Bark Busters Reviews
What Bark Busters clients have to say about our dog training services
- 4.97 Average Rating Average rating 4.97 out of 5 based on 17753 reviews.
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99.7% 4 or 5 stars 99.7% rate their experience with Bark Busters as 4 or 5 out of 5 stars.
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99.6% Would Recommend 99.6% would recommend Bark Busters to their friends and neighbors.
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99.5% Dog Responded 99.5% think their dog responded well to the training.
Looking to leave some feedback on your Bark Busters experience? Find your trainer, to add a review.
Ben F.
9 years ago
— Norwalk, CT
Bottom line up front: I whole heartedly recommend Mike the dog trainer to anyone who has a dog.
PermalinkThis is my first and only review I've written and it is because I strongly believe in Mike's training program and teaching style. My dog is a little 30-pound shepherd mix named Arnie and was having increasing aggression, barking, and jumping as he was entering his adolescence. He is my first dog that I raised from a puppy and I thought I was doing everything right. I read the puppy books, went to puppy school through the ASPCA, socialized him early and often, but as he got older he got more and more aggressive, especially on the leash. I became discouraged with training assistance form most sources because most of what you find out there is positive reinforcement only, which is fantastic for training a wanted behavior, but not effective for removing unwanted behaviors. Mike had a unique approach from what I read with his style focusing on training the human, rather than the dog. I figured that Arnie's issues were coming from anxiety with him being so small and Mike agreed and also added in a very tactful manner that my dog didn't truly respect me and is the primary reason why he doesn't listen and didn't feel calm and comfortable with me when we were out together.
I would summarize Mike's style as dog whispererish, but without ever laying your hands on your dog as punishment. As Mike says, "hands are for petting". It is very much about continually reinforcing your dominance through every interaction with your dog so that your dog respects you in a 100% humane manner. There are no treats, there is no violence, and no pain brought upon your dog in any way. His method is based off of continuous communication. What does that mean you ask? Mike taught me the tools to communicate with my dog through body language, a modified growl (sounds silly and takes some getting used to but is extremely effective) and a couple of tricks. Mike walks you through the process every step of the way and gives continuous feedback on how to improve.
Within 1 day of implementing Mike's teachings my dog's unwanted behaviors almost entirely vanished. I was able to loose leash walk him in a distraction free environment and he did not bark or jump on guests when they entered the house. I'm now about 6 months out of Mikes session (which only took about 2 and 1/2 hours and he came to our house) and I can loose leash walk him through a high distraction area with passing cars and barking dogs and Arnie will calmly walk through with only minimal corrections on my part. This is because Mike taught me how to forge a relationship of trust and respect with my dog, so even though he is an anxious little fella, he knows that if there is a threat to him (which is almost everything in his eyes) that I will take care of it and so he remains calm and happy and thus I remain calm and happy. I have found that through the brilliance of the basics that Mike teaches you most of the problem behaviors just go away, and when a problem behavior does emerge, because your dog trusts and respects you he will actually listen even if there is a great big distraction.
I will emphasize that this is by no means a "magic bullet". Mike will give you the tools to communicate with you dog and then it is on you to continuously and consistently use these techniques, but Mike is readily available to take questions or even come back for additional training sessions if ever needed. I can't recommend his services enough.
lois p.
9 years ago
— Phoenix, AZ
After one session, I learned enough to continue training and Riley improves daily
PermalinkPaula B.
9 years ago
— Chappaqua, NY
Nicole was wonderful! She explained her methods so that it made sense and helped me understand my dog's problems. The exercises were very helpful, and she was fun to work with. Her personality coincides with mine, and I knew from the first phone contact that she would help me. And she did.
PermalinkJesse L.
9 years ago
— Reston, VA
Mark was fantastic, he explained everything very clearly and worked well with myself and my dog. The training methods he showed us were simple and easy to grasp. My dog showed a lot of progress and potential within only 2 hours of the first meeting. I am excited to move forward with this program, I truly believe Mark and his training will change things significantly. I'm glad that I found this company.
PermalinkCharlene & David R.
9 years ago
Our dog, Mickey, the "Weiner dog" is 5 years old and we never got him completely housebroken. It had ruined our home. We are moving to a new home and knew it was now or never to get this right. Kendra laid out what she called a "proper plan" and told us we needed to follow it strictly. She said it wouldn't be "fun", but that we had to be vigilant. We are now six weeks later and Mickey is doing great. He now notifies us. We aren't letting our guard down, yet, as Kendra told us we need to slowly expand his space. He also no longer barks like crazy at who knows what. Our neighbors have made positive comments and brought us cookies and we weren't afraid they were poisoned. LOL! He isn't jumping on people and walks like a champ now with no more pulling! We will now move forward with putting down new carpet (we had old all torn out) and getting our home back to normal instead of organizing it around the dog! We can now get the home ready to list for sale. Best money ever spent on our home harmony! Kendra answered our questions after the lesson quickly and encouraged us as we stayed on course. She's the best!
PermalinkToni W.
9 years ago
— Naples, Marco Island, Florida
June and Colin were amazing! Within 30 minutes, we saw results and I have already recommended Bark Busters to 3 people. I can't say "Enough" about June and Colin. They are very good at what they are doing.
PermalinkCharity W.
9 years ago
— Southwest Missouri
Stan did an amazing job with helping me get my two dogs' behavior under control. We used very easy communication tools that he completely explains and demonstrates how to do them.
PermalinkLyanne C.
9 years ago
— Madison, WI
Greg was extremely helpful in helping us to train Toffee and Truffle. Before he came, they were out-of-control puppies. We couldn't sleep one night without them barking every hour. We noticed a remarkable change even after just one session. He has always been good with following up on our progress and is always willing to accomodate our schedule. No matter how small the issue is, he will make time to stop by our apartment to assess the situation. We always see great improvements in T&T's behavior even if Greg is here only for 20 minutes.
Permalink-Lyanne and Adrienne
Stephanie & Dave K.
9 years ago
— Des Plaines, IL
What a wonderful experience! All was fine in our home... until a new human came along - and rattled our fur babies world. Approximately 3 weeks into our daughters life - we knew something had to be done - as our 1 year old Shiba was becoming very aggressive towards our 13 year old Foxhound... and the situation was becoming very difficult to manage with a newborn in the pictures too. We had done one other training when he was a puppy - and he did well so we hoped a new form of training would solve the issue.. .and WOW... did it ever. BOTH dogs - after our first sesison were truly like new animals - we did 2 sessions and 1 walking session and really... the results are better than we could ever have hoped they would be. Both dogs are so gentle now with our baby - and so calm with each other and with other people... they are even nicer to our cat! Brad has a fantastic demeanor towards all animals - and is great with the human owners too! He makes it so easy to adopt the new methods of behavior for all involved - and with such incredible results - we have already recommended him / Bark Busters several times in the past few months. We will admit we came into the first session hopeful but skeptical - and were beyond impressed with what we gained from these sessions. We would suggest Brad and Bark Busters to anyone who asked - and wish you the same results as we had for sure! THANK YOU Brad!!!!
PermalinkMarge M.
9 years ago
— Riverview, FL
We have a 6 month old, 43 lb, strong-willed girl. I have seen significant improvement in Carmen's behavior already with the techniques we were shown. She is no longer using my arms for a "chew toy" , she is walking better on the leash. Still have work to do, but I am very pleased with her progress.
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