BlueDog

I recently used Nicole at Blue Dog to assist with training for my 4 year old pup. My dog is anxious, has her quirks and can show signs of reactivity. This was stressful for not only my dog but myself as well. From our initial call Nicole made me feel safe and helped comfort my anxiety regarding this. We did multiple in home training lessons. She was extremely patient and supportive as I was learning. She was always available for questions or concerns along the way. Nicole is well versed with anxious/reactive dogs and has really helped me learn tools to improve my dog (and my) day to day life. I would highly recommend Nicole for all dog training.

My dog has had trouble with resource guarding. In the past 2 years, he has had to have 2 major stomach surgeries after swallowing objects that he got a hold of. When we reached out to Blue Dog, our primary goal was to prevent resource guarding to keep him safe. We’ve been working with Nicole who had changed everything. After just a few sessions, we started seeing results. And after only 5 sessions, our dog was very consistently “dropping it” when he would get something. What I love the most is that Nicole makes everything a fun and rewarding game. There are no punishments with her training. Our dog genuinely enjoys all the games and trainings we do with him. You can tell he gets really excited and has positive associations with everything related to his training. I can’t recommend Blue Dog/ Nicole enough. It has honestly changed our lives and I feel so much better about my dog’s safety. It has really been worth the money and you honestly see results quickly as long as you are dedicated and consistent.

I recently rescued a dog from Mississippi, knowing the dog had a rough start at life, was prepared for some behavioral issues/responses… however, after a few days at home and some not so great encounters with my other dogs…. I reached out to BlueDog for training, and wow…. I am so glad I did !! my initial phone appointment with Nicole (one of the trainers) was amazing…she not only listened to my observations about the behavior… she started to build a plan, and gave me solid next steps to implement in my home right away! Her recommendation of setting up a double barrier to allow the dogs to see each other in a safe manner and on their terms was game changing!! ( I added pictures to reference the double barrier for reference) We just completed our 1st training in person training today….and I am beyond excited and energized to keep training my dog with Nicole! She is passionate, patient and kind…. Super respectful of myself and my dog… as she is not only training him, but training me to be the best at handling my dog. I cannot recommend BlueDog and Nicole enough!!!! I was fearful I wouldn’t be able to handle my dog when he first got here…. And now I can’t wait to see him flourish and shine with his training!!!!

I had a zoom call consultation with trainer “Nicole” which was shockingly disappointing. I was requesting consultation because I’m having trouble integrating two of my dogs with a new puppy. I had to fill out a 19 page Google document in advance of the consultation, which also cost me $100. Nicole was immediately dismissive and lacked any empathy for my situation at all. I told her that I had cancer and I recently decided to get the puppy and her response to me was would I consider giving the puppy back… that was in the first 60 seconds of the conversation. She then proceeded to discourage me from even taking on the training because it was going to likely take a tremendous amount of time and money in order to overcome my situation, if even possible. The consultation was over the phone, not even in my home, I was in my work office so she did not visually assess or observe any behavior of my dogs. She went through a puppy training plan which was reasonable and then she went through a training plan for my five year-old Frenchie, which included a chiropractic assessment because he might be in “pain” from a headache or from being out of line with his back! And even though I make fresh food for my dogs on a daily basis (with supplements) she said that he would need to see a nutritionist to see if he’s lacking nutrients. All of this was even before we got to any rehabilitation training. She informed me that it was going to be $400 to $500 for four in person visits and it could take thousands of dollars to correct my situation. I asked her if she thought my dog was a red zone dog and she said no. Confusing! Overall, at the end of the 45 minute call with her I felt completely hopeless and scared about my situation and actually felt worse than I did before the call with her. After this horrific meeting, I called my vet and got a referral to a certified Dog Trainer who came to my home today and and who told me my situation is completely normal and my dogs will all be fine with some training, and time. I did call the main office at blue dog to report my experience and spoke to Tori. She was understanding but not very interested in my satisfaction. She didn’t offer to refund my money, she didn’t offer to put me with another trainer and overall, my experience with blue dog was highly disappointing, and I would not recommend this business or service based on my own personal experience. FYI.