Client Reviews and Testimonials

We brought home a little rescue puppy, who came with such a bad rep that she was kicked out of the Humane Society program with San Quentin! Apparently she tried to nip the nose off an inmate. After a relaxing couple of hours with our trainer, Karen, our unsocialized little pup was paying attention, sitting calmly, and even walking on a leash. And all of this without having to use treats. I highly recommend Karen and the Bark Busters' training approach. Permalink

The presentation of the training techniques was easy to understand and interesting. With the results we have seen, I have to tell everyone about Bark Busters. John, thank you so much. Rusty is getting so much better and so are Mark and I. Permalink

Our trainer was very thorough in the explanation of the training techniques. The results were amazing! Thanks, John! We were happy that treats were not involved in the process, just positive praise and correction. John was very personable and polite. He was great with the humans and the dog. I will definitely talk it up to my dog friends. We are glad we chose Bark Busters. The home training was personalized and all the "homework" will help us train our dog well. Permalink

The training methods were easy to follow and understand. It was interesting to know the behavior of dogs and why they do what they do. We observed noticeable results right away. Our dog walked well on a leash very quickly. We were pleased with Bark Busters natural methods and that our puppy responds to vocal commands without a treat. We are pleased with how quickly our six month old puppy has learned. She walks without pulling, she retrieves the paper and obeys our verbal commands. Permalink

John was very detailed in explaining and teaching us how to train our dogs. He also was very friendly in training us. Mya and Oliver responded very well and were on their best behavior by the end of the session. Radar did well, but was a bit difficult from time to time and needs more work. We were amazed at how much of a response was received from all the dogs with nothing more than voice commands. The first session ran a little longer than we expected, but was jam packed with good information. This was by far the best training ever received for our dogs. We would gladly refer John's services to others. We were very pleased with our first session and will undoubtedly set up more down the road as we advance. Permalink

JOHN IS AN EXCELLENT TRAINER! His approach is clear, concise and his delivery is comfortable, yet direct. He helped us make sense of our 2 dogs' behavior and our response to it. The training makes sense and is something we can realistically implement in our home. Permalink

EXTREMELY INTERESTING AND ENJOYABLE! It really 'connected the dogs' for us as far as understanding dog behavior! Permalink

Our only regret is that we did not call Lynne from Bark Busters the minute we brought home our new dog from the Humane Society. Buddy was an abandoned, neglected dog that started out very friendly and loving, but once he became comfortable in our environment, he became aggressive and overly protective to the point that we couldn't have anyone over to our house without fear of them being bitten by our dog. I knew that the usual training programs from Petsmart or the Humane Society wouldn't work on the specific problem we were having, as Buddy responded to heel, sit, stay, etc. rather well. This was something deeper that we assumed was related to his past experiences with his former owner. We were very frustrated and felt we might have to surrender the dog since we couldn't deal with his behavior. Based on their website and other reviews, it seemed that Bark Busters could be the ones to help. Lynne came out and sat down with us, discussed how the program would work, and observed Buddy's behavior. She was able to discern that Buddy, who is a Alaskan Malamute/ Lab mix, had a very strong need for a "pack" environment, and needed a strong owner to lead his behavior. He was not getting enough leadership from us, so he felt he had to take over and be the boss. Thus the assertive, often dangerous reactions to strangers to protect his pack. Lynne required that we learn to be commanding and confident in our interactions with him, as he was constantly protecting his home and neighborhood from other people and other dogs, which was natural to him. Lynne worked with us many weeks (at several weeks more than the typical client, I am sure) and was determined to help us, as she saw that Buddy could be a great pet and companion. She worked with us in our home environment, at local parks and public places, to further evaluate Buddy's reactions. Our program was definitely tailored to us and our dog. Lynne also showed us how some of our ignorance about dog behavior (first time dog owners!) led us do things that confused and frustrated Buddy, and eroded our leadership role in his eyes. We now have a dog that is loving to us, and accepting of our extended family in our home. He looks to us for direction, and we know how to give it to him. Whenever we have a question, Lynne is available and responds within hours to our questions. She even helped us find the right leash for him, since he is a immense puller (sled dog!) on walks and needs something to help curb his overpulling tendencies. One of the most important things we learned is that training your dog; is an ongoing process - you can't expect a quick fix for deep-seated issues like our Buddy had. But Lynne worked VERY patiently with us to help us see that Buddy could be helped. Permalink

Karen was very thorough and answered all of my questions. There were some results after the first lesson which surprised me, I didn't expect to see results immediately. I was very pleased with the all natural training methods. I don't believe in hitting my dogs, so I liked this method. Karen is extremely interesting and she made it very enjoyable. She's very good with the dogs and great with the training techniques. Bark Busters is a solid program with positive reinforcement and I like the lifetime support guarantee! I love Karen and her energy. She makes me feel comfortable and she is very good with teaching me the techniques and very patient. I hope she stays my trainer forever! Permalink

The training techniques were very clear. Taio is much calmer and better behaved. I got far better results than with treat training! I would absolutely recommend Bark Busters and already have! Permalink