Run By Dogs

In August 2021, my husband and I adopted a rescue dog. We have had other pets, this was no exception. We have a large, fenced in yard and a lot of love to share. The dog we adopted was much more pit than lab, though the shelter said he was a lab mix. Our dog, Moonie, was/is quite the lover but his behavior was horrible, sometimes worrisome. He came with plenty of baggage of his own. I reached out to Kate for advice. We are states away, so she called me that evening. Kate and I spent a couple of hours on the phone talking, going over techniques and she was teaching me skills. Were it not for Kate's advice, training and teachings, I am 100% confident Moonie could not have stayed here at home. I'm also confident that he'd have never survived if back in a shelter. Thank you, Kate Walrath/Run by Dogs.

I recently brought my dog Luna to Kate at run by Dogs. I was at the end of my rope and fearful that she was going to bite someone. We had done training at a few different places but nothing helped her or me, the trainers had renamed her Lunatic--the name fit her! I thought my last choice was having her euthanized which broke my heart! One of my friends recommended Run By Dogs. Kate not only helped reset Luna, she worked with me and my family to have a relationship with Luna. How to communicate with her. I had the prong collar, which was encouraged by my other trainers, and the e collar which also was recommended by another trainer, but no one wanted to take the time to show me how to train her with it, so we failed again. But mostly people would say "she needs a job" but no one would go beyond that. We tried Rally she did ok, but she was not a fan of some of the other dogs or people, so I had to keep her distracted for fear she would bite someone. Kate took Luna and taught her how to trust her handlers and taught me how to work with Luna. And it isn't one and done, she has been and is still helping us almost 6 months later, Being our cheerleader or problem solver, she continues to take the time to make sure Luna is still in the right head space! My dog is now a part of our family, not living in her kennel or locked in the kitchen away from everyone which I never thought would happen! Luna is better with meeting new people but we still use the tools as she needs them to feel comfortable. I hope no one has to ever make the decision to euthanize their dog for behaviors when there is someone like Kate who will help retrain their dog to be better! I am thankful for her! We have been back for check ins and Luna was never afraid of Kate or nervous to be around her.