Client Reviews and Testimonials

My humans are nice people, and they do really love me, but they're just very confused on how to handle dogs. They give me mixed messages, have me lead on walks, or give me attention when I bark at guests. Me and my little brother, Sparky, love them and all... but we needed to get Brad from Bark Busters here so he could properly train them. When Brad first showed up, I did my normal barking routine that my humans had so often encouraged me to do (at least I think they were encouraging me when I bark and they start fussing over me and petting me)... but Brad ignored me. And when he stepped out and back in, and I was about to lead my little brother Sparky in a loud round of barking... Brad sprayed my forehead with a water battle and shouted a loud "Stop" in dog language (it sounds like "Baah" in human speak). I was a little confused at first, but my humans picked it up quickly enough, I'm so proud of them. My humans also needed a lot of training on walks. They would have me lead.. head first right out the door, pulling them along, but then get annoyed when I kept leading the rest of the walk. I'm sure my humans do some things right, but dog-walking is not one of them. Other trainers had tried to teach my humans to walk by bribing me with constant treats the whole way. While that's certainly nice at first, a dignified pup like myself can't be bribed forever. Brad trained my humans to take the lead on the walk, head out the door first, keep me on the left with the leash having flack. Why, he even had to stop 50 times on the short walk in order for them to get it. Most trainers would give up on my humans after 3 or 4 times, and then just try to bribe me with a treat. So now that Brad trained my humans, neither Sparky nor I need to protect them from strange people in our house, or pull them along on walks, or bark loud outside into the night. That Brad fellow was quite a good people-trainer, and he really seems to love us dogs too (he obviously has good taste in which species he hangs out with)... too bad I don't see him much anymore. Some of my other dog friends have their people trainers come for months and even years (which is especially nice because those trainers give us so many treats to be good while they're present). We only saw Brad twice. Oh well, if my humans start getting confused again, Sparky and I will have to get him back over here. Woof woof, Duke and Sparky Permalink

Kristyn came to our home and started teaching us to be the "Alpha" in our home. Our dog Ziva, has some issues with other dogs. We didn't know how to help her be a better member of our pack. Ziva is a spunky Bull Terrier; other trainers in the area wouldn't even take the time to come to our home and meet us or Ziva. Over the phone they told us "thats the way bull terriers are and you can't train them". On our first meeting with Kristyn she showed us how to be better leaders to Ziva; and how if we take the "lead" from her, she will be able to relax and not feel so "on guard". Thank you Kristyn and can't wait till our next class. We highly recommend Kristyn and the techniques from Bark Busters. Permalink

Carol has been great! Apollo, a 75 lb 8 month old German Shepard male came to me to foster for a "while" at 3 months old. I hadn't worked with him as far as much training goes because the person I was fostering for was supposed to do the training until he was able to keep him at his home. That never happened and he is now my dog. So now I had a large puppy that was out of control a bit. I have two very old dogs at home and this (very large) puppy was causing problems. Fence fighting, trying to dominate one of my older dogs and barking incessantly when left outside and digging holes and being the boss of the house and separation anxiety. He is a VERY loving puppy, but I felt out of control with him. Carol has reinforced my confidence to train him, and has shown me some great training without treat rewards and physical harm. Positive reinforcement/voice control works wonderful. I have never used physical harm/discomfort in training ever, and would never. I have used treats in the past. Apollo is very smart and is responding extremely well! He responded immediately to Carol the very first time we met with such respect for her! Now he is doing the same with me. We continue to train and make forward progress! Permalink

Christine was wonderful with our rescue Jack Russell Terrier, Aster. She was very knowledgeable, and hands-on. We appreciate the Bark Busters approach and how she personalized it for our dog's specific needs. We look forward to many more successful sessions. Permalink

When Jeri first came to us we had a very hyper, jumpy, mouthy and nipping 4 month old Cane Corso on our hands. With 2 little kids in the house as well, we were desperate to get him under control before he got too big. After the first visit and working with our daily homework, Ziggy is a completely changed puppy. Yes, still a puppy and full of energy we now know how to use that energy in a positive way and work him with attentiveness and recall. Thank you Jeri for helping us all live a happier life together. Permalink

We decided to work with Jeri to get more personalized attention in training my daughter's service dog. Daisy had gone through basic manners training but needed to work on some issues before getting into her service dog tasks. Specifically she pulled on the leash and jumped up on people. Jeri introduced us to the Wagg Walker and that along with daily exercises took care of the issues on leash very quickly and Daisy is now very well mannered on leash. The jumping was a bit more challenging but after a couple of Jeri's initial suggestions didn't work out for us she suggested using the water bottle to get Daisy's attention and this worked great. Jeri works with you on an individual basis and meets the specific needs of you, your dog, and your situation. A lot of service dog trainers use treats for everything and it is nice that Bark Busters accomplishes the same basic training without the need to constantly have treats handy. Jeri is very patient, knowledgeable, and is available any time to answer questions and provide support. We highly recommend Jeri and the Bark Busters program. Permalink

We were AMAZED at the quick results Pat achieved with Hank, Dixie & Lilly. The barking, licking and jumping stopped in the first 15 minutes. We are so happy we called Bark Busters. Permalink

I have a 2 1/2 year old pitbull named Coco and a 5 year old mix breed named Jaida. I called Barkbusters because Coco needs help. She is very loving to her family but does not like anyone else coming to the house. I frankly didn't trust what she would do because she appeared to assume everyone but her family was a threat. I received Ruth's business card from my vet and the vet tech told me she has heard great things about her. So, before I considered a pitbull rescue I wanted to do what I could to help Coco first. When Ruth came over I was so worried that Coco wouldn't respond. But I was pleasantly surprised. Ruth taught me so much about Coco's behavior, how to treat her and how to be the best leader in our home. Coco responded 100 times better than I thought she would and Ruth assured me that her behavior was nervousness not aggression. She brought hope! As a trainer she was extremely knowledgeable, personable and gifted. Its only been two days since she has been here but I already see positive changes and I am in control. I am excited for this journey!! Permalink

We just had our second training session with Justin and it's hard to explain what this has meant for us. Here's a little background. We purchased our dream dog, a gorgeous pick of the litter springer spaniel. She was meant for a life of show but had the terrible luck of having her parents be aggressive with her which in the dog world is about as traumatic of an experience as you can have. This went on for 4.5 months so by the time we got her, her dog aggression was out of control. She attacked our senior cocker spaniel any time I pet her or if she went near her food or toys and any other dog she would see she would instantly want to attack and I'm talking straight for the face and neck until she saw blood. I have never seen a puppy be so aggressive in my life. It was heartbreaking and so stressful to live in fear of when she'd snap at our other dogs and not know if we'd ever be able to live in harmony. Enter Justin- the most mellow, positive energy, ray of sunshine you'll ever meet. Instantly the room changes because the dog knows someone is in charge now and she relaxes knowing it's no longer her job to protect the pack. He explains to us how she came from trauma and I got her right after the trauma of losing our 10 year old Tibetan terrier so together we were the perfect mess of wanting to save each other but instead creating unstable havoc. It was time to teach her that she was safe with her new leaders and that although I was unstable when I got her it was not her job to protect me or the home or anything. It takes a minute to understand that everything we do as humans with nothing but the best intentions actually hurts our animals in these situations. The second you implement the BAH and you start with corrections the dog instantly starts looking to you for guidance and the transformation almost makes you feel like an idiot because the science behind it is so simple. You are now communicating with your dog like a dog instead of trying to have them know how to understand human. Back to today. The scene is the Little Italy farmers market where there's a million dogs and people. Showing leadership we walk by everyone with no attacks because I'm in control. Here's the real kicker, we are working the Justin's perfect boy Luca who is the example of a calm , submissive, respectful dog. Addie is shy and fearful but every block she is learning to gain confidence and trust in us and in Luca. By the end of the hour we are chatting on a corner and Addie keeps checking Luca out. She's on her back getting a belly rub and he comes to sniff her and she puts out a paw to his face to engage in play. In my head harp music plays, white doves fly and in real life I start crying because to see her do that instead of trying to rip him open is an experience that couldn't really be felt in any other way other than raw emotion. You know what makes you feel right about a situation like that? When your trainer has tears in his eyes knowing what just happened and what he did for a family that just weeks ago was so broken. I can't sell this service any more genuinely than this. I'll be completely transparent, when I first called bark busters the price took me back and I said no way. It took 2 weeks of bloody attacks to hit rock bottom and decide that's what budgeting and credit cards are for. After today I'd hand over my home and car keys for such effective training, in a heartbeat! Permalink

Patrick worked with Ginger and me for about 2 hours and I couldn't believe the difference. All of my neighbors that have watched her drag me around have ask about Bark Busters. She continues to be a pleasure to walk . Permalink