The Happy Retriever

Michael, Dorothy, and the entire Happy Retriever team are amazing. They can't come highly recommended enough. Scout is an Aussie/Husky/Hound mix with boundless energy. As a puppy, we took her through basic obedience training and several other more "advanced" obedience classes. When she was "in training mode," with few distractions, she was great! However, when she was out with other dogs (at the park), or around distractions, her obedience left much to be desired! A squirrel, another dog running off, or even a body of water on a warm day left her running for the hills. But, we managed. When Scout started pulling and weaving on the leash, and, worse, barking (often uncontrollably) at other dogs, bikers, skateboarders, and anything that moved, we reached our tipping point. We spoke to, and worked with several trainers, all with a purely treat based approach, but we weren't able to help Scout overcome her issues. Walks became unbelievably stressful and we would play chicken on who would have to "take Scout" on her walks. When we had a vacation coming up, we decided to look into board and train options. Our evaluation with Dorothy was a breath of fresh air. Whereas in some evaluations we did, the trainer barely interacted with Scout and gave a rote training outline, or prescribed "more cookies!" (or worse, better treats -- we were up to gourmet beef jerky and salami!), Dorothy worked with Scout, asked us about her triggers and history, and clearly laid out her approach. Knowing that our goal was to have a reliable "off-leash" dog we could hike with, run with, and live with, we signed her up for the 3-week Resident program. We came back from our vacation and picked up a "new" dog! Scout was (and still is) tremendous on-leash and amazing off-leash. We can take her on runs along the Esplanade in Boston, with people and dogs and bikes and scooters galore, off-leash with no issues. She stops when we ask her, recalls with a huge smile on her face, and isn't bothered by passing dogs. Even more amazing for us, she does the same while hiking in New Hampshire. Even when she saw a deer and started to chase, we recalled her and she came. We were ready for a full search and rescue mission; instead, we had a happy dog by our side. That in itself more than justified sending her to The Happy Retriever! Dorothy and Michael also spent just as much time "training" us on how to help Scout through her issues. This isn't a "pick your dog up -- and good luck!" training program; THR is available for effectively immediate feedback through email, phone, text, and Facebook when we have questions or concerns. Speaking specifically to the e-collar and balanced training approach THR takes, I can say we were initially hesitant. Having read "horror stories" online, we were most concerned about bringing Scout home and finding she was a changed dog -- and not for the better. This couldn't be further from the truth. Scout is still the same loving dog, greeting us with tail wags, kisses, and general excitement. She isn't scared of us -- or of Michael or Dorothy or any of the other trainers. In fact, she might be even more excited to see them than us when we drop her off for bump-up days! At our evaluation, Dorothy did an amazing job explaining the theory and evolution of the prong and e-collar, describing clearly how they are used (and NOT used!), and giving us immense comfort in the "why" behind their use. Scout, who hated(!) getting her harness on, couldn't be more excited to put on her collars -- because she "knows" she'll have the freedom explore and will "know" what we need her to do. It's the reminder that she, as an active, excited, and smart dog, needs. And, she still gets rewarded with treats! Again, we can't recommend the Happy Retriever highly enough. As many have mentioned, our only regret is that we didn't find them sooner! Scout is now the "adventure pup" we envisioned when we adopted her, and we couldn't be happier.