4 the Love of Dogs

Review by Wally (Very Good Boy, Professional Golden Retriever) My name is Wally, and I am a Golden Retriever. Before I met Gaby at 4 the Love of Dogs, I had a few…enthusiasms. For example, I believed that: * Every visitor had been waiting their entire lives to meet me. * Walking was actually a pulling competition. * Doors were merely suggestions. * Chipmunks clearly wanted to be chased. * Relaxing was something other dogs did. Gaby helped me become much more gentlemanly. Now, when someone comes to visit, I stay away from the front door instead of trying to personally welcome them with all 75 pounds of my love. On walks, I stay beside Mom or Dad instead of dragging them toward every squirrel, bird, suspicious leaf, and fascinating smell. Apparently they enjoy keeping their shoulders in their sockets. I also learned “Place.” I have my own comfy bed where I can just hang out until I’m invited to do something else. Honestly, it’s pretty great. Turns out naps are underrated. Before walks, I don’t blast through the front door anymore. I wait politely on the porch until Mom or Dad tells me it’s my turn to go. They say I look very distinguished. I think they’re right. One of my favorite things Gaby taught me is to check in with my humans while we’re walking. Every so often I look up at them to make sure we’re all making good decisions together. Usually this prevents me from chasing chipmunks. To be fair, I could definitely catch one. …Mom says that’s not the point. Thanks, Gaby, for helping me become a calmer, happier, more confident dog. My family understands me better, I understand them better, and we all enjoy our adventures a whole lot more. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a scheduled nap on my Place bed. One tiny complaint: Mom decided I “needed” all this training during the hottest part of summer. Walking around in Virginia heat while learning to ignore chipmunks was…not ideal. I tried explaining that Golden Retrievers are designed for leaf piles, not soup. She remained unconvinced. Five stars. Would absolutely train with Gaby again. Mom, however, should reconsider her scheduling decisions.

Gaby was absolutely incredible with my dog. My dog was pulling, jumping, knocking down, and play biting the kids, stealing food and non food items off of the counter- I couldn't take it anymore. With 1 month of day training, my dog is a totally different animal! She has given me the tools I need to have a well behaved dog and I enjoy being around her again. I can take her out in public and I get compliments on her behavior. THANK YOU GABY- 4 The Love of Dogs!

Gaby is an excellent dog trainer! We started working with her six months ago and the results have been life changing. Before working with Gaby, Chase (7yrs) barked excessively, pulled on walks, and was anxious around new people and in new situations. Finn (4yrs) was resource guarding, pulling so hard on walks that he hurt our shoulders, and generally not listening. The resource guarding was especially concerning. Gaby resolved ALL of these issues and taught us how to maintain their new desired behaviors. She provided a clear set of rules and methods to continue their training at home. She was communicative and answered our questions and provided a refresher lesson to help reinforce what we learned. Both of our dogs are rescues and we attributed their bad behaviors to their neglectful pasts. Gaby taught us that rules and consistency can overcome this even in dogs that are older with established behaviors. We recently boarded them with her, and we appreciated the pictures and updates she sent. Gaby has helped us deepen our bond with our dogs and our home is less chaotic. Friends and family have noticed and commented on the positive changes in Chase and Finn. She is a wonderful trainer and person and we highly recommend her!

Our family recently welcomed home a very sweet but very energetic Golden Retriever puppy. While getting her trained with a local trainer we had an unexpected trip pop up where we knew we needed to find someone that could watch her. That trainer recommended Gaby and ever since I reached out to her she has been great. Despite the fairly short notice she agreed to do and worked with me on getting her in for the initial meet and greet. I knew that our pup was going to need extra attention to continue her training while we’re gone so Gaby was just the right person. If your pup is need of training I do recommend reaching out to Gaby and you’ll see for yourself!