KW Happy Dogs

We adopted a two-year-old Manchester Terrier in April from a friend of a friend, both of whom are long-time breeders of Manchesters in Washington State. They both told us he was a sweet dog, so we paid $1,500 for his adoption and transportation and eagerly awaited his arrival. When we got him home, he was meek, cuddly, and vulnerable. But the next day, when we took him outside in our very dog-dense neighborhood, his demeanor was 180 degrees different. Aggressive, reactive, lunging, growling – at both dogs and humans. We thought he would calm down after a few days, but he didn’t. When he nipped a friend’s puppy on the snout, snapped at a neighbor’s outstretched hand, and cornered two different houseguests in our kitchen with non-stop growling and lunging, we really became concerned and started referring to him as our “Tasmanian Devil Hound”. Anxiety became the overwhelming experience every time we took him outside - not the life we’d imagined with our new family member. After six months of this, we decided we had to find a solution or send him back. Fortunately, we heard about certified animal behaviorists from a friend who boards our dogs. We Googled, and after a few hours of evaluation of all the animal behaviorists in the Bay Area, we contacted Kirsten. Hallelujah! Kirsten has a very user-friendly website and reservation system, and we were able to schedule ourselves to see her for our first session within a couple weeks. We met in beautiful Sausalito, at MLK park with a good balance of open space and also an enclosed dog park where we could take our dog for higher intensity socialization. It was truly a pleasure to work with Kirsten - like we'd gone on a fun and fascinating mini learning vacation with a friend who was a cross between a biologist and a therapist! In our first session we were amazed to see how quickly our dog responded and learned each exercise, how Kirsten anticipated his responses before they happened, and coached us gently to manage those responses for when they did occur. She also taught us how to interpret his behavior, how to shape his perception of the context that he finds himself in, how to manage his thresholds with other dogs, how to be an advocate for him in social situations, etc. And in some ways most importantly, she explained his behavior so well and showed us clearly that he was in fact a “very good teenage boy” who just needed some guidance – which we were perfectly capable of doing. We finished the class both relieved and hopeful. The next day we received a very detailed follow-up email from Kirsten including demonstration videos, reviewing the exercises we learned and what to practice as preparation for the next session. This would be the pattern for each of our three sessions, and Kirsten always replied promptly and with insightful guidance to any questions or additional information we provided between sessions. Our dog is now a joy to take with us anywhere – cafes, parks, restaurants, on vacation, etc. And we enthusiastically recommend Kirsten Wojcik and KW Happy Dogs to our neighbors and friends who are at their wits ends with their own dogs.

Kirsten was a great help in teaching my husband & I how to work with our 3 yr old puppy. She explained to us dog behaviors for us to better understand our puppy and the results showed almost immediately. Having Kirsten's help in training our dog has made our dog walks less stressful for us, and for our dog, and more enjoyable. We also had Kirsten help us with muzzle training for our dog in anticipation of our dog meeting our 2 yr old grandson. We would give Kirsten more stars if they were available and we strongly recommend Kirsten.

I initially contacted Kirsten because she's one of only two IAABC-certified behaviorists in Marin, and I knew I needed more than a trainer. And I am so glad I found her! She has made a huge difference in both my quality of life and my dog's quality of life. This was my first experience with a behaviorist (or trainer), and I was nervous, but Kirsten has a way of putting you at ease. She's very relaxed, really listens, and she never makes you feel inept, even when you are. :-) Her approach is flexible and practical, not dogmatic.The training sessions are fun for both me and my dog--which I wasn't expecting. After each appointment she emails notes, along with video demonstrations of the skills we worked on--which is a huge help to refer back to later. She has taught me a number of simple techniques for changing my dog's behavior and managing challenging situations. Even better, practicing those specific skills seems to have improved my dog's behavior in general. And best of all, our relationship has improved. A lot.