made it popular), and a handful of other commands. But there were still big problems. When anyone... literally anyone comes over my home, Toast wants to greet them, cuddle with them, jump on them, slide into the room, put her paws around them... lol. One thing she does not do is run away ;) I don't know why this review has turned into 100 hidden song references... but I'm just gonna go with it. So, after 2 years of owning Toast I decided to call in professional help. But that isn't the whole story. The whole story is after about 1.5 years of owning toast I reached out to Tomas online and he was like, great, let's set up a phone call! And then I waffled and waffled and forgot to call him. Then I was embarrassed about so much time had passed... and then the time just got longer that I didn't schedule that phone call. And then maybe 4 months after I originally had reached out... I wrote him an apology email and he was like.. "It's ok! Let's chat!" Me: Smiling face with sweat emoji on temple. So I schedule one training session with him, and I have to be honest. I think that this should be called a consultation. We were chatting more about the goals, Toasts behaviors, etc then really getting into the nitty gritty hands on training. Which is FINE! I mean... we 100% needed that session to really start to map out how we were going to work together. But... I will say we probably did equal to or more diagnosis then hands on training. So I was a TINY bit apprehensive to schedule more training sessions. BUT I took a leap of faith, and it couldn't have paid off more handsomely. After that first session/consultation, we've done nothing but hands on training during the entirety of our sessions. I scheduled 3 more sessions with Tomas after that initial consultation/training and each one has been jam packed with learnings, eye opening experiences, and most importantly growth in my dog Now if you've researched dog training before, you'll likely know that you're really training yourself as well as the dog if not more. And one of the MOST important things is repetition of the trainings. Also... basically training your dog is a complex pattern of bribing your dog with a near endless amount of small rewards. So, get ready with a lot of small treats just FYI. Tomas has been a joy to work with. He's very even keeled, he models the training and then puts you in the hot seat (which is 100 percent completely necessary in training)... I mean... for anything to work you're gonna have to continue to train after Tomas leaves. Tomas lays the foundation... and you start building the home. Hopefully a home one day where my puppy will immediately go to her bed and stay there when guests come in. We're getting better and better, but it will take a little time... and some tenderness. One day "We'll walk upon the water, we'll rise above the mess" He is receptive, easy to work with, punctual, returns messages and phone calls promptly. He has been an absolute pleasure to work with. He has a sense of humor. I mean... definitely high recommendations for working with him. The guy knows what he's doing and it's quite obvious. And btw when I said Tomas lays the foundation... basically he's one of those new fancy 3D Printer concrete robots that builds a house in like 16 hours lol. Arn't those SO cool btw? I love watching those videos. Anyways, definitely giving my full endorsement. I found Tomas on Yelp here when I was looking for dog trainers, and I will add my voice to the small handful of very positive reviews already on his page. Looking forward to continuing to work with him. We have our 5th session next week. Definitely one of the best investments in myself and my puppy I've made in sometime.

Tomas arrived early, rolled up his sleeves and got our dog's attention. He was kind, direct and…read moreeasy to understand. We appreciated his style and insights.

Archie went to camp with Gina for three weeks and came home a different dog. I'm still a little…read moreamazed. He's a five-pound chihuahua who shakes when someone new walks in the room and basically lived on my lap or behind my knees. I'd worried a trainer would either give up on him or scare him worse, but from the very first day Gina put so much thought into making him feel safe. She texted that afternoon to say he'd already jumped into her daughter's arms. When he barely ate the first couple days and I got worried, she talked me through it and told me he'd come around, which he did. She took him on long walks around the park and the neighborhood to burn off his nerves before she ever asked anything of him. His crate became his safe spot at her house, a familiar place that was all his in the middle of a busy home with other dogs and parrots and training going on. And she started him on tiny, predictable rules, sitting before a door, coming when called, so he always had something he understood to hold onto in a new situation. She explained that for an anxious dog, knowing what to expect is half the battle. She also refused to pick him up every time he got scared, and warned me that part would be harder for me than for him. She was right. Somewhere around the second week he started smiling in the photos. He was hanging out with her little dogs and her family, going on field trips to the park and coffee shops, staying on his place while she walked away, heeling next to her. He knows sit, place, heel and here now, and he does them for me too. The turnover at my apartment took a couple hours and it was real work. She sat me down and explained everything before we ever touched the dog, then had me practice with Archie while she corrected what I was doing wrong. She's kept sending reminders and answering my questions since, including a few dumb ones about shampoo and brushes. Here's the part I still can't get over. We went to a party a couple weeks after he got home, which is a huge deal for Archie. He sat on other people's laps. He licked hands. He barely cowered. Six weeks ago he would have spent the whole night shaking under my chair. Everyone at the party noticed and commented on the change in his demeanor. I was a proud mama that day! If your dog is the anxious type, the one who hides, trembles, won't eat around strangers, or has to be carried everywhere, I really want you to hear this. A lot of trainers are set up for big confident dogs and don't know what to do with a scared little one. Gina does. She never rushed him, never forced him, and never made me feel silly for babying him all these years. She reads a nervous dog and meets them where they are, then slowly builds them up until they can handle the world on their own. That's exactly what Archie needed. I honestly feel like Gina is just getting started with him, and I'm already thinking of when I can work with her again. If you have a tiny, anxious dog and you're on the fence, go with Gina. Archie is a different dog and so am I. Thank you again for everything you did for him, and for me. Archie sends smooches. Sheri

I can't say enough good things about Brandi and Perry Bailey of RSK9. Their work has given my pup…read moreand I so much freedom and balance. Pebbles (blue heeler, 1.5 years old) would never listen to me, would not sit or lay still, and had a lot of other obedience issues that caused her to be stressed or confused. She was a TOUGH dog to train and I was concerned I couldn't find the solution for her to get basic concepts. This view has completely changed since working with RSK9's 3 week program. I would HIGHLY recommend them and their methods - you can tell they genuinely love working with dogs and it's made a huge difference in giving my dog the chance to find real rest at home. They send DAILY updates with photos and videos which was so nice. This isn't a regular class or something you just pay for; it's truly an investment that you and your dog will be using for the time you get to share together. Side note: it's worth doing 3 weeks versus 2 weeks. At the 2 week mark is when Pebbles really started to understand her marks and cues. From here there is so much more that can be refined and Brandi/Perry really capitalize on that threshold being crossed!

We used two different pet sitters, Caelyn and Liya, both were wonderful. They stayed at our home…read moreand made sure our anxious dog was safe and comfortable. We much prefer their services over boarding. We will only trust 4 on the floor for our pooch.

I really needed training for my puppy who's behavior was out of control. My first session was…read morerescheduled 3 times and the two sessions I did have were spent sitting at a table at a park just talking. The trainer just had a conversation with me at a picnic table while my dog continued to be unruly. I kept asking her what to do about this behavior and she just kept taking notes. I ended up sending my dog to a training program she told me not to and it fixed him right away. Not sure what I spent my money on with 4 on the floor to be honest.

Happy Hound Club is the best place to take your dog(s) in the Kensington/Rockville area. The…read morecaretakers are highly trained and - very importantly - use only positive reinforcement. Regarding another reviewer's issue with the location, dog daycares in business areas in Montgomery County are only permitted in industrial-zoned areas. The space, however, is well-equipped with interesting, safe items to play with and on, like tunnels and ramps. The floor is like gymnastic foam, and they keep the place very clean. It's interesting to note that, despite her rating, it sounds like Happy Hound is the best place the other reviewer found. Also, I just came across another person's favorable review of their pet care service: http://www.yelp.com/biz/happy-hound-pet-care-kensington

From the owner: We offer dog daycare and positive reinforcement training at Happy Hound Club. We're proud to say…read morethat all Happy Hound Club playgroup supervisors are dog trainers. Your dog's physical and mental well-being is our top priority! We carefully monitor body language to ensure all dogs are happy and relaxed. Our 1700 SF facility has 3/4" foam padded floors that feel springy underfoot, keep rambunctious players safe and minimize joint stress. All daycare dogs are evaluated for suitability before being admitted to the playgroup. We strictly limit the number of dogs admitted daily - there will never be more than 13 dogs in the facility at one time (and that's with 2 expert trainer/supervisors). All Happy Hound employees are certified in Red Cross Pet First Aid. We also offer private, in-home training, mini-series classes, dog walking, pet sitting visits, housesitting and dog runs (in the Takoma Park area).

My dog absolutely loves this place. They really take care of the dogs while grooming them which I…read moreappreciate SO much. 10/10 I wouldn't take my dog anywhere else.

Very good service. They totally transformed Molly from a nasty mess into a cute little Snorky…read more Molly was looking so bad - her coat was so overgrown and she stunk. I could barely stand to be around her. So, I dropped her off at Canine Design. Gave Doreen all the special instructions - that she needs special, gentle care, that she hates to have her paws and face touched, that she can be difficult when stressed - snappy - even aggressive. Picked her up a few hours later totally transformed - sweet smelling - even a hint of a smile. Certainly glad to be back in my car heading home. I know the pic doesn't do justice - but you can see she is back to being a small dog with all that hair now removed. Thanks Canine Design for transforming Molly (she's banned at Petco and some other groomers)