We have had a wonderful experience with Sit Means Sit! We found them on the referral of a friend, as our dog Baxter was having severe behavioral issues that we could not remedy through other training methods. Our schnauzer did the 12-day program with SMS, and we are amazed with the results!!! We just picked him up today, and I plan to update this review after a few months of in-home-continuation training. He is calmer, more responsive, and obeys commands, even with the mailman and other distractions.
Issues that we had prior to the SMS training: excessive barking, food aggression, introduction confrontations, dog fights, the inability to de-escalate, barking and jumping on people as they come into the house, a hatred for vacuums & any devices that made noises, extreme pulling on the leash & not walking abeam, refusal to listen to commands (especially if there were distractions), and a refusal to recall on command. Training programs we had tried: self-trained by us, free & paid classes at PetSmart, and a paid praise/reward trainer in home and in public places. NONE of those training methods were able to change his behavior or his reactions. The best answer we had was to mitigate and reduce situations that would enrage him, however we couldn't prevent 100% of his triggers. As responsible dog owners, we felt we owed all opportunities to Baxter to be a good dog. We rescued our other two dogs and do not believe in giving up a "bad dog". Its often a lack of training that enables bad habits to get out of control. This is unfortunately where we found ourselves.
We picked up our dog today and are home with him now with our other two dogs, and we are blown away with the changes in Baxter! The owner/trainer Lucas worked with us at SMS and on location at a local home-improvement and pet store. Upon returning home, the introduction with our other two dogs was very good, no barking OR jumping. We've already done continuation training, and trust me, our other two dogs are trying their best to get in the way and distract Baxter, however he is an exemplary dog! He's aced today's homework and his demeanor at home is now more relaxed, in comparison to the previous anxious dog that he was.
During his training we received text updates, photos, and videos of our dog's progress. We even received a video of Baxter sitting on a Roomba vacuum as it cleaned the SMS facility. We died of laughter and were also filled with excitement at the progress they made with our dog.
His training collar and remote were included in the training (wahoo!), and we also received a leash and a "place"-mat (a location they are trained to sit, which is awesome). Those were nice unexpected items included in the training.
This training hasn't zapped his soul, rather he seems very happy at his ability to please us as his owners and to complete our commands. I highly recommend this training program; Lucas and his staff were great to work with and his pride and happiness in our dog's progress is much appreciated. I look forward to watching Baxter thrive and grow in the future and we owe extreme thanks to Sit Means Sit for the breakthrough progress we have with our dog. THANK YOU!!! read more