K9 Conditioning LLC

Stephen and his team are absolutely the best! To give some background we are a household with 2 very different dogs - 1 a pitbull and 1 an Australian cattle dog/border collie mix. Our pitbull was dealing with issues like resource guarding and had several episodes going after our other pup which was becoming more frequent. He was also had a lot of stranger danger and had one incident of attempting to bite someone when they approached him too quickly. Deciding to board and train was very difficult for us. We’d never done anything like this before and with so many people in this profession it was hard to figure out if we were picking the “right” person to help us with our issues but with our first child on the way we knew we needed to do something soon. We had already done beginner and intermediate (x2) obedience with both dogs, signed them up for different activities like agility and nose work, tried our best to expose them to different environments, and even had a behaviorist come out to our home twice but no matter what we tried the issues remained the same. We didn’t want to find someone that would claim they would take our dogs for 4 weeks and magically “fix” them. We wanted someone who was going to be able to help us address where we, as handlers, could do better and involve us in the process of the program. We know that we are responsible for a lot of the behaviors that have been allowed and really needed guidance on what needed extra work. We wanted to be a part of as much of the training as we could. Stephen checked all the boxes. He even offered to handle our cattle dog in her agility classes since we signed her up for the class prior to sending her to the board and train program. As an extra affirmation to us, everyone including the trainers in her class were so impressed with how well she behaved and how he was handling her! I can’t even begin to explain how much he has helped our family. Not only is he extremely communicative throughout the process but he also helps us manage our own expectations as well as helping us to understand our dogs better. Why they do what they do, how we can reframe some of the choices they make, and how to better handle them. That’s just skimming the surface. During our board and train program Stephen actually fell ill and we brought the dogs back home until he felt better. That, to me, just shows a lot of integrity and that Stephen is genuinely prioritizing what’s in the best interest for our dogs. I felt better knowing that he was willing to let us know if he felt he couldnt give our dogs 100% because anyone else could have easily hidden that from us while not providing our dogs the full program. Both dogs were with Stephen about 2 weeks before we brought them home and our pitbull has just completed his last 2 weeks of board and train. Even during the last 2 weeks Stephen noticed our pit was having loose stools and lower energy during their training sessions. He offered to take in a stool sample to his vet. Turns out he needed antibiotics! Again - just one of those things that shows he’s really looking out for our dogs and offering to help with their best interest in mind. It’s only our second day having our pitbull back home but he’s already exhibiting more discipline, more confidence, and overall a more relaxed personality than he has before. Our cattle dog has yet to go back to Stephen for her last 2 weeks of board and train because her specific needs would require exposure to locations that require better weather. She’s extremely reactive to other dogs and is terrified of new environments so the goal has been to get her to some dog parks to work on the exposure when better weather permits. Again - one of those decisions where Stephen is prioritizing her best interest and wants to provide 100% which we appreciate so much. We are beyond grateful for all the help Stephen has given us and everything he’s taught us so far and our journey with him isn’t even over yet! So grateful for him and his team!!

Stephen is incredible! Entrusting our dog with someone for a month was a difficult thing but any hesitation was quickly relieved upon meeting Stephen and seeing his love for dogs. He also posts daily updates on Instagram and is very communicative with owners about progress or anything that may may arise. After seeing many trainers, he is by far the best trainer we have ever worked with. Our dog had very low confidence and was afraid of so many things. He also had very poor recall. Stephen built up his confidence all the while teaching him to be cool and collected around other people and dogs. He also became very obedient! If you’re looking for someone who will personally get to know your pup and learn the best way to lovingly instruct them look no further!