North Star Family K-9

Beyond pleased with our experience with K9SF & trainer Milo. Our dog went for their 2 week Board & Train + 2 at home sessions and it’s made a world of a difference. Our dog was very reactive with other dogs and Milo helped her work through her triggers and give her & us peace of mind. We went from not being able to walk across the street from dogs to actually walking calmly AND she’s even made a few doggie friends. Our dog’s anxiety has decreased significantly and we’ve received tons of compliments from friends and family on her newfound peaceful nature. I cannot recommend Milo & team enough, it was worth EVERY penny. Thank you x1000.

I have a three year old 70 lbs. hound/terrier mix who is leash reactive, highly intelligent, highly energetic and very sensitive. We have utilized several Twin Cities based training programs in the last two years. One-on-one, boot camp, groups, board and train - we've done it all. I worked with Milo and the K9SF team for three months and made more progress in those three months than I had in the previous two years. My dog passed the Canine Good Citizen test before we even finished our training bundle. Milo and his team are very well informed, they understand dogs at a psychological level and they helped me to better understand my dog in a way that has literally changed our lives. I am incredibly grateful and *highly recommend* their program to anyone looking to make behavior changes or just have a better relationship with your dog. Save your money, I've done the research for you. K9SF is what you need.

Our dog's (Brito's) fear aggression had been progressively worsening over time. There were many incidents triggering this (COVID, traumatic experiences, etc). He was very nervous when guests came over, often having to be separated because of his unpredictability (growl, lunge, bite). Sometimes, Brito would snap in a moment and my husband and I didn't know what to do. My husband and I paid for several trainers, none of whom felt that Brito would ever "get better". One even told us we'd "never have a brewery dog". We had a long discussion a month ago about our quality of life (both us and the dog's). My husband was researching serious training options for our dog to, in hopes, reset him. He found K9SF and we submitted a form immediately, realizing that this was without a doubt our last hope. We had an initial call with Ashley, which it went 45 minutes over time. Ashley did not rush us through, did not belittle us, did not judge us, and was willing to answer every single question we had about the 3 week board and train program. After lengthy discussion about our dog and his behavior, Ashley said that she thought another trainer would be better suited for our dog. We were referred by Ashley to Milo. Milo called us shortly thereafter and asked a few questions about Brito. When we told him Brito was on fluoxetine and trazadone for his anxiety, he immediately suggested taking him off the medication. I seriously thought he was crazy, but we were willing to do anything to provide our dog with a better life. We knew we were in good hands when we dropped him at the boarding facility, Downtown Dogs. The staff there assured us Brito would be taken care of in the Iowa room (for anxious dogs) and went through his feeding routine with us thoroughly (they will be getting an amazing review as well!). Milo and the staff were very communicative throughout the process, sending us daily updates about how Brito was progressing...and he was progressing quickly! They took him to public spaces (which we had never even dreamed of doing) and desensitized him to all the loud noises and quick movements. We were shocked knowing he was out in public without incident. When picking up Brito, we had a training session with Milo and Miza (whom Milo said didn't work closely with Brito and would be a "stranger" to Brito...cue blood pressure rising) who provided us with a manilla folder of print outs about next steps now that Brito was finished with the first part of this journey. When Milo brought Brito in and began to show us his progression, we were stunned. Jaws on the floor, we could not believe this was OUR dog. He didn't react to Miza at all when we were practicing resource guarding (of us) with strangers. We were overwhelmed with the amount we had to take in but were encouraged to see how much more trusting and obedient our dog had become with Milo. We had our first in home session this week (we purchased 4, 1 per week) and Milo arrived with Miza and said we'd be practicing reactivity towards the door (a huge trigger for Brito). We were honestly so freaked out, but trusted Milo's direction. We practiced for an hour and Brito did not bark, lunge, or growl once. Only whined during the peak of his discomfort, in which Milo directed us to handle. They sat with us and answered all of our questions we had written down, encouraging us with every wonderings we had. We look forward to continuing to work with Milo on providing the best life possible for Brito and ourselves. Milo's attention to detail, encouragement, lack of judgement and complete understanding has been a game changer for us. Now, we know that a brewery is possible with consistent training and trust between us and Brito. Would recommend K9SF 1000 times for anyone who has a fear aggressive dog and is feeling hopeless or lost. They will lead you in the right direction. We are forever grateful.