Canine by Design

Charlie is a Shepard/Pit mix with lots of energy. He was a bully to our other dogs, and we really didn't know if we could handle him. We almost looked into rehoming him, but luckily we found Canine by Design and I can not express the difference the training has made. Charlie was enrolled in the Board and Train program and we were sent updates weekly and pictures of his outings and development. We loved watching him on Instagram and really new he was in good hands. With this training we now understand what Charlie needs to be successful and now have the tools needed to work with him. It was well worth the investment that will last for the rest of Charlie's life, and are so happy for the knowledgeable trainers (Lex) and all the people at Canine by Design that made this possible.

This is an excellent business. From the minute I filled out the online form, communications were extremely clear and warm. Jess (the office manager) reached out to me in a timely manner and scheduled a visit with Jason, the owner. Jason came over to the house and got a run-down of our dog Wrigley’s behavior issues. Wrigley is a great dog and very friendly, but had not been trained consistently enough. She was difficult to walk (pulling and biting the leash) and was always counter surfing and stealing food. When she got something off the counter, she would exhibit resource guarding behavior which created a lot of stress in our house. She had a lot of unaddressed behavior issues, but this was the most concerning for us because the resource guarding behavior was the only time we saw her exhibit any aggression. We agreed that a four-week program was the right fit for Wrigley as she is six years old and had a litany of issues that needed addressing. Jason came by to pick up the dog and was very patient when he met our children who were very concerned about how their sister was going to be treated. Throughout the four weeks, our trainer Graci, shared DETAILED weekly emails with us explaining progress she had been making with Wrigley, what she was planning for the next week, and asking questions about specifics of prior behavior. The updates included videos, which we all watched in amazement. When the four weeks was up, Graci came to our house for a lengthy session to teach us how to continue the work of training the dog and to patient explain the new commands, what to look out for, and how to use the new tools to reinforce the training. Again, lots and lots of kid questions were treated with respect and patience which has really paid off because the kids are totally onboard and helping to continue Graci’s amazing work. Wrigley is definitely a changed dog. She obeys our commands to stay and has not even once ventured on the counter to steal food. Graci explained that avoiding this behavior is the best approach, so ‘basic training’ on commands like ‘place’ and ‘down’ do a world of good to keep her from situations where she might be tempted to grab something off the counter. We have also been working, at Graci’s direction, on human food avoidance and other helpful techniques. Walking Wrigley is much more enjoyable as she doesn’t pull on the leash or cut in front of us. I wish we had engaged Canine By Design earlier – this training works extremely effectively. We were concerned that our dog was ‘too old’ to train, which has not been the case. When we get our next dog, we will most definitely engage Canine By Design earlier.

I have tried several different obedience training programs and nothing has ever seemed to stick for us. Sending my dog to the board and train program has been one of the best decisions I’ve made for my dog and myself. Jason, Jess, and Lex have been wonderful. Lex was so good with my dog that it was easy to see my dog was comfortable with her which was something that I was worried about. Everyone was so great when communicating with me and giving me updates. I genuinely can’t say enough good things about our experience as well as the education both my dog and myself have received. I highly recommend this company for any dog training. They train for longevity and teach you how to keep up the obedience. I’m incredibly grateful.