Client Reviews and Testimonials

We hired Tommy a bit last minute through bark busters while visiting in town from abroad. Bark busters is a bit more expensive so we were a little wary and went back-and-forth on whether it would be worth it. Ultimately we loved the reviews of bark busters and the lifetime guarantee that they offer around the world so we decided to check it out. We were also told that Tommy has a policy where if we felt we got nothing from the first session he wouldn't take any payment but that he has never had to do this and bark busters was confident that we wouldn't want to either. Tommy was excellent. We weren't really sure what to expect as this was the first training we've had for our dog Gilly who is a nine month old German Shepherd mix and rescue. She's been having recent barking problems that make it difficult for us to take her out in the city so we wanted to bring in a professional. We had already read books and websites and tried to do this ourselves at home to no avail. When Tommy arrived he was immediately friendly and professional. We sat down and for the first 30 minutes he observed how we interacted with Gilly, went through what the session would look like, and reviewed the basic principles. I was amazed that within the first 10 minutes Tommy pinpointed things that we were doing that were causing problems for Gilly and preventing her from improving behavior. He pointed these things out in a nice and respectful way - showing empathy and describing his own experiences with his dog and with other clients so we didn't feel like we were just screw ups. We then moved on to specific exercises to set a foundation for training. It was very different from a lot of the trainings that we read about which were more treat-based. While I was skeptical at first I was amazed with quick results from Tommy's methods. We started in the house and then moved on to outdoors around more dogs and people. By the end of the session Gilly was mentally tired in a good way and already much better behaved. Tommy and bark busters was more expensive than the other options that we saw but we would highly recommend it to anyone as we saw results. Permalink

Phyllis was phenomenal! She was detailed in the explanation of each training tools and procedures. Our dogs responded very well to the training. We were so pleased with this. Permalink

So far, we are very pleased, however, we have only had the first two lessons. Jeri is wonderful with the puppies and extremely helpful to us. We are a family of six, so I commend her on her patience with all of us and her ability to get us all to be consistent. Jeri seems very knowledgeable, she gives us the information, models the behavior she wants from us & the pups, and she then gives each of us a chance to practice as she assists and corrects. She also gives us the reasons for commands and behaviors so that we better understand the importance and reason for each. We all benefit from Jeri's encouragement. Jeri has made herself available to us via phone and is willing to return if needed in between lessons. Bark Busters seems like a wonderful program and we are looking forward to enjoying our well behaved labradors for many years to come. Please note: in answer to your question regarding Bark Busters value for the money we only rated four stars due to the fact that we have only had 2 lessons and do not feel we have had enough time to see results to rate five stars. We are confident we will reach five stars as our pups grow. Permalink

Vicky and Bark Busters are gems! I adopted a two year old Havanese mix with fear of the outdoors, people, and without potty training. Her knowledge, gentleness, and true love of dogs were apparent. Charts and directions came well organized and easy to read and understand. Vicky helped ME to stay focused and not to become overwhelmed with my little guy. She was always positive, cheerful, and upbeat. The immediate changes in Cammie's behavior was just short of amazing. Vicky let me know that I could contact her with any and all questions which I did. All responses were timely, lengthy, professional -- just what we needed. Cammie and I look forward to sharing and enjoying a wonderfully full life together. I highly recommend Vicky Harper and Bark Busters. Thank you!!! Permalink

At first we thought that $500 for the lessons was way to expensive, but when Michelle got there and worked her magic it explained a lot. I mean she only was with him for roughly 3 hours and already like we already had a different dog. Can't wait to see what the finish results turn out to be when the next lesson happens. Permalink

This is our second time working with Richard and Vicki. We are just as satisfied the second time around. It's clear their training is tailored to the individual dog's needs as they have introduced some new lessons for Brady that we hadn't learned before. Their best attribute is their ability to install confidence in owners - I always feel calmer and more confident in my abilities after our lessons. I've recommended their services to friends and plan to keep doing so. Permalink

We are making some headway now. She's doing very well with the "wait" command, staying put until I let her go to get the piece of food or ball or whatever. She seems to be doing better with the 'come' command too! And to top that, we have finally been able to get the cats up on the couch with me. I'm thrilled with this progress!!! Permalink

Incredible! We were having issues adjusting Remy with our newborn son. Vicki and Richard solved our issues in the first session. Remy is a more obedient, but also a happier dog! They are very thorough in their training and committed to helping owners and their pets succeed. Permalink

We learned so much from Pat! I already feel much more confident with my dogs & knowing how to react if the want to fight. I think we finally have an understanding of how to work with their behavior. Permalink

Nicole Martel is fantastic. Very motivated and is so knowledgeable. She's a pleasure to work with! Permalink