Off The Hook Dogs

Our two large dogs started fighting last May (2024) after 9 years together. Five fights in 11 days led us to a veterinary appointment and a recommendation to separate them and find a dog behaviorist. After interviewing a few, we settled on Greg Riley. From the start Greg was understanding and yet direct. I was terrified of them being together because I had broken up the fights and the fights were bad. Any additional fights would set us back and it was hard to relax. One dog had medical issues that were part of it, but it was also four moves in two years and some lingering annoyances between them that were part of it. Not a simple case. Greg correctly diagnosed that the one “starting it” was actually not the problem. He had just run out of patience with the other one. Greg effectively coached us and worked with the dogs. By August they were on leash indoors together for short periods, by October they were uncrated and together during the night and by late November they were reunited. Dog training is an unregulated industry. Choose carefully. Anyone can say they know what they are doing. Greg actually does.

To be honest, I was apprehensive about using an e collar with my dog, that is until I found Greg. I've always had labs and had them off leash in the woods, but I got them as puppies and maybe that was the difference. I got my recent lab as a one-year-old. She had never had the experience of being off leash in the woods or even being in the woods before. I worked with her for almost 10 months trying re-call with food. While she was good around the house, the distractions were just too much for her in the woods. Whether it was another person, dog, rabbit or even just a scent I was unaware of, she took off and was gone. Calling her did nothing. Her brain just shut off. Even with a tracker on her, I was afraid I would lose her. Our walks were getting better on leash but I was still dragged thru the woods at times when she saw something and I wanted her off leash. I wanted her to be free, but safe. I was also concerned about making my dog anxious if I used an e collar. But after talking to Greg I realized I had found the right person. Greg uses a great e collar with a warning on it and very light stimulation that doesn't hurt the dog. He develops a program around your dogs personality and their needs, rewarding with many treats at all times every time they come back. He takes your dog into the environment you want to train your dog in. To my knowledge Greg is the only trainer that comes to your house and takes the dog into the woods around your area to train it (if that's your goal) using real time distractions, re-call and rewards. My dog could not wait to go with him every day. I have never seen her so happy to jump into his car and go on another adventure. I am thrilled to say that I have been walking my dog off leash for 3 weeks now and she has come across all the distractions -bunnies, people, dogs, smells and even some yucky water. She listens when I call her and to my surprise, I have not had to even use the warning on the collar. I even went out with a group of people with their dogs off leash and she was amazing. It's been such a weight off of my shoulders knowing she can be a real dog, and that she will come back to me and stay safe. Greg, my dog was never anxious during the training and clearly loved going out with you every day. Your education in animal behavior, patience and love of dogs made this a wonderful experience. Thanks so much!

Greg is an amazing dog trainer! He loves all the dogs he works with and takes time to understand their personalities and what they need to succeed. I first heard of Greg through a recommendation from a friend. Emmy (black lab rescue) loves to hike in the woods, but using a long leash was getting cumbersome. I wanted her to have more freedom and enjoyment while hiking. I called Greg and he asked great questions about what I was looking for. Emmy is a rescue and has some severe separation anxiety as well as reactive behaviors, especially with men. Greg took the time to get to know her and help her feel comfortable (with lots of treats of course!) He was able to take her to public trails where she learned to hike off leash on the e collar, which was something I never thought she would be able to do. He also recommended and trained her using the prong collar so I would be able to walk her in public for the first time without her becoming reactive around other dogs and people. Throughout the week of training Greg and I were able to connect often about Emmy’s behavior and her current medication. He recommended a change in medication which made a huge positive impact on her ability to train for the rest of the week. Once I got another puppy (Maverick) I knew I needed Greg to train him on the e collar as well! Greg was able to quickly schedule him and get right to training. Maverick has tons of energy and is easily distracted so the e collar was perfect for all the exciting smells in the woods. Now I can hike both of my dogs freely in the woods without worry about issues with recall. They are able to run and explore more than before and always respond to the e collar! I would recommend Greg to anyone with a dog especially if you want to be able to walk your dog off leash! He was easy to work with and great with explaining how all the tools work and what they do. Thanks Greg!