Breakthrough K9 Training

Hello All, We recently had our GSD 5 month old puppy Dolly go to BreakthroughK9 for the 3 week puppy course. It was a hard 3 weeks for us missing her but on the other hand she had a BLAST. Dolly had the basic puppy traits like mouthing stuff, jumping, chewing, attention span and selective listening. Me having grown up with dogs, mainly mixed GSDs, thought I knew what I was doing, I was wrong. The program at BreakthroughK9 was absolutely amazing. When we picked up Dolly she was a totally different puppy. The use of the prong and E collars have completely changed her for the better. As a GSD she is already focused but she is now on a different level. In my neighborhood almost everyone has a dog, so evening walks are a must. Dolly has become well known in our neighborhood for all the right reasons. She is constantly getting compliments on how well behaved she is around other dogs and children. She is no longer dog reactive and is extremely confident in herself. As part of the training she was introduced to the E collar and prong collars as mentioned before by Lenny, Steph and the staff. This has done wonders, Dolly is now 7 months old and 60 lbs, I can literally walk her on prong with just 2 fingers regardless of where we are. Right after we picked her up we took her with us on a family vacation where we were in a cabin near Pigeon Forge, since no one was close around we went off leash starting the 2nd night and well....she owned it. On one of our walks a small black bear ran across the road, DolIy did not over react, she barely reacted at all, just looked at me for what to do, I told her to heal and she stayed right by me, she was on E collar at the time but the gentle working nudge that the collar gives was not needed what so ever. All these social situations are excellent examples of what a well trained dog can do when trained by the right trainers but the most important thing is how the dog is with the family. My daughter is HFA, High Functioning Autistic. She has had her issues with other neighbor dogs so things have been a little interesting at times. When we got Dolly she was just an 8 week old puppy so there was time for them to bond of which I will be honest I was nervous about how each would react. Since completion of the training and us continuing what we were taught by Steph and Lenny the bond between my daughter and Dolly has grown to a level I had only dreamed of. Dolly listens very well to my daughter to which you would think that is her job right, well this has also had a very positive effect on my daughter with building her confidence in not just the dog but in herself for taking control. The training we have received from BreakthroughK9 has been more than I would of ever expected. It is not just about the dog it is about the whole family. It is about living the best life and bonding with one another. Let's face it if you are reading this your dog is part of your family. When asked about how and where Dolly was trained I can't say enough about BreakthroughK9. They are not in it to make a buck, they are very passionate with what they do, they want the best for you and your pup. They are always there and available if you have questions or need help afterwards, they want the best for all. I hope this helps..... Michael "Ski" Lewandoski

I took my dog to meet Stephanie and Lenny at BTK9 and was so impressed by the time they gave me and how they showed me how their prong collar training quickly worked with my dog. Stephanie also gave me a lot of time and attention on the phone to discuss some challenges with him, when we couldn't immediately schedule a training. Even though we live 1.5 hours away, I was hoping to schedule my dog for the board-and-train option. In the end, to my dismay, we could not -- my dog needed more time for resolution of internal parasites before he could board on their property. And he needed SOME training right away! So I went with a different, in-home option closer to our address. I trust that it will be good too. But I still wanted to affirm the care and attention that BTK9 gives each and every client -- or, in my case, potential client!

I want to start by saying Breakthrough K9 has some amazing staff, an amazing facility, a holistic and realistic approach to training with proven results. Almost two years ago now I brought my then two year old pit bull mix Ellie to breakthrough k9. I was struggling to help manage her reactivity to anything and everything. She pulled on walks. She barked at passing by dogs and people. At times she would show aggression towards other dogs as well. It felt like nothing I did on my own was helping, so I signed her up for 3 week board and train. What I love about this program is that they help you get started by teaching YOU and your dog the fundamentals. They make it very clear what you will be responsible for once you bring your dog home in order to guarantee the most success with the training after you pick your dog up. Let me say, that I have seen tremendous success with Ellie by following their guidance and instruction. She no longer reacts when we walk past dogs and people. She doesn’t pull on walks. I have the tools and knowledge to help her manage her reactivity when it does happen. Lastly, I love that I can bring her back anytime to board while I’m away. This means for life I can bring her back for maintenance training. She loves it because she gets a week of vacation on a farm herself! 10/10 would recommend them if you’re thinking about it!

Liam (a husky greyhound) went through a few trainers before we found Breakthrough K9 Training. It was exactly what he needed. Liam is smart and has both a prey drive and a working dog personality, but he's also my pet and the best friend/sibling of my other rescue, a chihuahua mix. To be able to have such a high energy dog in a city, in an apartment, can be a challenge -- especially when in dog parks he was charged a few times and then it made it impossible to go to dog parks. Breakthrough K9 Training gave Liam the confidence to both be himself and mellow out around other dogs and stimuli. They also gave me homework and were available for follow up. When I took him back for boarding, Liam knew where we were an hour away and was so excited to be back. The trainers (plural - another huge plus that multiple trainers work with a single dog) were all exceptional and cared about real life. They knew I'm in the city, dealing with leash-life, squirrels, untrained dogs barging into our space constantly, etc., and helped set up scenarios for all of that. The boundaries and confidence building for Liam have been transformative and I'm so happy with his training.