Primal Canine Dog Training

The team at Primal Canine is fantastic.  My dog Tut is a 7 yr old, 68 lb mutt who is both dog and people reactive.  Luckily, his initial training (from 1-3 yrs old) was done in SoCal by a trainer who originally worked at Primal Canine.  So I was able to keep the same method of training and not cause confusion for Tut. Erin:  Erin responded promptly to my email request and was very pleasant. She asked the history of Tut and didn't upsell the training packages.  Because of his previous training, she suggested a private & group lesson package instead of board & training.   I really appreciate the honesty.  BTW, the package she suggested was the correct one and she assigned a great trainer for me, Ryan Caro. Ryan: Ryan is a great trainer.  He really studies the relationship between the owner and dog, and tailors the training for them.  Engagement and neutrality were the key goals.  He knew when we could join the group class and how to ease a new dog into the class.  He has given me great suggestions/ideas of where to take Tut so that we can work on his neutrality in other environments.  Tut knew his commands when we started but Tut's engagement with me and his neutrality needed some work and due to Ryan, has greatly improved.  I know that training is a daily activity and a lifelong commitment, and I can see how much Tut enjoys it.  Now that our package is over, we have continued with group classes which I pay a very reasonable monthly fee for. Michelle: When you have a reactive large dog, finding a place to board him is difficult.  Erin suggested Michelle.  Michelle understands large reactive dogs.  She has her place set up so that she can rotate the dogs from crate to walks to yard.  At both drop off and pickup, Tut was immediately comfortable with her because of her approach.  Also, Michelle is a Primal Canine trainer so again, consistency for Tut.  I look forward to future boards with her Like people, every dog is different.  You have to decide what training method works for you and your dog   For us, Primal Canine was the right choice.

They use very aversive methods particularly in their board and train program where you can’t really observe them. It’s cruel and your dog will come home completely traumatized. It’s more than two years since I took my dog to them and there hasn’t been a day since when I don’t regret my decision. A dog, specially an anxious one, needs a lot of time to just adjust to a new environment. It’s not possible to train a dog in anxiety to behave well. The only way to do so is to scare the dog of the alternative, which is exactly what these people do. These Stone Age methods do not belong to this century and these businesses will vanish in near future. Just look up how many of similar facilities are closing down every day. Do yourself and your dog a favor and just start training at home, where you can build up confidence in your dog while establishing a bond. Your dog deserves love not fear. They are innocent creatures that are eager to learn how to be your good boy/girl. It’s in their genes.