I can not rave enough about the Peaceful Pack. Not only are their services fantastic but I've had…read morenothing but positive experiences with everyone from their staff that I've interacted with. In October of 2015 we adopted Fozzy, a 5 month old toy poodle. Though he was wee wee pad trained by Day 3 we weren't able to transition him to going potty outside because he would not walk. We tried just about everything but we couldn't even get him to successfully walk down a full block. I scoured the internet trying to find dog trainers near by without much luck (I either never heard back, or there were wait lists, or the prices were too outrageous). I was venting about my struggles at work one day when a coworker recommended the Peaceful Pack. Behavior Modification - When James showed up he immediately began the session based on the initial reaction and interaction with Fozzy. His approach is focused on the psychology between dog and owner. Basically it was more about training us than the dog! Not only did we get great tips for dealing with his bratty puppy behavior but he got Fozzy to walk outside!! It was a miracle! He not only walked down 1 block, he walked to the next neighborhood! James taught us the right techniques and Fozzy not only has walked every since but he loves going outside! Dog walking - Once we got Fozzy pottying outside we set up regular afternoon walks. We initially wanted a pack walk but our building wouldn't allow it so he gets an individual with the fantastic walker, Tavon. I've been home a few times and got to witness how excited Fozzy gets when Tavon arrives. We noticed a huge improvement in Fozzy's overall demeanor after only a few weeks of starting his walks. He was less timid and more social and excited to go outside. PP has also been very accommodating when we've needed additional walks or last minute changes. We had scheduled an early evening walk on Christmas Day. Unfortunately the person working the front desk at our building that day couldn't find the information in he computer and sent the walker away. PP called me but it was an hour before I checked my phone. I called them back in a panic asking if they could possibly send someone back and they did!

5 stars is not enough! My dog recently started showing some signs of anxiety on her walks,…read moresometimes getting so scared that she'd escape her leash and run home.. we all know how frightening that is when you live in NYC! Thanks to James, from Peaceful Pack, our babygirl is back to her old walk loving self again!!!! He made us realize things that we were doing wrong and ways in which we were making her even more anxious. He also showed us very easy to use walking techniques and sat down with us and answered all the questions we had. Our one session was game changing and we couldn't be more grateful!!! I highly recommend!

I recently took a virtual Manners 1 class with Kizz and Jess, and cannot recommend it highly…read moreenough. The class was small, so each pup got plenty of personal attention, and the class aspect meant that we could all learn from each other as well. Each class is recorded so you can reference them later, and their post-class emails also give you homework for the week and great resources to use if you want to learn more about topics discussed. I really like that the instructors have done tons of research on dog behavior and training and cite their sources--it's both fascinating (from an intellectual standpoint) and comforting (from a nervous dog mom standpoint) to hear the research and science behind their methods. They teach a positive reinforcement only method, which I really appreciate after previous experiences with other trainers who advocate things like prong collars. The emphasis is on building a relationship with your dog through understanding the way their brains work and how best to communicate with them. I look forward to taking our next class with PumpkinPups--they are an incredible source of info for all things dog and we are lucky to have them in Brooklyn!

Viviane assisted me with an urgent issue with my dogs. She went above and beyond in helping me…read morequickly, assessing the situation and assisting me in handling a painful situation with the confidence of knowing that we are doing the right thing. She is incredibly knowledgeable, wonderfully compassionate and understands dogs in such a beautiful way. I am so thankful I was referred to her.

My dog contracted kennel cough at Brooklyn Dog Training Center (Doggie Academy) and they refused to…read moreprovide a partial refund for the class he missed after getting sick. They wanted me to come to the class without my dog and leave him home alone sick. The facility is very dirty and run down and the owner acted very unprofessionally with regard to the entire situation. Owner is a total liar. She never spoke to my vet, she contacted my vet's office via email and asked a hypothetical question about whether a dog showing symptoms the next day would have contacted it at her facility so they responded accordingly. Yet my specific dog did not show symptoms the next day, he showed symptoms a few days later. Sarah is being sneaky and deceptive in order to get them to provide a response in writing so Doggie Academy can avoid any legal liability. My actual vet will be writing a letter confirming that my dog did most likely contract kennel cough at Doggie Academy. Would not recommend, absolute con artists and putting many dogs health in jeopardy by not notifying their clients that their facility has kennel cough.

Interesting that this is their first review…read more My wife and I brought our 3 month old puppy for their puppy socialization class last Friday. We left before the class was over. If you can imagine how Park Slope parents are with their kids, you can figure out how they are with their puppies. Although I am fine with people babying their puppies (not really but it's your dog), if the trainer is correcting the human issues, which she wasn't. 3 examples. 1) There was a puppy there that was showing aggression and dominance. (A lot of low toned growling, biting, not nipping, and when taken away was very aggressive towards its owners with biting and growling. The trainer didn't remove that dog from the group and didn't try to correct the owner's handling of the dog. The owners were definitely new owners and had no clue what they were doing. Which is fine but puppy socialization classes are for the owners as much as the puppies. 2) Our puppy is very well socialized. It doesn't have any problems with any dogs or humans, including in this class. Later in the class a very nervous and timid terrier came in. It was hiding under chairs and in the corners with its tail between its legs. My puppy went over to it and tried to play with it, Chased it around and, admittedly, prob tried a little too hard to play with the new puppy (which is how some dogs will react to that kind of energy from another dog). But instead of trying to help the timid, nervous puppy, the trainer took our dog out of the area and proceeded to say "if there is anyone who played with *name of our dog* nicely and wants to have their dog in his area...". Needless to say it wound up being every dog in with our puppy and the timid terrier and an aggressive, very small, puppy by themselves. 3) Our puppy, probably 75% of the time, when playing with other dogs, is the first one to go on its back and show belly. If anyone knows anything about dogs, this is a sign of submission, AND you know that puppies play by nipping and "mouthing". So, he was playing with another puppy, was on his back, and mouth was open (not even nipping at this point). Another dog was on top of him and the owner of that dog was saying "Too much teeth, I'm seeing too much teeth. I can't handle it" and pulls her puppy away from our dog. The trainer, right there, once again doesn't correct the owner's behavior. Overall, there was a very tense energy in the room. There were too many puppies for the space and the trainer was either overwhelmed, burnt out, or both, which led to the owners being nervous and tense, which led to the puppies feeling and feeding off of that energy. It wasn't a good situation and definitely encouraged the nervous aggressive dogs to be nervous and aggressive. Lastly, don't call the puppies "your kids" to the owners. This gives the mentally of them being our babies and treating them as human babies. They are puppies and need to be treated as puppies or that's when you get older dogs with aggressive and protective issues. I gave 2 stars because I like that they are doing this but they need to figure it out. Maybe do it more often so you don't have every puppy in the area going in the one day a month. We go to Wag Club every monday for puppy socialization and it is relaxed and fun for both the puppies and owners. They correct any puppy issues (the actual cause) and teach the owners how to deal with the issues.

It is not an overstatement to say that Hadley and Dandy Dogwalker changed our life while we lived…read morein Brooklyn. It sounds dramatic, but we went from pretty much loathing our daily existence to loving it because of Hadley's special talent with our little rescue, Pixel. Pixel (a chi-mix from sunny CA) had never been great with other dogs or new people and was having a hard time adjusting to life in the big city, what with real winter, crowds of people, and an aggressively noisy doggie daycare situation, all of which left her frazzled and freaked out. Enter Hadley, who lovingly, patiently brought Pixel around to thriving in pack walks and overall becoming more trusting with new dogs and people. (Pixel even was able to nurture a little crush on a Basenji mix, apparently.) Hadley recognized Pixel's unique situation and even took her for solo morning walks that Pixel absolutely loved and needed and sometimes brought Pixel along for the full day to spend more quality time together. Hadley was always reliable and communicative, and we looked forward to coming home to clever, informative notes about Pixel's day. And then there are the Instagram pix. Hadley somehow makes you and your doggie feel like a celebrity every single day. I would like to express huge thanks and admiration to Hadley and the Dandy Dogwalker crew. Our little family continues to be in awe of Hadley's skill, artistry, and business acumen and we look forward to the day we all live in the same city again!

We love using Dandy Dogwalker, specifically Khamara and sometimes substituting Giancarlo, to walk…read moreour fearful pup Penny. We can always count on Khamara to show up when scheduled, they've always been reliable and very responsible. Even implementing changes in gear and protocol when our trainer made suggestions for helping Penny acclimate to the scary noises of the big city (she's an Alabama girl). When Penny was scared in reaction to the change of having Giancarlo substitute walk for Khamara, Giancarlo was so great with taking notes from our trainer to ease the transition and get Penny more comfortable and calm. I would absolutely recommend entrusting your pups to these folks for daily walking needs. They are insured and scheduling Wales is very easy.

I've been using Connor's Canine Services since my dog Foxy and I moved to the neighborhood 6 months…read moreago. Foxy has been noticeably happier and calmer since spending time with Jamie, and on a few occasions when I've been home when he came, Foxy was so excited to see him and ran over to meet him at the door. Jamie is great about giving me updates on how Foxy is doing, any problems she's having and giving suggestions on things she might like when I'm gone during the day. He also sends me pictures and videos so I can see how she's doing when I'm not there. I would recommend Jamie to anyone in the Brooklyn area; Foxy and I both think he's the best!!

Jamie has been great at walking my little Aussie Terrier mix. I've confidently recommended him to…read moremany people in the neighborhood. I trust him with a set of keys to my apartment and know he going to do a good job. He's an animal lover and knows what he's doing. Walking dogs is not always easy but Jamie does it because he loves it. I feel fortunate to have him. I love that he works with me and my ever changing schedule. Thank you Jamie! I'm glad Teo told me about you.

Dawn and Ed are lovely. My Pom, Fluffy loves his stays…read morethere. They're great about administering meds when necessary.

I had the worst possible experience with Ed and Dawn. They watched my big, sweet dog Finn at their…read morehome for 7 days, but when I came to pick him up, I found him unable to stand, his fur caked in blood and pus from a severely-infected leg wound, and so dehydrated that his nose and gums were dry to the touch. He was very, very ill. I rushed him straight to the emergency vet where they immediately diagnosed him with sepsis, and he died soon after. It is clear that he'd been sick for a while: Ed and Dawn told me afterwards that he'd stopped eating, drinking, and taking his arthritis meds the day before, and he hadn't even been able to STAND UP all day. Yet for some reason they chose to not reach out and let me know any of this, so he just lay helpless on the floor all day, unable to eat, drink, or stand, slipping into sepsis, and I only discovered anything was wrong when I walked in the door at 5pm to pick him up. By that time it was too late. If I'd known that Ed and and Dawn would ignore such obvious signs of distress from an animal in their care, I never would have brought my dog to them. Don't make the same mistake I did.

This person could not love animals more nor be more trustworthy as far as they are concerned. She…read morehas a natural knack for communicating with dogs in particular. I had an unruly beast of a puppy when she first came along this summer. She knew right away how to keep him in behavior mode, while still being very sweet to him. She's not one of those lazy dogwalkers either, doing the minimum as many do. It is great for me as I often come home from work to a pleasantly exhausted dog. Now we've hit fall and I feel like I have a much more manageable creature to return home to after a long day of work. In addition to being one of the more trustworthy and honest people I have ever hired in such a capacity, she's also very available and when she can't assist me, she knows who else to refer me to. Oh, and she has a way with people too - after dogsitting once, she left me a vase of flowers and a nice note on a card, reporting all the things my dog got to do while I was away. I would recommend Rebecca to anyone looking for a responsible & considerate person to trust their animal friend with.

Rebecca was great with my four cats and our dog. Our dog is a huge pit-mix and needs to be kept…read moreapart from our cats since he's quite aggressive. She had no problem handling the rules of the house in that regard. Also, our dog is a rescue - he was neglected and abused before we came across him, so he doesn't trust people readily. She was not intimidated at all and, although he was a bit wary at first, she soon buttered him up. In addition to being clear about who was the alpha, she gave him great rub-downs - after years of neglect, he really needs a lot of affection in order to trust people. She clearly had a natural grasp of canine hierarchy and dog mentality and once she got him to trust her, she even started to offer him some obedience training. He always ended up very orderly after an afternoon with her. My fiance and I were very pleased! We, and our four cats and dog, highly recommend this great dogwalker and petsitter!

My cat Bear's stay stay with Amelia at Four Paws B&B exceeded my expectations! I moved to Brooklyn…read morefrom the west coast in December 2018 with my cat, which was stressful to say the least. Amelia made the whole situation so much less stressful as my cat stayed at the B&B for a week while I apartment-hunted. I forgot Bear's food and Amelia obtained her specific dry food for her stay. I also had to move the pickup date around and Amelia was extremely flexible. She was very communicative and lovely and sent me text updates about Bear throughout the week to put my mind at ease. Very personal service and I would highly recommend!

Amelia has walked our dogs a few times over the past year. She is a licensed veterinary technician…read morewhich makes us comfortable leaving her with our dogs. One of our dogs has medical issues requiring extra assistance to go outside and requires medications, and she is more than comfortable and happy to take care of him. She is always kind with our dogs and takes pictures for us while we are away! We highly recommend Amelia in Brooklyn.