Meraki Dog Company

My pup, Tuuli, and I are training to become a K9 search team. Chelsey is helping us to improve on a few puppy behaviors. Chelsey has a way with the pups such that they fall right in line with her lead and she presents the handler with good visual examples to model during at-home practice. I am able to understand her explanations and her behavior interventions make sense to me. In addition, Chelsey offers "sleepovers" for the pups when needed. We recently met her three pups and everybody had a hi-ho time.

Last year, my partner and I were searching for a dog trainer to do a board and train program for our rowdy 2-year-old German Sheperd Blue. I impulsively got Blue not knowing the extensive lengths of the breed. Blue had previously been with another trainer in the Denver Metro area for things like leash pulling and leash aggression towards other dogs, runners, bikers' cars, and anything that moved. Blue struggled a lot with things like confidence and had a lot of fear. She was not an aggressive dog (even though her reaction did frighten others and even me at times) and was just overall a really hard dog to have in an apartment. We had a really hard time getting her daily exercise in because of how bad she was at walking. When I decided to try my luck with another dog trainer, I was interested in testing out a board and train program. But when doing my research I noticed that a lot of the facilities in and near Denver kept the dogs in a concrete prison-like facility for two weeks. What set Chelsey apart from other board and train programs was that she worked from her home. This was a game changer for me because instead of Blue being only worked with for 2-3 hours a day amongst several other dogs in a facility, Chelsey was with my dog 24/7 throughout the two weeks. Chelsey has a couple of resident dogs I believe and also a few board and train clients at a time but nowhere near the large scale of the competitors. I also really liked that every dog she had in her house had gone through the same extensive program and they all were able to play from time to time supervised. This information was incredibly valuable to me because I truly did not know if Blue would be able to ever play with dogs or be around any. While in the board and train program, Blue learned how to walk on a leash, respond to an Ecollar, master her place command, learn to drop it, and interact in a healthy way with other dogs. After her board and train my partner and I learned how to deal with Blue when one of her triggers approached us on a walk, effectively play with her, and how to further her journey to becoming a great dog. After picking up Blue, we spent about an hour with Chelsey learning about all the fun things Blue learned to do. We got to see her halfway through the training because Chelsey thought it would be beneficial for us to see where she was at in her training. We ultimately decided to drop her down to a level 1 board and train instead of level 2 so she could become extremely confident in her basics. I feel like this was most definitely the right choice. Weeks after the initial board and train, we met up with Chelsey a few times to work with Blue out in public and see how she reacted in public to help us navigate her even further. Since the board and train Blue has been a boarding client with Chelsey and I have so much piece of mind leaving my baby with Chelsey. Previously, we had boarded her at Petsmart and Blue would come home very sad and not herself for a few days because of what I think was overwhelmed by the environment she was in. I don’t like the idea of people coming to my house while out of town so Chelsey has proven to be a valuable resource for us. But in all honesty, the whole reason we wanted to start her training was so we could take her on the adventures we were going on instead of leaving her behind all the time. After her training, we have been able to go to Glenwood Springs a few times and Wyoming several times to visit a family cabin. Previously, Blue never came with us because of how extreme she was, but now she joins us on our road trips! Blue being the kind of dog she is, still requires daily training sessions and lots of mental stimulation to keep her happy and not annoying me constantly but Chelsey truly changed our lives by giving us a kickstart with all the tools we need to succeed in our dog training journey. When we board Blue with her, she also continues to touch up Blues trained skills which has helped keep Blue at the level she was previously at.

We took our German Shepard Blue to see Chelsey. It was very nice to know that she is a trainer that is very versed working with this breed. Blue was very reactive and struggled when walking on a leash. During her time here Blue also worked up on her 'Place' command which is a great tool that we use very day. Cars, people, bikes, and other dogs all put her on high alert when on basic walks. Blue did a two week board and train for her obedience, and she learned a lot in this time. During her time there we received updates, pictures, and videos of Blue. During her training Chelsey used tools such as an e-collar and prong collar to help with her reactivity on walks. After the board and train Chelsey sat down with us and took the time showing us how to properly use the e-collar and prong collar. We learned how to better communicate with our reactive dog using these new tools. Since incorporating these new techniques that Blue had picked up her reactivity decreased dramatically. We are now able to go on walks around other dogs and people with out it being stressful on us or Blue.

Chelsey is absolutely wonderful and has helped our 2 year old Yorkie feel more comfortable around other dogs, helped him behave and get less distracted during walks, and has served as a great doggy daycare with a flexible schedule and reasonable cost! She gives us new tips every time we see her on how to continue his growth as well which is amazing. Communication is amazing and we always get pictures of our little guy when he is away!