My two dogs stayed for 13 nights. Lucy did training while we were gone and Ludo just enjoyed his stay since he doesn't need training. They had a wonderful time! Lucy and Ludo were happy to see me but after saying an excited hello to me, Lucy tried to walk back into the other room as though she wanted to see her kennel friends one more time before leaving. It was really touching. The trainer kept me up to date on Lucy's progress and I even got to see social media posts about their play time and beach time. This is where they take your dog to the pool and there is also a sandy place where they can dig. It was very reassuring to me that they let me see where my pups would be staying and I got to help decorate their room. Other places won't show you the actual space your dog is in and are not transparent at all about the actual level of care. This place put my dogs' health and safety first and their happiness as a close second. I will use them again. read more

Maybe because our dog had some reactivity and we struggled at times, but we felt completely unsupported during the four sessions we went to. These folks are basically trying to sell their products - collars, leashes, etc. - and the training and support seem to be an after-thoughts. At the 4th lesson, our dog was overwhelmed and wanted to just sit on the mat. The other dogs went outside and did the agility course and our dog was told to sit back and watch (in a large grassy area with fire ants and sticker burrs). Addison said she would send us info on steps to take and further instruction at a 2-week training - never got anything else from her or these people. We decided not to show up for the 5th lesson. We have since gone to someone else, and our dog is doing great, and without a StarMark choke or prong collar that costs a lot of money and hurts the dog. The communication from the time we signed up was spotty at best, and then just got worse. There was no follow-up via phone or email at all. Would never recommend this place based on our experience. read more

We picked up a happy and healthy dog after 6 nights of platinum boarding. We were extremely pleased with the professionalism and experience of the kennel techs. The kennels were spacious and my dog was able to keep her own silicon toy with her for comfort. We did do a few days of daycare beforehand per Starmark's suggestion and feel it really helped prepare our nervous dog for the new-to-us facility. We will be using them again! read more

I have had two experiences with board and train at Starmark and want to CLEARLY separate the two though my overall review stands as a reflection of the overall experience with the business not just with the trainers. My first board & train was with my male Belgian Malinois and stayed for 4 weeks with Bella as the trainer. This experience was phenomenal. Great updates on progress with commands and socialization (which was the biggest issue for him). When I picked him up the take home lesson clearly demonstrated the effort Bella and Baz had put into training and showed clear positive results. Demonstration of heel, basic commands and bite were very nice. Because of this experience I traveled from Alabama were I am staying temporarily to have my female Belgian Malinois stay for a 6 week board and train. Bella apparently wasn't available so Paige was the trainer this time around. Through email a command list was provided as well as the request for off leash obedience and intro to trail tracking if possible. The updates started and stayed positive but extremely generic. This was a statement in an update 2 "Saphira has made a lot of progress this week, and we just started e-collar conditioning today! She's already mastered the basics, " and updates such as this continued until it was time to pick her up. 6 weeks later and another trip from Alabama I was looking forward to seeing my pup and the progress she had made. The take home lesson was a DISASTER!!! When first bringing her into the room her level of excitement was clear so I was prepared for more mistakes and issues because she is younger than my male Malinois was during training previously and it had been a while. Paige demonstrated a heel and place which honestly were quite good and I was happy with the on leash demonstration. Off leash heel was less than desirable but a good introduction. The issues became clear when off leash the sit and down command demonstrations were worse than her performance of those commands prior to entering the board and train. The demonstrations became so problematic off leash that I requested her to be put on leash. With some more demonstrations with terrible results it was time for me take the lead/leash. Performance was not good but it was helpful to get the introduction to E-Collar and off leash handling before reverting to on leash. The commands that supposedly were taught (requested via email and confirmed via later email that they confirmed "All of the commands you listed below are the ones she was taught." Continuation marker - yes Terminal marker - free Sit - sitz (seetz) Down - platz (plahtz) Stand - Steh (sh-tay) Heel - foos Recal / come - Saphira Heere Leave it - lass es Out - Aus Only sit, down, heel were demonstrated with the incorrect word (English being used by Paige on several occasions paired with stimulus from E-Collar) in addition to place which I had not listed but was discussed. Out, Leave It do not result in the intended behavior (not sure if trained at all... definitely not "mastered") recall on leash requires her to see a reward recall off leash ineffective sit and down are slower, sloppier, and confusion around which to do that was not the case before training. Stand - saw no change either positive or negative prior to the training. Paige said she worked with her on trail tracking and gave me an intro to continuing that and no demonstration was provided as I am sure that would have been difficult in the time allotted but I have not worried about the trail tracking since she has been home as all of the focus has had to be on the basics that were "mastered". While continued training for the basics is always important with continued training it is as if she is starting where she was 12-18 weeks ago for sit and down. I believe too much focus was put on off-leash training rather than staying committed to the quality of training for the basics. I would have preferred honest updates and feedback with a redirection on the focus of her training to a much higher standard than broad training at a very low standard. if Bella isn't available I definitely won't be going back to Starmark for board and train as my faith in the business and other trainers has been impacted by this experience and through the email exchanges since. read more

*WARNING* Look what happened to my baby!! This review is for their boarding. After only a week and a half there, she is now basically skin and bones. She's always been skinny but she looks practically emaciated! My sister also boarded her dog, which struggles to eat when boarding. Because of that, she repeatedly called while on her trip and they assured her that he was eating perfectly and had no issues at all. Come to find out that he lost 5 pounds in one week!! Be VERY careful when deciding to board here as it seems they give no real care or communication about the dog's wellbeing. I'm sick looking at how my baby was neglected. I wish I could give them negative stars. read more

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My dogs have been boarded here for years - Great experience. In addition, the dog training has been beneficial; it's made a significant difference in my role as the pack leader. read more

THE TRAINER BROUGHT ME THE WRONG DOG I first brought my 5 month lab for a 2 week stay and train. My trainer was Kyle. While I wished he had communicated more while Toocan was there my dog learned a lot! That's the end of the good news. This was Oct 2021. Since then... I took Toocan for private lessons and an additional 3 days with no progress on greeting other dogs while on a leash. So I booked a full week to work on greeting dogs and recall. I tried to meet with the trainer when I dropped him off but Erica was not available. (Kyle no longer trains). When I went to pick up my dog ERICA BROUGHT ME THE WRONG DOG. How does the trainer who supposedly spends a week training your dog bring you the wrong dog at pick up. I want to be clear that she went to get my dog, its not like someone brought her the wrong dog. Did she even train my dog?? Erica had put him on a prong collar without discussing it with me and had him walking on the wrong side which wasn't helpful. I emailed her midweek to check on Toocans progress and did not receive a reply. When I told her I was disappointed and expected more progress she just stared at me and said nothing. To say the least I think I wasted $687 for that week. I emailed Starmark two days after Toocan's stay and two weeks later no one has responded. So how much do they really care. I think at this point its more about volume of dogs rather than quality training. There are better options. read more

We were going on vacation and we needed a place to take care of my dog Jasmine while we were gone. We decided to book her at Starmark because she went there for her puppy preschool. We were gone for about a week. After we came back, we saw that she was shivering, not eating well, and having continuous nightmares. I then thought to myself, "How did they really treat my dog?". After a while, she started eating well, and her nightmares were not as frequent. Even though the boarding service was terrible, their puppy preschools and their behavior classes are really good! She got a lot of training and now knows several commands!. So by reading this review, you probably established that I have mixed feelings about Starmark. Overall, I would give Starmark a 3/5. read more

Starmark Animal Behavior Center - This is not my dog Jasmine, but this dog is very similar to what she looks like. - Pet Training Near Me - Hutto, Texas

Whoever answered the phone 5/13 at 12:44pm, you are the SOLE reason we will not be using this facility. You were rude and unable to even work with me at all. I was nothing but polite. We planned on having our 8 month old corgi named Rue stay and get trained. I refuse to send my dog to this place now. Due to an emergency, we were going to have our dog dropped off at 1:02pm, which I expressed I knew this was outside the drop off time by 2 minutes and you were nothing but combative and rude. The least you could've done was work with me. Beyond disappointed. read more

REVIEW FOR STUDENTS: This place has some major issues. The worst of all are the communication issues. I didn't even know I had gotten accepted until a month before class started. Some students in my class only got a week's notice. All throughout school we had problems getting information from administration. We had the misfortune of being at school during the freeze snaps, and rarely had power while ice was on the ground. We were told we would have power in the training center, but that was not true. They then tell us to get hotel rooms and the school would reimburse. I didn't get my reimbursement until 5 weeks later, on the last day of class. Before graduation we were told there would be an internship offered to us. Me and 2 other students applied, and were told to wait for interviews. Nobody ever got interviewed, and we never heard another word about it. Not even the curtesy of telling us the position was no longer available. We were also told we would receive some resources 2 weeks after graduation. I didn't get mine until 2 MONTHS after, and some of my classmates STILL haven't gotten theirs back. On top of all of this, one of our instructors was either fired or quit (we didn't get all the details), leaving one instructor for 9 students. Abby was incredible, and more than capable, however it opened all of our eyes to the numerous issues at this place. I will not recommend that anybody attend this school, OR send their dog to board. While the curriculum was wonderful, it is entirely possible to find all of the information elsewhere. The ONLY benefit to having gone here instead of another school is the reputation. People know the name Starmark, and that is the only thing saving this place right now. read more

Took my 4 month Aussie puppy to the puppy group class and came out with a much better trained dog and many tips on how to navigate the future. Thank you Paige! Rocky will miss the cracks in the floor read more

We have used this facility for boarding several times. There were small mishaps everytime, we decided not to make a big deal of them. This month after a 2 week stay one of our dogs a 19 year old Chihuahua Terrier seemed weak and her bones were showing more. My written instructions were to make sure she had 3 meals a day and her canned food was marked to help with measuring. When at home she seemed to be starving, would not drink water, and very weak when walking. I took count of the unused food from the kennel and to my horror found she was only feed 1/2 the amount of food she should have been given. I took her to the veterinarian the next day and found she had lost 2#. She weighed 9.2# when she went in and 2 weeks later weighed 7.2# when I picked her up. This was significant weight loss for a very small old dog. After the doctors comprehesive testing was done, it was determined she took a turn for the worse. We lost her a few days before Thanksgiving. Yes, I called, went on their portal, emailed, left messages and no one ever tried to get in touch. Maybe this is ok for you to leave your animals for them to care for but I am not taking any more chances with my furbabies. Don't be fooled by the happy greetings at the kennel. Every time I called to check on my animals the office would not let me talk to the people working in the kennels and always "everything was just fine"! They lie and are unorganized, cut corners, don't follow instructions, and definitely can not handle special needs animals. They are obviously not well supervised. You will never see or hear from the owner, and it is to late now! read more

I adopted 2 new puppies and was interested in hiring a trainer, since I live less than 2 miles away from this place I thought it would be a good choice, but honestly I called them at least 5 times over a 2 week span and was never able to speak with a trainer I was put into someone voice-mail but never received a call back...to me that says alot about how much the company cares about there customers. read more

I called Starmark 4 times, left all of my information, and no one has ever called me. The first time I called was on a Saturday, so I gave them the benefit of the doubt thinking Saturdays are probably busy. I then called other days of the week at different times. The same thing happened. I left a detailed message each time. No one has ever called me back. Another thing that bothered me was what is Starmark all about? It's called an Animal Behavior Center. It's also called a Dog Trainer School. Also, Starmark Academy and Starmark Pet Products. Yelp says it's Pet Training, Pet Boarding. Pet Grooming. It's own website says Starmark Training and Behavior Solutions and lists dog training, dog boarding, but nothing about dog day care, which is what I wanted information about. After calling and searching online and then after reading through the reviews, I am not going near the place. A business should not always connect you straight to voicemail and then never call you back. A dog business must hire trained people who listen to you, understand what you are saying, and do want you want. Not feeding a dog at all is very significant. It makes me wonder what type of care a dog is getting. Is she thrown into a kennel most of the day? Is anyone competent watching him when they play? The questions are endless when you want to ensure your dog's safety and enjoyment. Based on all of the above, I would never use this place. My 2 dogs mean too much to me. read more

Thank you Kyle! Seriously, you are the dog whisperer or something. We did the 4 week board and train for our Doberman. He was 5 months when we dropped him off and absolutely crazy. We picked him up today and let me tell you. It is literally a night and day difference with his temperament and over all behavior. Listens to commands very well. Still needs a little redirection but over all I can't begin to explain how happy we are with starmark. We highly recommend them and will use them for future boarding. read more

Very thankful and impressed by the life-changing intervention they have given to my Frenchie - "Halo"(peridol). It's worth every penny! Special thanks to his teacher Justine for her patience and care for Halo and just for the passion of what she does. Also, I have received consistent updates during his stay and thorough discussions throughout the entire month of training of everything needed for Halo to succeed. Plus a bonus video with a recap of all the skills he learned! read more

Starmark Animal Behavior Center - Pet Training Near Me - Hutto, Texas

This review is long overdue on the stay and train experience my wife and I purchased a couple years back for our dog Jack. We thought it would be a great opportunity to take advantage of some much needed training for our dog while on vacation but we couldn't have been more wrong. First off, we were promised regular updates on his progress while on vacation and were only given two if my memory serves me correctly. That should've been our first red flag. When we picked him up the first thing we noticed was his entire underside went from pink to almost black. The trainers and so called caretakers claimed they didn't notice any change. Turns out Jack developed a bacterial infection while there that costed us a pricey vet trip. He has never had this issue prior to or since this stay. Lastly, the training he received was subpar to say the least. We were told that since Jack was so timid, it took the first few days for him to warm up to the trainer so those days were completely wasted. We warned the staff beforehand that he was shy and they said it would not be a problem. The ONLY thing he learned while there for 2 weeks was "place" which we were pressured to purchase the raised bed after our stay which we thankfully declined. My biggest regret is not contacting them sooner for a refund of some sort from our wasted investment and the extra costs incurred from our vet bill due to this poorly maintained facility. read more

I took in a year old Dobbie mix that I was told was well trained. LOL, No she was NOT. She did not want to listen to me for nothing. After several weeks of getting no where with her and her taking off and even getting hit by a car after she took off; luckily she was not injured. I took her to Starmark to be trained. I did the stay and train. I purposely waiting 6 months after her training was complete to provide this review. She was in training in November and December of 2021. During her training my dog was put in the TLC ward because she is timid. I would go visit her weekly. Every week the Kennel manager would check with me to see how I thought Luna was doing. Luna did start to lose weight and Kennel Manager checked with me to make sure I was OK with them adding some Bill-Jack to her food. Luna's weight returned to normal. After Luna came home, Yes I still have to work with her; She loves practicing her new skills. I love that I can now get into my house without my dog being at the door. Luna has always loved chasing bunnies and I can now let her out the front door and she will chase the bunnies but when I call her she comes right back. In 6 months she has not run off. Her "Sit" and "place" time is to the point where if I put her in command and forget, she stays put. It became very easy to train Luna on other issues like digging, getting into the trash and eating food out of toddlers hands. I recently got a new puppy and I am planning on getting her trained as well. read more

I took my youngest dog for training at Triple Crown with Kim Kelly. Kim was really awesome with Murphy. Every dog we passed just seemed to loove him. I pre-paid for 6 one on one sessions with Kim. Murphy learned a lot in the first 3..........then I got selected for jury duty and had to stop classes for a few weeks while I was @ JD. I became an irresponsible dog owner and never returned for our last 3 classes. The major reason I think we stopped going was the location. They have a beautiful training facility....... you just have to drive to Hutto to get to it. So..... if you have the time/dedication/responsibility to go through training I would definitely recommend Kim @ Triple Crown. read more

Starmark Animal Behavior Center - Pet Training Near Me - Hutto, Texas

If I could give the Starmark School for Dog Trainers 0 stars I absolutely would. SAVE YOUR MONEY. Don't go here. The "school" is an absolute joke. If you don't believe me go ahead and look at the yelp reviews from the last 8 years. Constantly going through trainers, can't keep class instructors. Where do I even start with my review. I expected to learn their entire "course" is a slideshow put together by multiple people, who no longer work for the company. My instructors either gave there opinions, or one was talking down the other in front of us because of his own personal reasons with her. The first month we learned a lot. Going through the 8 week program we didn't end up learning a whole lot more than the past month, i.e. we learned one way to train dogs. After that we did HOURS of "temperment testing" where the students sat on the bleachers and we brought a dog in to evaluate it even though the instructors had already evaluated the rescue dogs we had been working with and knew their would be no surprises. Giving us untrained dogs but not very real hands on experience. Then right before the last month on of our instructors was "let go" or "quit" so we were left with an instructor who is an excellent dog trainer but not a great instructor. I could have read off of a slideshow in my house for the last 2 months of this school. They do not even offer exposure to a lot of what they have listed on the course page on their website. The student housing was disgusting. completely covered in dirt and dead bugs upon arrival. along with trash from the prior class, the whole house had to be deep cleaned. The deck in my particular housing was falling apart and around the housing/fencing holes were hardly blocked up with old chairs or old pieces of wood. Staying in this housing you can barely breathe because of the mold visibly growing, and be prepared to spend money on lightbulbs with the places being not well maintained. They have one maintenance man for the entire facility. I would highly recommend you go tour this place before you think about going here. The place is primarily about Starmark Solutions, the toy making warehouse on the property. I do not do their books but I know their owner lives in a fancy mansion on the hill while the rescue dogs they take in for the program are at the bottom of a hill in a building without proper Heating or AC. Half the fans don't work. The drains in the kennel buildings are always clogged and smelling atrocious because the kennel staff do not care and they only have one maintenance man. I witnessed a dog being left that Kennel building for 3 months. She was taken out twice by the instructor who was in charge of her. For 3 months that dog got fed morning and evening. But she received no attention, watching all of the other dogs get taken out, then sitting in a silent kennel. In the smallest run about 3'X3' inside and maybe 6'X3' on the outside. Again in the building without proper heating and AC. Until one of the students was cleared to adopt her about the last week or so and then she was able to get out more. There was a dog not being fed, an already underweight dog not being fed. Every time the instructors were told, it was blown off. So the rest of the class was making sure that particular dog was being taken care of. The school is long and absolutely draining. For them to have a school they have to meet certain requirements. I would say they barely meet those requirements. The school does not prepare you to leave the school and go start your own business. They provided no resources to other training opportunities. I still don't even know my grade and I graduated back in April. Definitely look beyond the website and the fancy gate when you drive in. read more

I can not speak for the training personally, but when it comes to boarding I do not recommend it. I sent my two dogs there for one week. One of my dog has some anxiety issues so I had to go back to the kennel to remove his leash. That place looks like a prison, dogs sleep on practically hard floor in small spaces and I know they mean well, but they remove collars from the dogs which made my poor dogs feel abandoned. When I picked them up one dog was fine mentally(a little younger than a year old) but he had stains on his elbows which means he was not sleeping on a soft surface. During the week we were told the food ran out, but when we picked the dogs up the food was not empty at all. They lost the collar of one of my dogs and that dog has not been the same since. Poor thing won't eat his kibble and despite being friendly towards my family he is clearly afraid we will give him up after that nightmare experience. I will not be coming back here for boarding again. If you board I recommend you request to see the kennel area. There is a reason they try and hide it from customers. (Update) I took my dog to the vet who wasn't eating and it turns out he got a liver infection. He is going into hospitalization now. Thank God he should be ok but PLEASE don't go here. We are having to pay over $600 dollars from what this kennel did to him. This place almost killed him. Please read this and don't take your dog here. This place should not be allowed to operate. Idk why so many people are giving it 5 stars. A place that almost kills animals is not acceptable. read more

We brought our German Shepard in for some intensive training. We wound up having two different trainers, but the results are positive in Majors behavior. The facility is very clean and well kept. The staff is friendly and knowledgeable. We will use this service provider for future training. read more

Starmark Animal Behavior Center - Our big goofy 7 month old. - Pet Training Near Me - Hutto, Texas

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PLEASE DON'T TAKE YOUR BABIES HERE! Mine were there for 2 nights and came back injured -one severely from them using CHOKE CHAINS!!!! read more

Starmark Animal Behavior Center - Pet Training Near Me - Hutto, Texas

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Luxury? Nope. My foster came back emaciated. Scared. She had been a rescue that we fostered for several months. She was terrified. After a couple of days back with us, she was waggy-tailed and eating just fine. After getting 'trained ' aka sitting in a cold cage, she needed 2 days to get back to herself. This is a sweet girl. She won't even open her mouth for the bite test. Instead, she smiles and licks you. Then tunnels under you covers. And, they let her lay on a cold floor and get 'trained'. Meaning, this place is awful. How is that OK. read more

We are not very happy. We have used the kennel 3 times in the past and good experiences . This last time our dog Shylo was there for 10days, with various packages, play time and trail walks.Its was a total cost of $365. Well when we got shy home she was coughing . We took here to the VET and she has a problem with her throat, which appears to be related to the choke collars that you use. I offered the kennel to use our harness for walks and they refused, said they wanted to use theirs She now is on pain medication and is not allowed outside for 3-4 days. I would not recommend this kennel Steve read more

I picked up my dogs a few days ago after boarding them with Starmark for 9 days and they both have kennel cough. I've used them twice now and the first time I dropped my boys off I spaced on bringing their vaccine paperwork (that is 100% my bad and I should have been more on top of it) but both dogs are fully vaccinated. I didn't realize they didn't have my dogs vaccine records untill the second time I dropped them off and they asked for them which at that time I provided them. At first I didn't think to much into it as I didn't have to many problems with the first boarding I did with them but now that both my dogs are sick I'm worry if they are actually verifying vaccine records. Will never board with them again read more

My wife and I placed our dog in Starmark's care for a month, so that he could receive behavioral training. When we picked him up, he was limping noticeably. Starmark told us this was due to sleeping on a cold floor while his bed was in the wash. Later we learned his bed had actually been lost and his injury was much more severe. Our vet said Starmark's training methods and equipment (yanking our dog by the neck) caused spinal damage. While initially promising it would pay for medical costs, Starmark has now stopped responding to us. Not only should this company be closed and avoided by customers, it should be investigated for animal cruelty. read more

This place is top notch, they did wonderful work with our puppy. We had her there for 3 weeks and missed her greatly but they gave us regular progress reports almost daily with pictures and great personal comments. Carly is a changed dog and is loving as ever. They even sent a very nice card personally signed by the staff that warmed our hearts. We also received parting training tools to help us at home when we picked her up. I really feel they care deeply about our pet and they will come to your house to support the training as well if needed. Kudos to the awesome staff, we really appreciate their time and attention to detail! read more

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The reason for the 1 star is do to the complete lack of care and communication. Started off great say they are going to do this and that but then tried to over charge us but I had to do math for them so I didn't pay $150 more. Then while I was on vacation I could not reach anyone and the trainer wouldn't call or email me back until I said I was coming to get my dogs that morning. Upon arrival I paid for a bath and saw my dogs had dried poo on them and what they call "HOT SPOTS" which I had to ask what that was as it looked very bad. They said it's just we're they lick them selves till they bleed so ok. Well my dog was never taken out for play times for 2 weeks which I paid for and the was which is $7 a day for playing and $40 a bath. We will say over $80 that we paid that would of never been brought up unless I asked. The place assumes that you understand everything but they don't wanna explain until you demand more explanation. Worst experience ever. We have boarded the dogs before and never had this much trouble. The dogs were being trained as well and they kept getting our names and phone numbers wrong so just over all stay away. If you love your dog as a family friend/pet you will not be happy with the experience. If you want to drop the dog pay and pick up it's great cause it's fast and no hassle. read more

Starmark Animal Behavior Center - The HOT SPOT. - Pet Training Near Me - Hutto, Texas

It was ok. We paid a lot of money to board our 2 dogs for over 2 weeks while we were out of the country and did not get one single update. They mentioned they would post photos, but we never saw any. We even bought the elite package, giving the staff plenty of photo-op moments. When we sent a follow up email, they sent back a super generic response. I have had hard time believing our dogs participated in the all of the activities we paid for. Regardless, we will find another place to board our dogs in the future...maybe they are better trainers than boarders??!! read more

Triple Crown Dog Academy was supposed to be the best in town for Dog training. We researched them online and called and asked a lot of questions. We have a 2 year old dog that had never had a obedience/training class. We spoke with multiple people on the phone about the best type of training, and they recommended the Basic Obedience & Manners ($175). The class was 6 weeks long, and each class was supposed to be 2 hours long. First of all, none of the classes were over a 1/2 hour. The instructor only showed us the moves, while inexperienced students (where were learning to be trainers) assisted with the actual lessons. This caused problems because the students would tell us one thing to try, and the instructor another. After class the instructor didn't like to answer questions, so we were not able to get a lot of assistance on what to do with our dog at home to improve. After the 1 week I had concerns because our dog was not behaving correctly and no learning the lessons even after practicing 3 times a day. The instructor told us to be patience. In the end, our dog only learned how to sit, and her drive and prey instinct became worse (she likes to chase birds while we walk and I cannot hold her). Basically, the course was not productive, the instructor was not able to indicate the correct way to handle our dog. (We know she would be difficult, that is why we did so much research). I am very disappointed with the entire class. Now we are stuck taking our dog to another school and paying even more money for a new collar and training because triple crown does not know how to train dogs. The only dog that did well in our class was an almost 200 lb. dog who didn't really like to walk much anyways. He was very good at lying down. I would not recommend this place to anyone. read more

"Your dog nipped at my fingers." Really? Oh my goodness. I'm so sorry. That's so unlike him. He loves being kenneled here and loves you guys. Are you OK? "Yeah, he didn't get me hard." Umm, did you - by chance - have a treat in your fingers? "Yeah." read more

The reviews here perfectly describe my experiences this facility: hit or miss. Some of their people are excellent, and it shows. They tend to put these people out front. The people behind the scenes are hands-off and utterly incompetent. Based on good interviews with their fronts, I enrolled in the dog trainers academy and became one of the student trainers described in another review. I can assure you, that as frustrating as this is for the customers, it's even more frustrating for the students to participate in such shoddy planning and presentation of lessons and classes. Several of us left early and asked for a refund. When they saw me ready to do this, they preempted me and gave me a refund for the remainder of the class before I could ask them to account for their misrepresentations. The employees when I was there were good dog trainers but otherwise uneducated and rude and really, really redneck (and I'm about 95% redneck myself, so this is saying something.) If Triple Crown is close to you, use them for boarding. Otherwise, I'd take advantage of proximity to Austin and the abundance of intelligent, modern dog professionals there. read more

I have had good results from their training but some questionable boarding experiences in the past, ranging from simple disorganization/confusion at the front desk, to poor communications, lacking follow up calls when promised. Recently while boarding my dog became very ill and dehydrated. I visited her while boarding and noticed she was eating grass and didn't seem herself. I asked the kennel manager about this and they acted like it was the first they had seen of it. Later that day I was contacted by the kennel manager and told that my dog had been vomiting and had bloody stools BEFORE my visit. It's now been two weeks, 3 emergency vet visits, and nearly $500 in bills and fortunately my dog is making a recovery but I should have been notified when I visited of the vomiting and bloody stool. Two veterinarians examined my dog and multiple tests were performed and the only cause they could find was stress, likely from poor boarding practices. I also inquired if any other dogs had symptoms that day and was told no, however have since learned that there were in fact other dogs with the exact same symptoms. I do not recommend boarding at Starmark! read more

So attention to details.... Little things, names misspelled, not properly capitalized, etc I can live with.... But over feeding my dog, because "our cup scoops are a different size"... This is NOT acceptable. She gets 3 cups a day. Just in case our travel delayed us, I put 16-18 cups on her container (labeled with her name correctly spelled). It was empty when I picked her up after 4 days. We use the measuring cup the vet gave us, which does indeed match my measuring cups in my kitchen for volume. Very interesting. We are still waiting to see at what she weighed in and out. The basic package does not include much. Our Labrador retriever needs some daily exercise which isn't part of the basic package. Thus, we were forced to upgrade. We used Starmark as a last minute fill in. I was impressed with the size of the facility and the amenities. The price and lack of cleanliness (3 piles on the walk way back to my car?) was concerning. The lack of attention to details even more so. read more

Just walk away--or maybe run. Do NOT go here if you intend to have your dog trained, especially through boarding and training. My dog is a sweet puppy, but she's also a 85-90 lb Rhodesian ridgeback so although 99% of the time she's so mild mannered people introduce her to their babies and random strangers pet her on the streets, every now and then she sees someone as a threat and growls, and her growls sound really scary! She doesn't bite but she'll circle and growl. So I took her to Starmark because they have a training they say is especially for "reactive" dogs. The trainer said that program would take 6 weeks and cost $1652, but I figured it was worth it because she loves dogs and people and I don't want her to be anxious (or feel me being anxious) when she interacts with them. I explained to the trainer that since she was a puppy I'd been focused on her training and done in-home training, then took her to another facility (Taurus Academy) for two weeks where she'd learned the basics (don't jump on people, come, sit, no biting), and it was fantastic. In other words, maybe she won't need all 6 weeks? The Starmark trainer insists that regardless of all that prior training, for a reactive dog, 6 weeks were essential. When we emailed about updates (maybe 1-2x a week max) he kept saying how my dog was dealing well with distractions. And when I went to pick her up he said she was one of his favorites. But when he showed me what he taught her to do, I wanted to cry. 6 weeks and over $1.5k later, she can heel on a leash, "come" if you call and she's on a leash, sit while leashes, and go to her "place" and stay there. Later, after taking her home and watching her, out of the blue, freak out at another dog, I emailed and point blank asked the trainer whether he did anything about her reactivity, like exposing her to stressful circumstances or dogs or people. He said, because I said that even when she's on the leash she'll jump at squirrels and dogs who scare her, he taught her how to be better on the leash. And he said that she wouldn't be friends with every dog. (Seriously, that was his response.) The story doesn't stop there. So I ask to speak to the manager because I'm beside myself - he taught her nothing I wanted, I lost my best friend for 6 weeks and probably raised her separation anxiety through the roof, spent over a thousand dollars, and with the treats he was giving her for basic things like sitting he's basically regressed her! And as I said I'm no stranger to training programs, and I have realistic views on what to expect, but there was absolutely no evidence they even remembered what the original goals of the training were. Then although I ask the manager if we can arrange a time to talk, she emails me (with plenty of typos, so obviously she doesn't care about this at all) and said that some dogs' characters can't be changed. ... whaaat??? First, everyone loves my puppy. Not joking - the vet stays late to see her, she's great with toddlers and babies, she's let little dogs claw the crap out of her and even pretended to play tug of war with them. That's why her random rare moments of acting out were so frustrating and worth spending so much money on. But even if you write me off as an oblivious dog mom, she hasn't answered my question: the reason they didn't try to help her with reactivity is because her character can't be changed? And as experienced trainers, if they sensed she couldn't be taught, couldn't they have told me several weeks and hundreds of dollars earlier? And as if this weren't sufficiently ridiculous, my "go home goody bag," which was not free, contained a leather leash, and of course they ran out before they gave me one, and though they promised to send me one in August it's now October and I haven't heard a thing. Absolutely NOT a place that cares about you or your dog or seems capable of giving "regular" dogs more than the most obvious education and training. And the way they've handled my concerns is probably the worst customer service I've ever experienced. Imagine getting a response about a training program that cost over a grand through an email riddled with typos that says your dog has a bad character! (And that they were apparently stringing me along by pretending they could/had remembered to/were able to help my dog.) Definitely don't waste your money or your time or your pup's. read more

I decided to use Starmark 100% because of the reviews about Nathan. I have a pitbull that is reactive to other dogs. I have had several chest surgeries that have weakened my strength significantly, and I worry about the safety of my dog and neighboring dogs. I also have to be careful not to re-injure myself. I spent hours on Yelp trying to find the right fit, and I knew from reviews that Nathan was the one. We had our free consult with Nathan and it went well. My dog liked Nathan, and Nathan had great ideas for different types of training. I was very much NOT impressed by others working there-all were submissive and sticky sweet. That does not work out well with problem dogs. We made an appointment for the following Monday and were excited to get started. They called me 20 minutes before my appointment to tell me Nathan had to leave due to a personal emergency. I rescheduled to see HIM on Wednesday. I had something come up and had to reschedule, when I called they finally told me Nathan was gone when they suggested a date that I knew Nathan wasn't scheduled to be in. I asked who our trainer would be, I was told 'either xxx or xxx'. I don't want whoever is available. I want the best match for my dog! I didn't schedule. I was told 'that is perfectly ok'. I am giving 2 stars because the facility is amazing, from what I could see. It was very clean, and for a boarding facility there was little noise. But my dog needs Nathan, not a swimming pool. If someone knows how to reach him, my dog needs help! read more

Extremely nice place. Large open areas and activities for the pups to do. Since it was her first time boarding we got the first night free. When I dropped her off they gave me a tour of the facility. The only issue I had is when I picked her up the staff didn't tell me how she did while I was gone when I asked. I wanted to see if she had eaten or what activities she had since I did pay for the Platinum plan. I wish I had been given updates while I was away. I mean they could have never taken her out. The staff is nice and did tell me she settled in fine after I called to complain. It's a good place if you need to board last minute. For the long term tough to say. I think the staff could and should give owners daily updates on the dogs when they take them out for activities. read more

Don't board or train your dog here! I was a trainer and got to see the ins and outs of this place and was extremely disappointed. They are constantly going through trainers and kennel techs because they mistreat employees. They do not limit the amount of dogs a trainer gets meaning your dog gets very minimal attention when a trainer has 20+ dogs to train in one day. Spend your money else where because this place is a bust. Looks nice on the outside but if you knew what was really happening on the inside you wouldn't chance it. Trust the bad reviews on here, they are all true. read more

I recently had to go on an unplanned trip to Alaska with only a few hours notice. Starmark/ Tripple crown was very easy to work with. Very affordable. And everyone was so friendly. Dax, my almost 70 pound boxer mix was very happy. When I got him 5 days later he was bathed and worn out from play time. They also have me this cute typed up note about Dax's stay that made it feel very personal. Me and Dax are both pleased with Triple crown. And will be back again, and often. read more

Starmark Animal Behavior Center - Dax snoozing after all this play time at Tripple Crown. - Pet Training Near Me - Hutto, Texas