Dog Training
My Approach
I am a professional dog training who offers play based training to dogs in Sudbury Massachusetts, and surrounding towns. Growing up with my families boxers, my connection with animals began at a very young age. After graduating college, I adopted my dog Bruno, a stray dog from Texas who came with a number of challenges, including a very intense prey drive that I was unequipped to handle. Little did I know, the journey Bruno would take me on, and ultimately lead me to turn my passion for dogs into a career.
After years of spending hours a day hiking with packs of dogs and observing them in their natural environment, I had developed a keen understanding of dog body language and communication. I wanted to take my knowledge a step further so I enrolled in Ivan Balabanov’s school for dog trainers, Training Without Conflict (TWC). Ivan is one of the most successful and well respected dog trainers in the world. I’m extremely proud to have graduated from Ivan’s intensive school and am now part of a select group of trainers world wide, certified through Ivan. Becoming a TWC certified trainer has allowed me to grow exponentially as a trainer and connect with dogs on a much deeper level with the concepts I’ve learned.
My dog training methods are largely based on the TWC philosophy which relies heavily on play to motivate dogs, connect with them and teach them concept that are utlizied in real life. I place great importance on the dogs emotional state and strive for our training to be something they highly enjoy. Rather than solely relying on treats to motivate a dog, if we tap into their instinctual drives, we can take our training to much higher level. I’m passionate about giving dogs a sense of purpose by providing them with positive outlets for such instincts. I believe building a strong relationship between owner and dog is essential and the first step in training. Establishing trust, cooperation, compliance, and clear communication, are all things we can build through play and games. I do not believe in one size fits all training plans and instead approach each dog as a unique individual. My training is based on what they enjoy, what they’re good at, what they’re bred for, and who they were meant to be, as all of this varies from dog to dog. My goal with training every dog is to bring the dog and owner closer together as a team, with clear communication and mutual goals.
Board and Train Programs
What it is
Our board and train option is a multi-week, intensive training program, customized to meet your dogs individual needs and goals. We will teach your dogs new many concepts, so that afterwards, all you have to do is maintain the training.
Basic Obedience
For young dogs with no behavioral issues, our board and trains are typically three weeks. During this time, your dog will learn reliable off leash recall, strong obedience commands (such as sit, stay, and down), and loose leash walking. Along with improved impulse control and learning proper social skills and manners.
Behavior Modification
For dogs with behavioral issues, we typically recommend a longer training period, of around 6 weeks. We want to ensure enough time to change the dogs mindset so that they are making good decisions out of habit, rather than because of external reinforcement. This way the dog goes home with training that sticks, instead of fading away as is common with shorter behavioral modification programs.
What we do
Dogs in our board and train program are fully integrated into our home and family life. This helps set them up for success once returning to their own home environment. We take only one dog at a time for training, so that they receive our undivided attention. During their stay, dogs in our board and train program will be integrated into our daily hiking groups. Not only will this give them exercise and enjoyment, but they will learn solid recall and socialization from other dogs. They will also receive daily one on one training sessions, which are physical and heavily based on play. We will also take your dog into public places and practice what they learn in real life scenarios.
Your dog will thoroughly enjoy their time with us and will learn many new concepts that will help them to become the best version of themselves. Personally, we do not aim to produce a dog that is robotic, suppressed or doing everything we ask but only because they have no other choice. Instead, our goal is to have a dog that feels happy, confident and free, with an owner that has a strong relationship with the dog and a high level of control.
Pricing
We charge $500 per week for our board and train program. This includes a free in person consult.