Dog Sense Unlimited

I've been training my dogs at Dog Sense for over 19 years. I have never failed to be extremely satisfied with the training my dogs have received or how this training was accomplished. Most telling is the fact that my dogs have never failed to be enthusiastic about being in class. I have recommended Dog Sense to numerous friends and relatives and they have all have had positive experiences. I highly

Stay far away from Dog Sense Unlimited. This first red flag should have been that there is no information available online about the certifications of their trainers or even their names. Another red flag was that they did not require me to submit rabies/vaccine information before attending the beginner group class. They only required me to submit a no-refund clause. The other red flag was that the FIRST thing they taught me was to ‘pop’ my dog’s collar to punish them because apparently, this was how you tell your dog they did bad. The American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior denounces the use of punishment for behavior problems, especially as the first-line of early-use treatment. ‘Popping’ the collar, or forcefully yanking back on the dog’s collar is NOT a healthy way of telling your dog that what they did was wrong. This is an old, outdated, and frankly harmful way to train your dog. Please look at accredited resources, it is unanimous. If the trainers at Dog Sense Unlimited were certified in dog training, they would know this. But they did not provide dog training certifications online so I can only assume they are not properly certified dog trainers. The final red flag was when I mentioned to my veterinarian that I went to Dog Sense Unlimited and wasn’t pleased with the way they were teaching dog training. I was advised to go somewhere else, specifically Your Dog’s Friend, because my trusted dog professional knows that punishment is not a means to effectively train a dog and Your Dog’s Friend has certified dog trainers. My dog ended up getting diarrhea and I could not bring him to class. I called to let them know and they offered to email me the homework which I was appreciative of. I did not hear back from them. I realized that night I was done with them. After 3 classes, I learned that they do not care about the health of your dog because they do not require vaccination proof before attending class (I checked my emails), they do not care about the behavior of your dog because they encourage physical punishment (repeated yanks on the collar during demonstrations on other people's dogs!), and they do not care about you learning their material because they did not follow up and provide the homework for me. Do not go to Dog Sense Unlimited.

Came here a few months ago and was pretty happy with the grooming of our dog. Called for another appointment months later and had to wait 3 weeks. When the three weeks came, we went for the appointment and was told there was a Covid exposure with the groomer and would be closed for a few days. I was told they would call me to reschedule. This was three weeks ago. Still haven’t heard from anyone. What a waste of time

I went to dog sense to get a board and train, I would be leaving my dog for 2 weeks. I paid $1,500 for the training. The first day me and my wife were excited cause we’re hoping to see some improvement with him. So the 2 weeks pass and we go to pick up our dog. Me and my wife go to pick him up and the trainer gave us only an hour to go over everything he did in 2 weeks. And right before we go into the back room we had to pay the remaining amount before we even go to the back to practice the hour. Me and my wife left very underwhelmed with the full experience. We followed everything the trainer and my dog is not more disobedient so we are getting another trainer.

They train with the negative reinforcement of a yank on the collar. Yanking on the neck, period, can lead to all sorts of health problems and injury. As well, negative reinforcement is absolutely no longer an accepted dog training practice. This place needs to update! They cover this harmful yank by calling it a seemingly harmless "pop." It simply us not harmless. Not to mention the negative effect on the dog. We know of a dog "trained" there who went from playful happy puppy to scared and hiding in all social environments now.