A very cool place. They train dogs here. Lots of them. In German. It is a sight to see on a Saturday morning. Even if you don't have a dog you can come to watch how they train, and pick up great tips for when you do get a dog. Located in Corralitos, it is a bit of a haul to get here. Probably 30-40 from Santa Cruz and 15 or so from Aptos. The training is done on a large field that has a full obstacle course. Plenty of room for 70-100 dogs at a time. There is a lot of repetition in the training which is just what you would expect. We don't take our dog here, our parents do and they love it. We go to watch and see the dogs. It is a great experience. The trainers are competent and humorous and engaging. They care about you and your pet. One final note, we saw some puppy magic last time here. A dog who just was freakin out about laying down. Yelping and nippy and upset. Willful...not willing. The trainer stopped the class and worked gently and patiently with the dog to finally get it to lay. It was amazing to see it. I didn't think it would happen. After another short walk, the puppy was laying on its own. My wife was in tears. This is the place to get your puppy acclimated to other dogs and a bit of structure in its life. read more

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Lance is AMAZING! I highly recommend his services for anyone with dogs. Lance is highly skilled with years of experience. He is always professional, direct and most importantly, effective. Hands down the best trainer I have ever worked with. read more

Eight months ago, when I saw behavioral changes in my dog Scout I felt hopeless. Thank goodness I found The K9 Clinic. From the first evaluation I knew I had not only found the perfect solution for my dog but a kinship with the trainers as well. The Bootcamp was the best decision I've ever made. Not only did it re-set the mind/behavior of my dog but they also taught me the appropriate skills to be a handler for my specific dog. Before I started with The K9 Clinic Scout was unable to be off leash, around other dogs and her "naughty" behaviors felt unmanageable. Happy to report none of that applies today! Group classes, private lessons; we do them all! Thanks to The K9 Clinic I have the dog I always dreamed of!! Monique Cook Santa Cruz, CA read more

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We absolutely love The K-9 Clinic! We got our German Shepherd at 4 months old and after 7 sessions of training, she is a completely different dog. She has confidence and is extremely well behaved. We are constantly getting comments about her behavior when we take her out with us. No one can believe that she is still only 6 months old! I would 100% recommend training with The K-9 Clinic!! read more

My boyfriend and I are raising a beautiful one and a half year old English bulldog named brawlie. About 3 months ago, she began to aggress towards males on our property and in and around our neighborhood. We were completely terrified and lost. Close family and friends recommended us to the k9 clinic and they told us, " you will not regret it". Since the inception of services Lance, Christi-Ann, Telinda and the rest of theK9 staff have taken incredible care of us. In short of a month they have COMPLETElY changed our dogs behavior and have also changed our approach in raising our beautiful bully. The concepts and methodologies make so much sense and have improved our little girls life as well as our own!! Thank you K9, we are so grateful And now confident in our dog and the environment in which we are raising her in:) read more

My husband and I have a 1 year old yellow lab. We adopted him at 7 weeks old and took him to "puppy training" at a local pet store. Well by the time he was 7 months old and over 60 lbs we had ourselves in quite a mess with a hyper puppy who we had no control over. SO we googled and googled and searched and searched for a trainer who could help us. We interviewed a lot of trainers and finally a neighbor of my mom's recommended the K9 Clinic to us. We drove almost an hour to get there, but after meeting Lance & Christi-Ann--we would drive twice as long for their help! Lance & Christi-Ann taught us how to be trainers ourselves, and helped lay the foundation of our training. They explained to us the rationale behind every command. They explained things to us in a way that better helped us understand what our dog was thinking and why he was doing the things he was doing-and how what WE were doing would in return make him act a certain way. In ONE private session our pup was walking on a leash. And I don't mean just walking--I mean HEALING, not pulling, and looking UP to us for praise because of what a good job he was doing! He now sits at every corner before crossing the street without being told and waits for his command to get up and walk and heel again. Lance & Christi-Ann helped us form a bond with our puppy. He looks to us as his pack leaders, instead of being the leader of the pack. They helped us gain control over our very hyper puppy, and our friends like to come over again and play with him. There are many trainers at the K9 Clinic, but Lance & Christi-Ann are the 2 we worked with, as we paid to do 7 private sessions--and it was worth every penny. We are now continuing to take our now 1 year old pup to their Saturday classes. My husband and I were blown away at our first group class. Our pup after 7 private sessions, fit right into the intermediate class, and is already ready for the advanced class starting next week. All the dogs were having fun, and it was so neat to see the bonds between dog & owners. I cannot say enough good things about the K9 Clinic. We will continue to take our puppy to class until he no longer needs it, but I will 100% recommend them to all of our friends who get pups, or dogs that need more training. We would use them again in a heartbeat if we ever got another dog, and IT IS WORTH THE HOUR LONG DRIVE. read more

There's a saying: If you have 3 dog trainers in a room, the only thing you can get 2 of them to agree on, is that the 3rd trainer is no good. Having said that, I am a fan of Lance and his training staff. His methods worked for my wonderful, wild, thermo-nuclear energetic, and deliriously happy rescue dog. LIKE: Trainers and class start off with about a 5-minute chat on general dog-related news, what's new with our dogs, etc. After that, Lance and his trainers always had us moving and working with our dogs. LIKE: Agility equipment set up for intermendiate and advanced classes. Not competitive, just for confidence building. The drills were fun and my dog's confidence level soared. He is now king of the world. (shhh... don't tell the cat.) LIKE: There are several trainers working at the same time, so people often get one-on-one instruction as needed or requested if there is a problem learning a move or command. LIKE: The fenced in area for training is HUGE! Poopie gets picked up pronto, so people can concentrate on obedience training and not having to watch where they step. (Although it's still not a bad idea) NOT SO LIKE: $$$$ Might be cheaper to put my dog through Stanford. LEARNED TO NOT DISLIKE: The prong collar. (I tried the prong on my own arm first, and went forward with using it on my dog.)More than anything, I want my dog to be healthy and safe; to come/sit/stay when I say. Reward-based training didn't work for him, but correction did, and it's never dampened his spirit or darkened his demeanor. For me and my dog, K9 Clinic was great. read more

My husband & I found the K9 Clinic after trying many other trainers to help with our "naughty" cattle dog mix. We were shocked with how much control of our dog that we gained from just our evaluation. Now we've finished our private lessons and are looking to continue her training (and our training!) with group lessons. We can't thank the K9 Clinic enough (especially Christi-Ann) for their patience and guidance so far. Only regret is that we didn't start with the k9 Clinic & didn't waste our $ & time with other trainers :) read more

I was referred to Lance Stackhouse and the K9 Clinic almost eleven years ago. I was looking for a German Shepherd dog. I phoned the K9 Clinic and Lance spent a long time talking with me about the clinic and his dogs. He invited me to come to a training session to witness a session and so that we could meet. When I went to the training, I was literally amazed. The dogs were happy and wagging and genuinely looked like they were having fun. The people were attentive and listening and bonding with their dogs. After the class, Lance took additional time to answer my questions and many more hours over the phone. When he informed me he had some puppies coming up for homes, I was ready. Lance had already checked the puppies for temperament and all I had to do was come and see them to select one. He prepared me in advance on what to get, what to do, what to expect, and how to handle a new puppy. Lance showed me how he had checked for temperament (which we had discussed many times before over the phone and in person) in puppies and displayed this check with Saxon and his sister. When I saw Saxon Dog as a puppy playing with his little sister, I was in love. Saxon was a wonderful and sweet puppy and has grown to be a gentle, loving, and funny adult dog! We started training with the K9 Clinic immediately with puppy bonding classes and training. I've seen Lance work miracles with dogs and their owners (it's not just the dogs that need training). I've seen dogs that couldn't care less about their owners who, after a mere 30-45 minutes in class, are recalling (coming) to their owners with big bounds and wagging tails or heeling and wagging and having fun. I've referred many people to the K9 Clinic (it's about an hour drive for those of us in San Jose). Those who were willing to make the drive to the Aptos area, tell me that they were so happy they did and wondered why they ever delayed it. Training sessions are such a great time to bond with your dog in a constructive and fun way. Saxon is well mannered (thanks to Lance's wonderful training classes we attend) and he's genuinely a gentle soul. Saxon has never had any problems with my roommates or landlords. He's also permitted in several businesses in the area who have even permitted me to train him off-leash in their establishment (after seeing how well mannered he is). He is also the only dog that was approved to come to work at my previous company because of his temperament and training. The only fault Saxon had was that he didn't want to play Frisbee, but with a little encouragement, he's learned how and loves it! The site for K9 clinic sure has changed over the last 11 years - but the people and quality of training has not. I would have never been able to raise such a wonderful dog without Lance and the K9 Clinic. This review is already very lengthy, but I think the reader gets the impression that Lance Stackhouse is a special breeder and trainer. While Saxon is exceptional, he's not unique...all of dogs under Lance's care are well mannered like Saxon (have the potential to be). Their website is www.k9clinic.com/ read more

Hands down, the best trainers out there. They have transformed our GSP Coonhound mix. Cant wait to see her continued improvement. Thanks Lance and Christi-Ann! read more

Lance understands dogs, how they think and why they behave the way they do ... both good and bad. Lance understands dog owners too. We have watched tons of episodes of the Dog Whisper on TV. What Ceasar can't do on his TV show is what Lance and his trainers do when we are in the class with them. Ceasar cannot look through the TV screen and tell me how I can improve what I am doing as I train my dog. Lance and his first class staff are constantly watching us and giving us tips about how we work with our dogs. "Mike, praise that dog when he does what you want. More praise, more praise!" "Your correction is coming too slow. Watch him and be sure to correct at the right time. Timing is everything." "Great job. He was sitting with 7 other dogs and when those 7 others all got up to run yours waited for your command. That's awesome!" Real time feedback from people who understand and love dogs ... that's what makes the big difference. Another huge advantage that the K-9 Clinic has over all the other trainers in the area is the facility. The fenced in training area is about half the size of a football field. All the various obstacles in the training area are there to teach you and your dog to trust each other and work together as a team. Lance and his trainers have us doing different things in different ways with different obstacles each week. The goal is for us and our dogs to be comfortable when confronted by different situations out in the real world. This cannot be duplicated in a 30 foot by 40 foot section of a pet store or someone's yard. I know that I can put my dog in a Down/Stay off leash out in the real world with other strange dogs and people around him and he will stay there until I give him the command. We got the ultimate compliment recently from someone at our local dog park. After seeing me working with my dog, they said, "You've raised the standard for the rest of us around here." I didn't raise the standard ... Lance Stackhouse did! read more

Two years ago we brought our rescued dog to Lance for assessment. We got him at 3 1/2 and he had bitten people before we got him and more than once in the year we had him. Lance tested him by threatening him with a stick and making aggressive moves on him. Lance's judgment was that the dog should be put down immediately. The dog is large, excitable, reactive and has fear issues. He is a challenge. But I have worked with him over the last two years, and I am proud to take him out in public. This is an ongoing project, and the dog is not perfect, but who is? Before offering the advice to destroy the dog, Lance might have assessed the quality of the bond between us, and our determination to do right by the dog. This dog is a great pet, learning every day, and the love of our lives. Lance was most definitely not the right trainer for us. read more

I absolutely love bringing my dog here. We come to class every Saturday and we both enjoy ourselves so much! My chihuahua/min-pin Sunny used to be a dominating little terror who wouldn't listen to a word I said and was experientially aggressive with bigger dogs. Now that I have better control over him and have learned how to train him according to his temperament and specific needs, we are way more in sync than ever before and significantly more attached as a result. We can trust each other now! I love him to pieces and always have, but now the bond is deeper than I thought possible. We still have more to work on, and I'm glad to be getting the direction and support I need from K9 clinic. You will walk away from this place after just your first session as a more knowledgeable and skilled dog trainer, and thus a better pet owner. It is pricey if you're on a budget (I did struggle to pay), but you can expect working results from this place and it makes it undoubtedly worth the money. I promise that. Sometimes getting in touch with them can be difficult because they are SO busy- they board a lot of dogs for quality training and also their Saturday classes are always packed!! Which one might think would be distracting and hard on certain dogs that are not keen on other animals, but they keep everything well under control and the dogs adjust VERY quickly. It's really impressive. Just be persistent if you're having trouble getting in contact with them, call every day if you have to and email too! That's what I did and within a few weeks I was finally able to schedule with them. Thanks for everything k9 clinic! You guys honestly saved my friendship with my dog. I couldn't be happier! Truly. Lexie & Sunny read more

Obedience leads to good behavior just ask my two rescue K9's Karley and Clipper. If you want the best training that teaches through kindness and fun, look no further. My family and friends are totally impressed as my K9 Kidd's now know German commands, hand signals and use the world as an obstacle course on their walks and runs. Bottom line...training is just downright fun!! read more

We took our two dogs (a Pit Bull and an Italian Greyhound/Mutt) to their two week bootcamp. At first I was really hesitant because my dogs are 5 years and 9 years old and they are my babies, but they were both dog aggressive and NOT well behaved dogs. I wish I took my dogs here years ago! I also wish I did a before and after video because I still cannot believe how well behaved my dogs are now after their 2 week bootcamp. My Pit who was VERY dog aggressive now walks past dogs with ease and could careless about the other dogs around him. Also, Lance, Christi-Ann and Talinda were FABULOUS to work with. All of them are very knowledgable and took wonderful care of my dogs while they were in their hands. I would HIGHLY recommend the K9 Clinic!! read more

What I liked about Lance was he realizes that it is more about training the owner than the dog. I built a lot of confidence in these classes, and I am able to handle most any dog now and train it at least minimally in a short period of time. However Cara, his wife, who handles most of the business side of things is not very nice. She drives prices up and maintains anti-customer policies, including not letting you make up a class should you miss one. Also the boarding was nice, however they wanted me to pay for an extra day, even though i prepaid and everything was find, they make you pay for every day your dog is there, not just the nights... so it ends up costing more per day+one extra day, compared to what any other boarder does. read more

I used lance stackhouse 15 years ago for doggie boot camp to address our new rescue dog's wild behavior and was very pleased, so much so that I again reached out to his team when I rescued another dog who showed aggressive behavior...I was hoping they'd take us on for private lessons, as the web site said they had openings available. It took a week or two and three emails for mrs. stackhouse to respond, but I was relieved to read she'd get back to me the same day with options. That was over a week ago... I sent one more email asking "availability?" to which I've gotten no reply. The gist is I've been unceremoniously ignored and no help was coming even as I was expressing how much I needed help....not very professional and certainly not very compassionate. Fortunately, George Mena came through and our dog is in very good hands, I'm optimistic that we can learn how to avoid any further problems with our new dog! Thank goodness for George Mena.... Highly recommend his dog training skills and professionalism! read more

We took our adult male (neutered) golden retriever to the K9 clinic for some advanced training. He was a rescue and had been badly abused, and as often happens with such animals, he bonded extra-strong to me. To the extent that he would protect me at all costs and from anything. Delivery people. Other dogs at the vet's office. Etc. We felt he was dangerous, and when he got the wind up we couldn't control him. He spent a week at the K9 clinic, he went to camp with his Uncle Lance, and came home behaving much better. And also with an appetite for hot dogs, which is what they used for training treats! He was still his happy self but a lot less hair-trigger which is exactly what we wanted. Sadly, our beloved dog died last spring--but we're getting ready to take our puppy there next month for the regular puppy class. Our new dog has none of the problems of the previous one, he's just young and needs some basic training. read more

Overall a good place to go. They have 4 week training sessions, and I'd say 3 out of 4 classes are really active and lots of fun. My dog absolutely loves the agility equipment here and it is used a lot in training. The facility is clean and safe, it is a large, open, fenced grass field. The staff is nice. They train using a prong collar, I have no issues with this, but don't agree with all the training methods. The negatives are the class sizes, they keep growing and it gets too crowded and crazy sometimes. Also spend too much time selling themselves, they don't need to. The owner reinvests to improve the property and has a couple nice dinners for his clients each year. You can come and observe a class before you sign up. read more

Amazing, kind, caring, knowledgeable Instructors!! The absolute best place to go. Group classes, private lessons, tough dog/owner challenges. Whatever the case, you will get the help you and your dog need to succeed. We highly recommend! read more

I'm reluctant to speak ill of anyone who is trying to run a small family business, but business is business, and one should be able to have expectations. Expect that what is promised on a certain date will be delivered. Nope. It wasn't. And no phone call explaining or apologizing. I had to do the followup and the chasing down. This wasn't just once, but twice. My impression is of a person, or team, trying to do too much and having things get away from them. I don't want you to think they have bad intentions or that they are incompetent at their core mission; I don't have that kind of complaint. Rather, I would label them "flaky"... it's the kind of flaky that comes when you combine a "I'm forgiven" attitude with "I'm the best; they can wait for me to be ready, even if I bit off more than I can chew." So, no diss on the skills dog-training-wise; big no-no on the good business and people-to-people skills running a close-knit community-based business. read more

We have brought two male German Shepherd (GS) dogs to K9 over the last 8 years for obedience and agility and have been absolutely satisfied with the results. The K9 team has a very consistent philosophy and methods to train the dogs and the handler/owner. Large powerful dogs like the GS need firm but kind handling. The trainers teach very clearly how to achieve a well behaved dog, and always find new ways to make the training lots of fun. The dogs enjoy the classes as much as we do, and the dogs may learn very advanced skills like agility, search and rescue, and personal protection. Our dog has begun the protection program which is also very well executed. Again the techniques are very clear and consistent. The natural protection behavior is gradually brought out and rewarded but always within the limits of control and obedience. Our dog enjoys all the challenges and comes away from each class happy, tired, and a little smarter. Lance has helped us successfully resolve specific behavior problems as they arose too. I highly recommended K9 to anyone who wants a very well trained dog, and wants to enjoy the training process too. The K9 clinic is a very positive and fun group. P.S. We have tried other local trainers, and they were not in the same league. read more

My daughter bought the most perfect German Shepard Onyx 9 Jet black, from Lance. He lived to be 12. He will always be in our heart and memory and we are still trying to replace him. Thanks Lance and also for breeding with me. Karen used to be from Mt. View now Woodside. I hope you can help me because now I'm in the process of putting down a Tosa Inu who is only 2 yrs. old, strong and beautiful red but nothing like Onyx. She got sick. And after 7-10K I can't afford anymore or I won't have a husband! I need a large smart dog and that is what a German Shepherd is a much more predictable dog. read more

Fabulous training. I have 3 dogs and with their help one is therapy trained and the other 2 are in search training. We constantly recieve comments at the beach about what great pooches we have. The dogs are friendly, socialized, and OBEDIENT. Yes, the traing costs, but I haven't found a place that provides an experience that it even close. If you are relying on Pet Smart, you are cheating yourself AND your dog. Kris Heil, Client read more

I can not say enough great things about K9 clinic and their wonderful staff. I've been training my lab with them for 2 plus years in both obedience and therapy training. All the trainers are patient, positive, knowledgeable and always willing to give you advice. My dog can not wait to get in the car and go to training. The facility is large and well cared for, the activities are varied, there is a multitude of programs. The therapy program managed by Debbie is a particularly special one providing a valuable service to our community. Personally, I also look forward to my twice weekly visits to K9. I've witnessed so much progress with my dog, she is able to be with any dog comfortably, I can take her anywhere and she will fit in. Kudos to all the trainers, Lance, Christi Ann, Debbie, Marc, Bob, Talinda and Matt. read more

Boot camp completely changed my wild chocolate lab! She now heels, sits, downs, and stays! She was out-of-control before Lance and Talinda worked with her. K-9 Clinic worked a miracle for me! Jan B. read more