Dog Aggression Training

Bonnie has been so helpful with training my stubborn Rottie. The techniques she has taught me have improved me and my dogs life. Bonnie is clear with communication and is quick to come by when we need a follow up. We tried other trainings before Bonnie with no results. I get instant results with the things she has taught me.

Peter was amazing and so helpful! He worked with us for 5 hours the first visit and gave us some many tools to start building our cofidence and training with Marvel. I feel so much better about getting our pup back to the fun, loving guy we know he can be.
Peter was super patient, explained everything so well, and gave us a ton of tools for each problem area we gave him. We already see small changed in Marvel and it gives us a ton of hope. We are excited to continue working with Peter and are super hopeful in our new training and routine. If you need help with you pup, give Peter a call!!!

Josh was very helpful in guiding me to make the appropriate corrections with my dog's behavior. Xena made tremendous improvement during the visit and I'm sure will continue to do so with the tools and lessons learned in my session.

My 4 year old Pomeranian had a lot of behavioral issues that I was struggling so hard to correct. He was always territorial of his food, places in the house and me and would even resort to biting to guard these things. He would also bark nonstop in the house when he heard dogs outside and no command could stop him. He would also be very reactive to other dogs in public which would always stress me out when we were out to the point where I wasn’t able to enjoy being out with him. This always made me so sad to have to leave him in the house all the time because of his reactivity. I was desperate for change and was so scared that he wouldn’t be able to change since he is already almost 4 and has very severe habits. However, Justin has completely changed him. I was skeptical when they said we would see results within the first session but it was absolutely true. After just one session, he became the quietest dog on our block. He wouldn’t respond at all to the dogs barking around our neighborhood. He became so well behaved, some family members became worried because of how quiet he stayed. The biggest miracle is him not being territorial anymore. This has ensured my family of complete safety around the house. I never thought my dog would be able to learn how to heel, but Justin showed him how in the first session which completely astonished me. A few days after our first session, I was able to take my dog out to the mall and it was the first time I was able to enjoy being out with him. He would quietly wait under the table while we ate and didn’t react to dogs he would come across while we were walking. Justin has been absolutely amazing. It is so comforting to have someone of his caliber and expertise guiding you and genuinely caring about you and your dog. He makes every effort to make sure he is able to help with whatever you need and always emphasizes that he is only one text away. He always finds a way to fit you into his schedule and is a complete joy to be around. When they say he is the last trainer you’ll ever need, they mean it. Investing in training my dog has been one of the best decisions I have ever made. Both me and my dog have become less stressed and are both now able to enjoy life to the fullest.

Scott was incredible. I cannot believe how quickly Milo responded to his techniques. He usually loses his marbles and barks and gets defensive over everyone, but after 15 minutes of Scott being present he was sitting at his feet being his buddy and loved him. I have seen my dog do this with anyone. I recommend him beyond words!!!

Bark Busters training helped both dogs stop their bad habits fairly quickly. Yoshi learned to stop biting hands/pants. Bailey aggressive behavior was quickly corrected. Strongly believe that the training will improve tremendously.

Amazing! We were so frustrated - our dogs changed in a week and kept wanting to kill each other. Orlando had them changed in 1 visit & gave us training exercises and we have our calm dogs back.

So very happy to see significant improvement in just a few hours of work.

Johnny from Bark Busters has been amazing! He’s extremely knowledgeable, communicates clearly, and really took the time to understand my dog’s needs. We’ve already seen huge improvement in my dog’s reactivity thanks to his guidance. Highly recommend!

Deb was great with helping us learn why our dog was behaving the way she was, and gave us useful tips to help correct her behavior. While correcting her excessive barking is a work in progress, we did see improvement immediately. Our dog is becoming more comfortable around other people and is barking less the more we work with her.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "Life-Changing. Truly"

I don’t write reviews lightly and I especially don’t write emotional ones but Bark Busters of San Diego quite literally gave me my life back.

For years, I lived in silence and stress. I couldn’t leave my home without my dogs barking, howling, scratching at their crates, and spiraling into panic. The mouth watering alone was enough to break me. So instead, I stayed home. I adjusted my life around their anxiety. I suffered quietly because I loved them and didn’t know what else to do.

Until one day I broke down completely.

I realized this wasn’t living not for me, and not for them. We deserved calm. We deserved peace. We deserved to live our "best" lives and this wasn’t it.

Some people complain in reviews that dog training “doesn’t work.” Let me be very clear: anxiety whether in humans or dogs is not something you fix by checking a box. A true behavioral therapist understands one thing above all else, "awareness". Anxiety comes from surroundings and perceived safety. The work is learning how to respond and create calm and that takes consistency.

I spent three straight weeks training four hours a day, every single day. I cried. I doubted myself. I wanted to quit. But I followed the Bark Busters program exactly as taught—daily simulations, real-world scenarios, repetition, and patience.

And then something incredible happened.

My dogs slept.
They relaxed.
They trusted.

Today, I can leave my home and my dogs are calm, quiet, and peacefully sleeping, knowing I’m coming back. Visitors come and go with ease. My 9- and 6-year-old Maltipoos are relaxed, confident, and happy. And so am I.

Here’s the truth people don’t want to hear, there is no magic pill. There is no shortcut. The training never “ends” because leadership and love are lifelong commitments. And honestly? That’s the gift. Once it becomes part of your daily life, it feels natural. I walk more. The cuddles are calmer. I’m no longer being climbed on out of anxiety I’m being loved in peace.

And about the cost? Think about it. You’ve already spent more on multiple trainers, treats, wasted time, emotional exhaustion, and a very unhappy household. Bark Busters’ training is guaranteed for life. If you move. If life changes. If new challenges come you’re supported. That matters more than people realize.

Justin and his team are beyond words. Compassionate. Honest. Direct. They don’t just train dogs, they train families.

Value your pet’s life. Value the short, precious time we get with them. Happiness for everyone in the home is worth the work.
🐾💛

We reached out to Ryan and BarkBusters to help with our 3 dogs (9, 8.5, & 4 years old). While our dogs are super sweet, they were a mess; reactive, pullers, no boundaries, dog aggressive. We noticed a huge change after just one session! Today we were able to take the to a park with other dogs. They are more polite, so easy to walk, and sweeter than ever. This training was a game changer, we couldn't recommend Ryan more strongly.

I was impressed how easy the dogs were to train once I understood how to communicate with them. The education you get from Bark Busters is vary valueable and really enhances the life of your dogs.

Met with Deb for about 1 1/2 hrs. She taught me the best way to communicate with my dog, and gave me great tips and advise to help me with my newly adopted dog. It worked beyond my wildest dream! He is now a very good boy! Totally recommend Bark Busters!

I want to share my deep gratitude for the incredible work Bark Busters did for our family. We have two female dogs from the same litter, and we had no idea that this could lead to serious behavioral issues. Unfortunately, it did. They started fighting over everything—attention, food, you name it—and at one point, I ended up with a bite that required stitches. With a toddler in the house, I was really worried about safety and heartbroken at the thought of having to rehome one of our dogs.

Enter Bark Busters. We decided to give professional training one last shot, and I am so thankful we did. James, the owner and our trainer, was absolutely wonderful. He gave us practical, effective strategies and a solid plan that we followed closely. Now, our dogs are so much better behaved. We haven’t had any more fights, and I’ve been able to keep both of them together in our home, which means the world to me.

One of the best parts is that Bark Busters offers lifetime support for the dogs they train. If we ever need a refresher, they’ll come back out and help. They even offer to assist if, heaven forbid, the dogs ever needed to be rehomed. It’s been a life-changing experience, and I can’t recommend them enough. Thanks to James and Bark Busters, our family is whole and happy.

We just had our second training session with Bark Busters, and within 10 minutes, Elly was walking on leash at our side. He gave us some tips to handle barking across fences at dogs as well! We're super happy with the training, and Elly's barking has become much better and so much easier and simpler to manage. Guests can come in without fear of getting barked at for 10 minutes while we try to calm Elly down.

We are working with Greg Kleva in northern New Jersey. We have a new grandchild, our first, and while our puppy is generally wonderful, she just isn’t good with children. We had tried other dog training, but nothing really worked. We didn't know what to do. We found Greg and Bark Buster’s, and at first, we were very apprehensive because of what seemed like a large upfront payment. I have to say though that after 5 hours of training our dog has been transformed in the most positive way. She's great with our granddaughter, and we have a really good path to a happy, safe home. Greg himself is fantastic. Experienced, responsive, respectful, warm. We love him. And the Bark Busters methodology simply works. Greg has been worth every cent.

Patiance & good understanding of dogs behavior. Explained behavioral issues and how to address them properly. Dove into nutrition and provided feedback for healthier lives.

We contacted Bark Busters to help with our rescued boy, Cam. We rescued him in November 2024. He is a very nervous dog and requires lots of direction and attention. He presents to have high anxiety at times. Cam and I started off a bit rough. He was feeling the need to protect my husband when we were both showing him affection. Unfortunately, he did lash out at me one time which resulted in a bite. This led me to reach out for help since we/I wanted to give Cam a chance to have a good life and for me to be able to be comfortable in our own home with our boy. That is the back story. Today, Cam and I have come a long way. We have had three sessions so far, several months apart. Cam is now respecting me differently, and we now know how to read him and recognize when his anxiety is escalating. Greg is amazing at our first lesson, he hit the nail on the head, assessing Cam to have anxiety that was coming from fear and not aggression. Using Greg's techniques has been life changing for all of us. I am still very careful watching Cam's body language and eyes to be sure I am not approaching him when he is in an anxious state. What has been most helpful is learning how to speak dog language and be aware of body language (both human and dog bodies). Also allowing Cam to come to me for affection has definitely helped to grow our relationship. We are so grateful and fortunate to have connected with Bark Busters! Greg was on time for all our lessons and shows up with all the tools needed for our time together. He obviously loves what he does, it shows in his ability to be personable and professional at the same time. Thank you Greg for your encouragement and honesty and trust! I highly recommend Greg!

We have two dogs: a 6.5-year-old, 80-pound Black Lab mix, and an almost-1-year-old Corgi mix. The lab mix has always been pretty good inside, but we got her right before COVID started. Whenever the door opens, she freaks out and barks at and jumps all over whoever is coming in. Outside, she cannot be trusted off a leash, because she will just literally run away and come back when she feels like it. The Corgi mix is a sweet guy, but we got our first notice from our HOA that we have a nuisance dog. He has been incessantly barking in the hallway when we're out of the house. Walking them together is a nightmare because they both zip off in different directions, and you become an acrobat trying to manage the leashes. We attended initial 8-week training sessions at PetSmart with both of them, and they can sit and lay down, but anything more than that is wishful thinking, and a sit/stay does not really translate into actual obedience. Scott helped us fix almost all of that in about 90 minutes. Scott's approach is to talk to dogs like you're a dog. To get their attention, you basically growl at them and imitate (!) snapping at them if necessary (I want to emphasize that there is no physical punishment for the dogs), assert leadership, and then, when they are doing the right thing, talk to them sweetly. My husband and I love this because it's so simple and consistent. We don't have to remember when to use "stay" vs "wait." Which hand signal do we use for this command vs that command? It's "bah!" and "gooood!" The first session was all indoor behavior, and since then we've had two sets of friends over and gotten the lab calmed in about 2 min vs 10 before. The corgi is much less growly/barky about hallway noises. Since we did leash training in the second session, both dogs follow respectfully on walks. Like, it was a near instant improvement. It's not perfect, but with the lab it's gonna take some time because she's had 6 years of thinking she's the boss! But the technique is so simple that it's easy to apply to new situations. The lab likes to jump up to steal food from the counter at my dad's house. A few "bah!"s with follow-up "gooood"s and that stopped cold after 5 years of it being a habit, and we didn't need to leash her the entire time we were there! It's expensive, but the speed at which we've seen improvement has made it very worth it, and knowing we can call Scott for any stuff that comes up in the future makes the price easier to handle. For example, we're hoping just the general increased respect/deference from the lab mix will allow us to eventually let her off leash, but if it doesn't, we know we can call to address that directly. Highly recommend Scott and BarkBusters!

I'm so happy we went with Bark Busters. Karen does a wonderful job. We contacted her because our Charlie has fear-based aggression and wants to guard. She gave us practical strategies that addressed our concerns. As a bonus, she also helped us with strategies for Chloe's pulling on the leash. We tried other dog training where you learn things you don't care about instead of really helping address the behavior you want to change and I wish we had come to Bark Busters first. Highly recommend!

We have had one session with Deb, but she has been so great and Dani is responding very well to the homework that she gave us. I have texted Deb with a few questions before our next appointment, and she always responds in a timely manner with helpful, thorough answers! I love the approach that Bark Busters takes on helping people understand their dogs behaviors, and would recommend this service!

Steve is the best. He saw right away where we needed help and within 15 minutes, things with our Vinny were on a more positive path. He knows exactly what he's doing and is incredibly patient with us as dog parents. Thank you, Steve!

John is patient, kind and understanding. He loves dogs and people! We look forward to the future of the dogs!

Bark Busters has completely changed both my life and my dog’s! I was close to re-homing my third dog because of his behavior—he was resource guarding and attacking the other dogs when I was around.
After starting training with Karen and learning the Bark Busters methods, everything turned around. He is now the best-behaved of all my dogs, and our relationship has never been stronger.
I’m so grateful for this program
and highly recommend it to anyone struggling with their dog’s behavior or just want to teach your dog important training! Comes with all the tools and information needed and easy to implement into my day to day.

Aurora already seems to understand the changes we have practiced. I feel confident and set up well with the correct tools. My family already looks more at ease with Aurora and training. Thank you!

Dramatic change in our dog in just one session! Stopped lunging on the leash immediately. We look forward to a more calm family situation.

Scott was amazing. We knew we were the problem and needed the tools to train our dogs. He came in and gave us the confidence and the tools to be the decision makers in our home and the leaders of the pack. Using the tools given during the training have already caused a noticeable difference in our dogs behavior.