Debbie has been so helpful in teaching me to teach my dog. We are in the Chaos to Calmness class because my (large) dog is reactive to other dogs. As we progress in the program, my confidence grows and his ability to engage with me instead of the environment increases. I really appreciate Debbie's experience and understanding of both dogs and their people! read more

I have so much respect and appreciation for Miss Debbie! I had never been to any dog training classes before and I am so glad that I was able to start off with someone as passionate and experienced as Debbie. I was looking for a trainer that focuses on positive reinforcement and who provided a safe environment for my dog. My number one concern with any kind of service provider for my pets is that I feel that I can trust them. I absolutely trust Debbie's judgement, safety/cleanliness protocols, and that she truly cares about the wellbeing of all the dogs in her classes. I brought home my dog at 1.5 years old after he was bounced around through multiple homes, so he had plenty of time in his formative first 18 months of life to create habits and default behaviors which did not serve him. He had no emotional regulation when it came to his excitability. I knew he was only happy and eager when he saw other dogs, but I also knew it could spook other dogs and that sort of chaotic energy can lead to defensive behaviors, something I wanted to avoid at all costs both for the safety of my dog as well as other dogs and their owners. We have seen a tremendous improvement in his excitability, so much so that friends, family and even my vet have commented on the improvement. We still have work to do, but I am now able to take him to a wider variety of places as well as able to take him on walks which I wasn't able to do before. He is a calmer, happier dog. And I am a calmer, happier owner now that I have tools and knowledge that I can implement in real life, which is so much easier to do after being able to practice these things in a safe, controlled class environment. Debbie has been nothing but positive, patient, helpful and insightful. She explains the whats and the whys. In getting the experience of practicing these training games and in learning from her talks both at class and in the online training videos for her students which supplements in person classes, I have been able to get a deeper, hands on understanding of those whats and the whys. If you are looking for a trustworthy trainer who works to truly modify your dogs behavior on a deeper level by changing their emotions and associations through positive reinforcement, then Debbie is for you! Also, I see another reviewer putting down Debbie's basement suite training location. I can't help but think that is a silly criticism because the basement suite does so much to block out outside sounds and sights that could interfere with training for reactive dogs. It makes it so much easier to keep my dog focused on the task at hand!! read more

We absolutely love training at The Well-Mannered Dog. We have been training our dog with Debbie for the better part of two years. We started at 8 weeks and progressed from the basics and beyond. This is a positive, fun place to train. You will do best if you realize that you need more training than your dog. Great classes! Dog and I love this place. read more

The Well Mannered Dog - Baxter! - Pet Training Near Me - Eugene, Oregon

If you are looking for a training program for your dog or puppy, LOOK ELSEWHERE. This business is a joke. COMPLETE waste of time and money! Not to mention, the owner has zero "people skills", and doesn't seem to like dogs very much either! (I know I'm not the only one who has experienced this; Other clients whom I've talked to agree! See other reviews as well!) 1)When I was initially researching puppy classes in Eugene/Springfield, I had read a BUNCH of negative reviews regarding this place and the owner. (I made the mistake of not taking them seriously!) There were a ton of reviews online that stated that the owner was rude, and had no people skills- Wow, they weren't kidding! Debbie puts on the stereotypical fake "customer service" face part of the time, and the rest of the time she is just flat out rude. She treats ALL dog owners as if they are beneath her; She is incredibly patronizing. Even worse, she treats all DOGS as if they are "BAD" dogs! (Even if they are just puppies, and simply haven't learned certain skills yet.) She talks to/about your dog as if it is a vicious, stupid, horrible creature. And she treats YOU as if you're a complete idiot! This whole experience is just SO negative! 2)You won't learn ANYTHING from this class that you can't easily find on YouTube. The trainer DOES NOT work with your dog at all, and instead "teaches" you little training "games" to practice at home (all of which, are common knowledge and can be found with a quick google search!) My dog got NOTHING of value out of the "Great Start Puppy Adventure Club" classes. Any person with access to the internet could provide an equal "training" experience for you and your dog. 3)NO SOCIALIZATION OR PLAY TIME. How dumb is that?! One of the main reasons an owner puts their dog (especially a puppy) in classes is to get at least a little dog to dog socialization in. Due to "insurance reasons", Debbie does NOT allow the dogs to socialize at all. If she sees you and another owner letting your dogs say hello to one another, she will RUDELY scold you as if you are a misbehaving child. It creates a lot of tension in the room. 4)The location is AWFUL. Seriously the WORST. It's in a pretty sketchy part of town. The parking lot where the front door is located is scary. Violent homeless people and druggies everywhere! And the smell of marijuana is overwhelming. And to make it worse (especially for the evening classes), they REFUSE to unlock the doors for clients until 1-2 minutes before class begins. So, you're stuck waiting in this terrifying parking lot, just hoping that no drugged up lunatic is going to mug you. 5)The training room is located down a creepy, cold staircase that leads to a black abyss under the building. (Not even exaggerated. See pics.) As for the inside, you can tell the owner tried to brighten up the place with colored mats and cheap decor- But it needs A LOT more help than that! Exposed wires (at dog chewing level), holes in the walls, grungy looking gunk on the walls and floors... The list goes on. This place looks like it'd have rats; Very run down. 6)READ THE FINE PRINT. Their cancellation policy is super strict. If you miss a class, too bad. You're out that money. 7)There is a separate "humans only orientation" that you are FORCED to pay for and attend prior to signing up for training- It is completely worthless. You won't learn anything. It just seems to be another way for this lady to get money out of you. (I'm assuming that many people who attend this "orientation" don't continue on to sign up for classes. I wish I had made that choice!) 8)The owner will constantly try to sell you products, which is annoying. It's feels like a multi-level marketing scheme. She's very pushy, and will demean you if you don't buy a product she recommends. Overall... This business is a low-class, overpriced, unhelpful, waste of time. Very unpleasant experience! I wouldn't recommend it to anybody! Look into BTheLeader Dog Training (or other options) instead. read more

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If you have a reactive/aggressive dog it's very important to not go here. I'm sure for puppy training she's great. But these techniques amplify the problems. I had to stop going before my lessons were used up. Please find a good balanced trainer, like Darla from Connecting with K9s or some other balanced trainer. It could save your dog's life. I'm sure she means well. But failure to communicate to dogs what not to do is getting them killed. The dog isn't the problem. It's the improper training. Sorry. read more

In my opinion, this lady has no clue how to deal with large breeds with resource issues. The idea of "over treating" your dog that has resource issues, especially with food, only exasperated my dogs issues and made them worse and more unstable....he has not been the same since we saw her. She definitely shows breed bias. I noticed how she interacted with my other dog much more than the dog with issues. Refusing to interact with my dog only amplified his anxiety in her building. She gets 1 star because I agreed with the positive reinforcement of the dog. She tried to peddle her special leash on us and refused to work outside her comfort zone in regards to my dog. I would not recommend her to anyone else ever. STAY AWAY AND DO NOT BELIEVE THE GOOGLE REVIEWS!!!! (Paying a search engine optimizer company enough money will bump you to the top of google searches) read more

Great class trainings and take home lessons. Debbie brings fun and positive techniques to teach you and your dog proper behavior and good manners. She provides detailed handouts on how to work with your dog at home. Our 5 month old golden retriever took to the lessons quickly and had a blast learning in class and at home. We are all much happier as a result of taking our first class and just signed up for our second. Word of caution, if you are not serious about coming to class prepared and putting in the time with your dog outside of class to learn the skills, this class will not be for you. However, if you're willing to spend an hour a week in class and train your dog at home (which is fun and good bonding), this class will be a huge benefit to your family! The lessons are far more structured than the typical big pet store. This is not a daycare, but a learning experience for human and dog. read more

When I wrote this I thought I would be continuing, save yourself some heart ache and some cash and shop around. I was WRONG before! She is kind, but my dog did not benefit from her class and it costs a bundle. What to say, what to say...first off I will be continuing my dog training with Debbie. It took a while to adjust to her teaching style, she is for sure all about the dog then about the people involved, which at times left me really frustrated. She is one of the higher priced trainers in the city but you get what you pay for. read more

Great facility, and Debbie is so supportive. You work at your pace, we never feel rushed or held back by classmates. Gracie (my Newfoundland) and I highly recommend signing up. read more

Was very disappointed in the class we took our dog to... the facility was not nice and smelled bad and the teacher has a bad attitude and doesn't have the right energy to be working with dogs or people for that matter... felt it was a waste of time and money read more

I signed up for "The Socially Secure and Adept" program with Debbie. This class cost $96 and included two sessions, both without the dog. The first was an "orientation" that was done with people who had signed up for another class as well (turns out I was the only person signed up for my class). It was about an hour and a half and although I didn't learn much I did leave the class feeling good about things and looking forward to class #2. The second class, however, was pathetic. It was about 45 minutes long and nothing more than an infomercial. Debbie sells lots of products and I'm sure many of them are good, but I think it's wrong to make me feel like the only way to make my dog behave better is by buying her products (some of which include a special blind fold for the dog, a CD of dogs barking, and special leashes). In both the classes I went to information was very slowly rationed out in a way that was obviously designed to lure me back for "Part 2" which was an ongoing set of private classes at $65/hour. I have no doubt that Debbie's training techniques work. She has a scientifically sound approach, but after $95 and two weeks we hadn't moved any further than a list of products and dietary changes that could have been covered just as effectively in an email or hand out. I would not recommend Debbie for several reasons, but one is her lack of personal connection. In a class with no one else in it she consistently phrased things as if she were speaking to a large class (ex. If your dog is set off by neighbor dog's barking. . .). When I tried to give her information specific to my dog (ex. My dog doesn't care if the neighbor's dog is barking) she ignored me and continued with the what she had planned. I've run into people who liked Debbie's classes so I think it's likely that if you stick with it she would produce good results, but given the many other good trainers in the area I would (and am!) go somewhere else. I think most trainers will let you observe a class for free. This is also true of Debbie. In fact, to her credit, she doesn't take payment until after the first class, when you are given the option of dropping the class without any charges. read more

I have taken one six-week course from Debbie. I just signed up for a second six-week course because I definitely see improvement and progress. As with all dog training, it is vitally important to work with your dog regularly. You get out of it what you put into it. Debbie was good at answering my questions when I didn't understand something or became frustrated. read more

We started working with Debbie when we adopted a 10-week-old puppy named Diesel. We wanted to get ahead of the standard dog issues of jumping and pulling; as well as build a strong understanding of basic manners. Debbie is careful to meet each dog where it is and not force anything on him or her. Diesel took some time to become comfortable with new things and Debbie met him each week where he was, weather we had processed leaps and bounds or had a slight regression. Debbie has a unique way of being able to offer advice and correction to your behaviors to obtain your desired results from your dog without making you feel as though you are in trouble. Debbie also provides real world advice to all of the common questions and is always available for follow up. The classes are in a group setting which is great because you get to see others succeeding as well. When you become frustrated or overwhelmed, Debbie is quick to notice and step in to provide extra guidance and support to assist you and your dog in progressing through the exercises and training. Debbie cares about the dogs in her classes as if they were her own and it shows in how excited the dogs are to come to class. Currently we have a well-adjusted, fully-grown 70-pound dog that walks on leash with slack, does not pull or jump, and does tricks. Most importantly, Diesel treats new people and dogs with respect. Not a day goes by that we are not grateful that we took this journey with Debbie. read more

Debbie's an excellent trainer, very knowledgeable and experienced. I've been impressed with how readily she reaches out, offering fun tips and resources for all kinds of occasions, from helping your dog through scary situations during Halloween to indoor games to play when it's dark and muddy after work and perhaps not a good walking environment. Above all she's very supportive and compassionate with dogs at all levels of learning and emotions. I have a dog who's afraid to walk any more, and this class teaching indoor games has provided oodles of different games to play for motivation, exercise, mental stimulation and just plain good times between me and her. There are games that help motivate her and games that help teach disengagement, games that strengthen muscles and games that focus on scent work. Plus, Debbie offers real-world situations in which these "games" or skills can come in handy. She has been encouraging us to record ourselves and send in the recordings so she can offer feedback to help our dog's ability to excel at the games. I've been impressed with how readily she has "met the moment" by incorporating video into her classes, trainings, and outreach. There's been so much information and group camaraderie each week my only trouble has been keeping pace! But I've seen my dog's confidence and joy come back and that has meant so much to me. Now to get started training her pesky brother.... read more

I have trained my pets for more than 20 years, using various schools. I now attend classes for motivation and a second opinion. Some dogs are naturally well adjusted. They just need to learn a few "tricks", so any trainer will do. (A dog training book will work as well.) Other dogs require a LOT of special training. A specialist like Debbie is needed to train dogs with aggression, fear, and other socialization problems. And, NO, you aren't going to fix your dog's problems in 2 weeks. I am currently enrolled with my 3rd dog. In the 10 years I've attended, her classes are better than ever. My current "student" is one who could attend anyone's classes, but I am most comfortable with Debbie. read more

I would give less than one star if I could. I have a Pitt/Shepard/Akita mix with leash reactivy issues who I adopted in October of 2019. Anyone reading this review with a similar or large breed dog looking for training please consider other options than the Well Mannered Dog. The training methods used by this company are positive reinforcement (lots and lots of treats with games, games and more games) which rarely works with leash reactivity issues in large breed dogs. I was also told it could take up to a year to "change my dog's emotions" and to not take her out hiking/walking so she wouldn't have any negative interactions with other dogs which would only make her worse. I did exactly as I was told and turns out that keeping her isolated only made her much worse. My husband and I had made some progress on our own when we first adopted her and following the guidelines above made our dog regress to being worse than when we first got her. I started doing research on training styles with large breed dogs and have learned a lot. It is imperative that the right kind of training be given for different breeds of dogs. I have found a balanced trainer who RARELY uses treats and after one visit with her I was given the skills needed to take her out hiking. The very next day after the first class with our new trainer I took her out hiking where she was in contact with multiple dogs and had no issues. Anyone reading this who is looking for training for a large/strong/dominant breed please contact Julia Bowlin w/B The Leader Dog Training. I think it is unethical for a training company to take on clients with breeds of dogs that they either have no experience with or don't know how to train appropriately. This is a common occurrence that happens; pet owners spend lots of time and money on training that just doesn't work and end up getting frustrated. Anyone reading this, please don't get frustrated and give up like I almost did. Keep doing research and you will find the right trainer for your dog! I am glad I didn't give up on my sweet girl, she is making excellent progress with our new trainer! Read all the reviews on Google as I am not the only one with this experience from this trainer. read more

I have two dogs, an elderly male whom I've had since he was a puppy and a young female I adopted from the shelter last year and who probably came from some sort of abusive situation. The young dog is a total darling with all humans, but has issues with other dogs, which wasn't clear when I adopted her, and she shows aggression toward my older dog in certain situations. I'd called Debbie, had a nice discussion with her, and set up an appointment to bring my two dogs down to her office. As she requested, I had a friend come with me to help control the dogs and I tried my best to follow her very specific set of instructions. BUT--by the time we arrived my elderly dog, who has never traveled well, was panicky and hyperventilating. My instructions were to leave my friend in the car with the 2 dogs. But since the old one was already hyperventilating and would get worse when disappeared inside, and since the parking lot was completely empty, I asked my friend to step out of the car with the one dog. Then I went in Debbie's office to fill out paper work. We said "hi," then she looked out the window, saw my dog was out on a leash and demanded that I go back and put him back in the car right away because I'd gone against her rule. So I did. My friend and I opened the car door, the young dog jumped out, then both dogs jumped in the back seat and things descended into chaos (dogs weren't fighting; they were getting on fine that day.) Then Debbie came running out of her office screaming at me that I was clearly a person who refused to follow directions and she couldn't work with me and I should leave right now. She never bothered to find out if I had a reason for asking my friend to take the older dog out of the car. She went on to scream at me that I had further violated her rules by arriving at my appointment EARLY (it was 5 or 6 minutes early, I believe-since her office is just off a major thoroughfare I'd been worried about being late.) Now, I can certainly see that she doesn't want two cars full of potentially aggressive dogs arriving at the same time. But like I said, she's just off a large thoroughfare and it can be hard to control arrival times to the fraction of a minute. If Debbie wants control at that level she needs to fine tune her set up. Well, my friend, who is a psychologist, was fairly astounded at Debbie's behavior.I I'll let the incident speak for itself. Who knows? Maybe she was just having a bad day and she's great most of the time. I'm just glad I didn't have to spend anything other than gas money for the experience of being yelled at. read more

I took part in Debbie's 10 week emotional training for puppies course and was very disappointed. The classes are in a group and fairly expensive which would be fine if the end results justified the cost, unfortunately they don't. Here are a few of my major issues with the training: 1) Debbie regularly cut classes short, and on more than one occasion was late to start. There were a couple of times when she had a conflict and the class was rescheduled for a later weekend, which is understandable for a 10 week class. However the one weekend I had a conflict and informed her well in advance that I couldn't make the class, she charged me an extra 75$ to make up the class in a private lesson. I would have expected a little more flexibility on her end given her own time management issues. 2) Its clear her curriculum is a repeated system and isn't customized in anyway for the new dogs she's working with. Furthermore, after over 10 weeks of training with Debbie, she couldn't remember my dogs name or my dogs gender (not joking). If she can't remember the name or gender of my dog, it certainly didn't make me feel like she was remembering the issues I was hoping to address with training. 3) After the 4th or 5th class the new training effectively comes to a halt. I was diligent about working with my puppy, and understand that the puppy's comfort level will dictate the speed of training. I certainly didn't expect training results to take place over night, That being said,it made the last 5 classes feel completely unnecessary and left me with a incomplete feeling when the last class was finished. It was at this point when Debbie pitched further training or private lessons. I might have been compelled to continue training had there not been the issues listed above. Long story short, it felt like she cared MUCH more about her business and our money than the welfare of my puppy. I'd give it 1 star out of 5, except the training materials she provides weekly are very good. read more

I have been taking my dog Bingo to the Well Mannered Dog since September 2007. We had gotten Bingo from a Shelter and he did have some confidence issues, did not know how to come when called, was not afraid of cars, and pulled on the leash. We wanted him to learn dog agility and started off with Buddies for Life Program, then the Out and About Class, where he was taught how to behave around people eating food. We even took a field trip to an outdoor restaurant. He now does the Advanced Agility Class. Bingo was a good dog when we got him, but now he is a great dog, a little gentleman. We are now taking our Boston Terrier puppy to classes, she has graduated from the Impeccable Manners Class and is now attending the Out and About Class. I think Debbie is the greatest, and both my dogs Love her. She not only helps you teach your dog basic obedience and stop bad behavior problems but will help you adjust your training around you and your dogs special needs. Sophie our Boston Terrier was afraid of the leash and will some hard work and some training adjustments, she is now successfully walking on a leash. She teaches as a group, yet caters to you and your dogs needs. Every class she asks us individually if we have any questions or concerns about the training we are currently working on. She will even take time out of her busy schedule to help you if you are having some training or behavior difficulties, via e-mail or phone, or if just a basic question on Facebook. My dogs and I both look forward to their weekly class time at the Well Mannered Dog. read more

I didn't learn really any good things for my border collie . When i tried to aske debby for help with a question i didn't understand she was rude and ignored my friend and i . i asked for a refund the first day of class and she wouldnt give all of it back . only some of it . I think its rediculas that she charges for her products that are way less inexspencive in anormal store . I do not agree with her teaching techniques read more

I've taken two dogs threw Debbie's Classes. One the in mid-90s and one in 2013. She is very unclear and will not answer questions. You can't understand what she is saying due to echos in the room and her high pitched voice. She's very very rude to her customers. She's great with dogs but such a poor instructor it's not even funny. ASK AROUND! It's a known fact around Eugene that Debbie is bad with people. After Debbie let my pup get beat up by a much much larger dog during class for the second time I quit the class. Choose another trainer. Oddly enough petsmart has great dog trainers. Good luck! read more

My husband and I have taken classes with Debbie and our two Shelties. She is excellent. However, she DOES expect you to spend time between classes working with your dog. If you're looking for a laid back, social outing for you and your dog, this is not the place. Debbie is very serious about setting goals for your dog and helping you to meet them. Each week she will hand out a "homework" assignment, specifically tailored to your dog's needs and what you need to work on for the following week. She is always available by phone or email to answer questions and make helpful suggestions. Yes, she does have products that she talks about, but we never felt pressured to buy anything and always felt that Debbie was mostly trying to educate owners on how important nutrition is for their pets. We have gone to three other places in Eugene for training classes. Two of them were very good, one we quit after a couple of weeks. We have also participated in several obedience classes in Calif. getting one of our Shelties ready to compete. We have had several different trainers. Although we have met some excellent dog trainers, we still feel that Debbie is the best. We would like to see her offer classes for AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy and Canine Good Citizen certification. read more