I cannot say enough good things about Dog Over Breed. I have entrusted my dogs over many years to…read moretheir care - first with Max & Zoey, then with my current dogs, Destiny and Montana. Mohit and his staff have made a tremendous difference in the behavior and confidence of my dogs. Through training, socialization, structure, and positive reinforcement, they have helped my dogs become better pets at home. The facility is clean, well maintained, and professionally managed. What I appreciate most is that dogs are treated as individuals, and the staff take the time to understand their unique personalities and needs. My dogs currently attend daycare on a regular basis, but have also done short-term boarding and benefited from the socialization and training offered. Dog Over Breed also provides regular grooming! I trust Dog Over Breed completely and would highly recommend them to anyone looking for quality care, training, daycare, boarding or grooming for their dogs.

This place is absolutely unacceptable, and I regret ever trusting them with my dog…read more Even two years later, I still feel strongly enough to warn others. After I left an honest review about my experience, they responded by threatening to sue both me and a rescue I volunteered with at the time. That alone should raise serious concerns about how they handle accountability. I visited daily for the entire month my dog was there, so what I'm saying is based on what I personally saw over and over again--not a one-time impression. Their "training" methods included physically poking dogs in the side and neck. The dogs did not appear to be properly fed and did not have consistent access to water. Over that month, I watched dogs lose weight, become withdrawn, and show clear signs of stress and shutdown behavior. I also personally saw a dog who was extremely underweight, had visible sores, and smelled strongly of urine and feces, as if she had been left sitting in it. No dog should ever be in that condition--especially in a place people are paying to care for and train their animals. It honestly concerns me that they still have positive reviews, because in my experience, the longer a dog stays there, the more concerning the changes become. I'm posting this again now because someone I know recently considered bringing a foster dog there. I made it very clear that no dog in my care will ever go anywhere near this place. If you care about your dog, do your research, ask questions, and trust what you see. I would strongly urge anyone considering this facility to visit frequently and unannounced.

I'm going to dive right Into it. Don't waste your time on other trainers!!!! If only I could have…read morefound Josh sooner! I have a pretty fearful cane corso, and if anyone knows this breed, you simply must train them. We had our first session with Josh and it was nothing short of amazing! Josh showed, and taught us more In one session than anywhere else we took him. He truly understands dogs and their humans. He spent so much time with us helping us understand what my dog Rocco needs. I look forward to our next sessions, and after our first four? Yep I'm setting Rocco up again. You just can't go wrong. Josh has a big heart, and not only was he incredibly patient with my nervous 100 pound baby he was so nice to my human 12 year old too! He took time to learn about our family, and really made my son feel good. Thank you Josh the Bank family loves you!

Josh is a genuinely kind person with a heart of gold, but based on our experience, I would not…read morerecommend him as a dog trainer. We paid over $6,000 for a one-month board-and-train program for our German Shepherd. One of the first things that concerned us was that he told us he had "his dogs" teaching our dog how to be a dog. We expected that, for the price, our dog would receive consistent, hands-on training from the trainer himself. Because the training took place over the Christmas holidays, it felt like our dog did not receive the level of attention and daily training we had anticipated. We also expected that, at the end of the program, we as the owners would receive several training sessions to learn how to maintain and reinforce the work at home. That never happened. When our dog came home, she was still reactive, continued chewing things as she had before, and overall showed little to no improvement. Josh gave us a spray collar (citronella or a similar scent) and instructed us to use it whenever she barked. I wasn't comfortable using it because it felt like it addressed the symptoms rather than the underlying behavior, so I chose not to use it. He also suggested that she was simply too active and that we should consider rehoming her if we couldn't handle her. That advice turned out to be completely wrong for our dog. Afterward, we worked with a local trainer for three months who focused on daily, balanced, hands-on training for both our dog and us--without spray collars or gimmicks. The transformation was remarkable. Her reactivity is gone, she learned how to behave appropriately, and we realized she wasn't "too active" at all. She was simply a family dog who needed consistent guidance and proper training. Looking back, I feel that the board-and-train program was not worth the money we paid. While Josh was always pleasant and well-intentioned, our experience was that the program did not deliver the training or results we were promised. Don't waste your money. Josh may be a great guy to rescue dogs, but in our experience he does not know how to do reactivity training or work alongside owners to change challenging behaviors.

We truly didn't want this experience to end!…read more We cannot recommend Tailored Dog Training enough, especially our amazing trainer, David! From the beginner classes straight through to intermediate, David was exceptionally patient, kind, and informative. His communication is top-notch, and he has a wonderful way of clearly directing handlers on exactly how to manage and guide their dogs. I brought my 1-year-old Shih Tzu Bella to class, and the transformation and confidence we both gained are incredible. David made every session fun and rewarding. If I could give David and Tailored Dog Training 10+ stars, I would in a heartbeat! We love you David! Thank you for an amazing experience!

We loved training with Rachelle here. She's a great teacher and so good with the dogs AND the…read morepeople. The small classes are nice and help keep the dogs focused. Our pup was totally different after his first round of classes here, and we will be back soon for another round!

John is fantastic. I really like his style and his methods have changed our world. This guy knows…read moredogs. This is not your average dog/puppy training joint. I am sure he can handle any issue with ease but his ability to deal with behavioral issues is truly astounding. He used to be a policeman and trains police dogs. Anyways you get the feeling when you talk to him that you are dealing with a master. I have been riding and training horses for over 20 years so I have experienced many different animal handling techniques and training personalities. I trained my own dog and I have been getting compliments on her behavior for over a decade (john even complimented me :). That being said, to me, John is more than impressive. My BF's dog, Hoku, is a 4 year old mostly Pit who used to think that she was supreme ruler universe and it was declared a state of party all the time. Now don't get me wrong, it is wonderful to have bouncing wiggly dynamic ball of joy but when she doesn't listen for beans that sucks. I mean why should the supreme ruler of the universe have to come when she is called? Or not jump on guests any ol' time she feels like it? Therein lies the issues. John took a great approach; we all sat down and talked for a while about the dogs in general, the household, habits and points of contention. He identified many things that we were doing that allowed Ms. Thang to get away with massive social faux pas. She had habits with my BF and I kept trying to train her like my Aussie mix. Note to self: herding dogs and bully breeds are totally different with separate instincts that drive their actions. As Walter would say "I did not know that." (big lebowski) After discussing the issues and such, we went out to his training area with the dogs. He put Hoku on a gentle leader. It is basically a halter for dogs; gives you control of their head and where the head goes the body follows. We both did a lot of practice work under his supervision. He critiqued our handling abilities and gave us lots of good tips. My favorite was the first time I started to walk Hoku, she laid down on her back like a lump. He told me to go ahead and keep walking. A few seconds of being drug across the ground was all she needed; she popped up and started walking with me like a normal dog. Victory is mine! Over 8 months later, we have continued to use John's techniques and everyone has remarked on how well behaved Hoku is nowadays. Anytime she starts to slip back into her old habits we go right back to the basics and exercises John taught us. I have spent more money than I care to disclose on trainers in my life and experience tells me John is worth every penny.

When our ancient cattledog passed away, we went in our grief down to Oakland Animal Services and…read morepicked out the mushiest, strongest, most stubborn Bullmastiff you have ever seen to be the new "girlfriend" for our older male Boxer. Our big lug Molly is a honeybear, but in no time, she turned out to be aggressive towards dogs and anything on wheels--not easy when you are trying to walk a 110 pound dog in an urban area. We really felt out of our element, and found John on the advice of a family friend who has work in a well-respected vet clinic and trained dogs for years. John was and continues to be fantastic for Molly the Mastiff and for us. He helped us identify the behaviors that can be modified, versus behaviors that would be "deal-breakers" (which we were concerned about, although we'd never take a dog back to the shelter--we were fearful for our other dog). John gave is some very practical advice for managing our beast in our home--feeding routines etc to keep our other dog safe, and taught us how to walk her so she would heel, and be manageable even when excited. We continue our training with John and will be taking Molly back next week so we can work on "come," trying to get her to come off leash, with the aid of the radio collar. John really understands dog psychology--he asks good questions and can determine why a dog acts a certain way--really helpful in correcting the behavior. I was also impressed with his knowledge and ability to train really big dogs and dogs that show aggression. He knew a lot about Mastiffs and I can tell he doesn't shy away from the biggest, toughest cases. I'm really sad because I am seeing a lot of Bullmastiffs in the Oakland Shelter these days and I am worried they are going to become the next "Pitbull" fad--people breeding dogs they can't care for or manage because they look tough. I'm sooo relieved we found John so we can work through our issues with Molly and give her a loving forever home.

We called Hope right when we moved into our new house, and our two dogs had gone through a lot of…read morestress from packing up and moving. The more anxious of the dogs, a three-year old Schipperke (HIGH ENERGY) seemed constantly frustrated and anxious, and whenever we had done training with him in the past (we had done puppy courses, along with private classes at a large PetStore) he would understand the training, but would never consistently listen in all situations. If he was too stimulated or distracted, he'd ignore our commands and just do whatever he wanted. Hope came to our house and helped us problem-solve how we could make our dogs day-to-day lives and routines better for both of them. She suggested we completely start over with our training for our dogs, even though he already knew "Sit" "Stay" "Come", and it was SO WORTH IT! My fiance and I joke that Hope did as much training for the dogs as she did for us humans. Now our dogs, even Mr. High Energy, listen to us consistently and are happier, more confident dogs for it. We are so glad we called Hope, she taught us so much about how to communicate effectively to our dogs--it really has raised their quality of life. No more frustration barking and anxiety!

Hope Verban It's truly gifted with animals. She trained myself and my daughter with our two dogs in…read more2007... I am posting this because I have recommended her to many of my friends and realized I never posted a review! From the moment she came to our home to assess our dogs I knew it was a fit. At that point I realized we Needed the training just as much as our beloved dogs. Hope came to our home once a week consistently for training if I must say it was so much fun! One of our dogs went on to win the good citizenship award given by the AKC During assessment for Therapy dogs international. Thank you Hope! Our pooches are still thriving! Kona and Coco Mullet rom Benicia

While I don't have a dog of my own, I have had the pleasure of working with Alex for a few years at…read morea local animal shelter and seeing firsthand his interaction with dogs. i can't think of a person more well-suited to train your dog. Alex is EXTREMELY patient and understands each dog's unique behavior and personality. When you observe him interacting with dogs, you can immediately see the enjoyment he gets from them and his obvious love of dogs. Alex is very knowledge about the different breeds and their particular temperaments and works with each dog to help them become the "best dog they can be". Besides being wonderful with dogs, Alex is also wonderful with people. He is very thorough in explaining dog behavior and will make sure you understand completely how to work with and train your dog to have the best results in resolving any behavior problems. Even people that are clueless about dogs (like me), Alex never talks down to them or makes them feel embarrassed by asking a dumb question. Whether your dog is shy with people, jumps up on everyone they meet, is reactive to other dogs, or just needs some basic "manners" work, Alex is the trainer to see. Your dog will thank you for it;)

I adopted an abandoned and neglected working breed dog, and despite working with dogs myself for…read moremany years, wanted some more assistance with her. Who do dog pros go to when they need to consult with someone for their tough cases? Alex at Waggology! In a short time this stressed and tuned out dog has become happy, goofy, obedient, and focused, all while being respected and treated with kindness. Alex really thinks outside the box and takes his time with you to build a foundation that will help with any obstacle you and your dog may face. The relationship and trust that results from his methods are definitely worth it. I couldn't be more pleased!

Chris, the owner and trainer for What's Up Dog, has incredible knowledge and understandings of dog…read morebehavior. He demonstrates best practices and then gives us and our dog valuable feedback as we learn the techniques. Our 1 year old lab learned key commands such as "off" and "wait" our first lesson with Chris. This was absolutely key for us. Now she's walking without pulling. We do use an electronic buzzer, sparingly, to guide her first attempts. Chris includes it in his price. We love that Chris comes to our house, and once a month we meet up at Hidden Valley Park with his other clients so our dogs can improve their social skills. We like that Chris charged us one flat fee and his work is guaranteed, for however long it takes. He's been generous with sharing social skills training with our dog's twin sister at the park. Make life with your dog an exceptionally pleasant experience by hiring Chris.

Chris is awesome! We got a new puppy back in June and soon after we got her we got in touch with…read moreChris for basic training. She responded so well with his ways, and as owners so did we! After about 4 months or so after we "graduated" we started having some behavioral issues with our puppy. I texted Chris to help us with these issues and he responded right away and booked a session with us that same week! He really knows what he is doing and is great to work with! I HIGHLY recommend him!

My rescue dog has had issues with dog reactivity from his time at the Shelter. The issue got worst…read morewith him becoming reactive to anything moving after his PTLO surgery and his diagnosis with early onset arthritis on his two front elbows. We went through 5 trainers and it was to the point where I was so desperate I was considering hard core old school training with choke collars etc. We lucked out when we found Kelly and Shane. Shane has worked tirelessly with us every week for a year now and none of my friends recognize my dog because of how calm and composed he is when they visit. Some even asked me if I adopted another dog with he same coloring. He has progressed so much on his reactivity to moving targets that I can now even consider when we will be able to walk in public with dogs around without him barking or lunging, something I had given up for years now.