Off Leash K9 Training Portland

I kicked around the idea of leaving this review for a while. I genuinely feel bad for leaving a negative review and it’s not something that I normally do. Mandy and Ryan are both very nice people. I did the two week board and train program with them and it cost about $3200. This is an off leash program. My dog is supposed to be able to walk with me off leash after completing this training. My dog is 100% not an off leash dog. My dog has no aggression issues but also has no manners. The website advertisement says “tired of barking, lunging, jumping, and bad behavior? We can help!” Unfortunately my dog still exhibits these behaviors. He does not bark excessively. He never did. Before putting him in this program we had already taught him to sit. We just had issues with him picking and choosing when to listen to the command. Fast forward to completing this training. This dog will still not sit on command. The training program advertises a 100% guarantee and the two week board and train guarantees 6 commands. These commands are “sit and extended sit, place and extended place, heel on and off leash walking, down and extended down, recall (which is when your dog will come when called by name) and off/drop it/leave it. It also guarantees handling multiple distractions in multiple environments and greeting manners, door manners, and meal manners. The 100% guarantee means nothing. I had already taught my dog meal manners before putting him through the training. They train with an e-collar which I knew about and I agreed to. They gave me his e-collar to use at the end of the training. We still have it and we still use it. My dog will not listen to any of these commands unless I shock the holy you know what out of him and even then he sometimes wont listen. He jumps on people and lunges toward people passing by when on a walk. It’s not aggression but simply just bad greeting manners. He also pulls and lunges at distractions when on his walks. I honestly wish I could get a refund. This is probably one of the worst financial choices I’ve ever made. $3200 and my dog’s behavior is barely any different than when he entered the program. Sometimes the only way I can get him to sit is if I push his rear end down to the ground. Extended sit is really at his discretion. He chooses if he wants to stay in that spot for an extended period of time. Place is pretty much the same as sit. It’s sitting in one spot for an extended period of time and like I said he chooses if he wants to do that. Down is also the same as sit except it’s with all four legs laying down. Once again, he chooses if he wants to do it. My dog will come when called if he chooses to do so. Are we seeing a theme here? He will heel if I shock him and there are no distractions. Unfortunately I live in the real world and there are distractions 90% of the time. I understand that dog training is something that has to be kept up on but I really expected him to come out obeying these commands like the website advertises and that I would just have to keep these instilled in him. Instead I have to yell or shock him or coerce him with a treat. I have yet to see good door greeting manners. I wanted a well behaved off leash dog. I paid for a well behaved off leash dog. I did not receive a well behaved off leash dog. Once again I feel bad for writing this negative review but these are the facts. Save your money. It’s a lot of money and you may wish you didn’t throw it away.

I went to the Salem Oregon location and got to work with Joy. She was very thorough in explaining everything I needed to know. I tried everything I could to train my 2yr old pittie socialization, greeting manors and leash pulling I even tried a trainer at a different business but nothing was working. Off leash K9 training offers a 2 week board and train program that was reasonably priced so I thought about it and I realized I would never attempt my own surgery or pull my own teeth I would seek out a professional so it was time to let a professional step in. It was an investment in a better life for him and I both. I dropped off a high energy anxious dog and 2 weeks later Joy gave me back a well mannered, calm, completely off leash dog. I wanted to cry because I knew that there was nothing that would stop him from living his best life now. Thank you Joy and off leash K9 training you don't know how much this means for us. 5 stars

TRUST YOUR GUT. DO NOT TRUST THEM WITH YOUR BABY! small dog owners beware- this is most likely not for you and your dog. this review is long overdue- my dog is a 12 lb chihuahua mix that did the board and train program with mariyah in portland. i had a gut feeling about this training and ignored all my intuition and regret it every day. i wanted to work on my dog’s recall more than anything, and thought this might be a good idea. mariyah was hardly communicative, my dog came back TRAUMATIZED. super thin, with a UTI, a scratch on her nose most likely from the kennel and so so so fearful. my once cheery girl was so afraid and untrusting. it broke my heart. not to mention mariyah kept my dog almost an extra WEEK (almost 3 weeks total) claiming that she was taking longer than expected because she was a “bit more anxious and nervous.” my dog was never anxious or nervous to this degree prior to this experience. mariyah also asked if she could “try” to work with my dog without her CBD supplement, i thought this meant maybe a day or two to see how she did, she did not give it to her ONCE over the entire 3 weeks, even though she was under so much stress and in a new environment etc. absolutely unacceptable. any ACTUAL dog trainer would recognize that this program was not a good fit for my dog. all they did was further traumatize her and make her more fearful and untrusting. things we are STILL working through, over a YEAR later. mariyah also was incredibly unorganized. she forgot her bed the first drop off (i got it back when i returned the e collar), and then never returned her slow feeder bowl. not super expensive things just annoying and unprofessional. an E collar is absolutely inhumane. at drop off, when they teach you what to do, i made the setting too high and she yelped. i immediately was upset and apologized to my dog when mariyah told me to make it positive, and to not acknowledge it ( ???). this felt wrong to me. after leaving with my dog i felt so upset, and disgusted with my choice to trust these people with my dog. words truly can’t describe the effect this had on my dog. she to this day is not the same. the weeks and months right after were heartbreaking. you could tell she became withdrawn, more reactive & untrusting of me and my partner for having sent her there. while she was clearly excited to be home, she was under a ton of stress. (her face actually greyed significantly in the 3 weeks she was gone due to all of the stress. the only thing i appreciated about this company is they did give me a full refund and payed for my dog’s vet visits to address her uti and overall health concerns after boarding. e collars are not the way- invest in a real trainer that has a behavioral focus to help you really learn about your dog and their ways. an e collar is a band-aid, that only makes your dog behave out of fear. obedience at what cost? it’s not worth it. trust me.

Our dog was very reactionary and full of anxiety. After the two week board in program, he is much more behaved and confident. We are able to walk him easily and without him pulling. He can now explore the world with confidence and we look forward to all kinds of adventures that wouldn't have been impossible just a few weeks ago. Thank you to the Off Leash K9 team and Joy specifically for a job well done.