Mid-Atlantic Dog Training

Tom worked with our rottweiler/cane corso shelter mutt. She had been with us for about 6 months (from the shelter), but had some reactivity issues (afraid of passing trucks, buses, etc.) and was fiercely protective of our house - slamming herself up against the windows to ward off passers-by, etc. and "greeting" guests at the front door with frantic, out of control enthusiasm once she knew they were being welcomed. Perhaps most important, her weight is roughly the same as one of us, and we needed her to be 100% reliable on the leash walks that provide most of her - and our - daily exercise. Tom was patient and respectful toward this big beauty and began by providing exercises and methods for us to help her be calmer - and more confident - both in our home and out on the street. A crucial part of this training was the carefully - and caringly - applied use of a prong collar. He was very methodical in making sure we knew how - AND HOW NOT! - to use the leach and prong collar. He appeared to know that his first task was to win us over to the prong collar, teach us its proper use, help us understand what it is NOT for, and reminding us that a harmless "nip" in the skin of her neck is exactly how her mother would have helped her know where to be. Once we and our girl understood this, she was soon presenting herself in front of us to have her collar put on, happily and patiently waiting for the walk it signaled. With every walk, we're all learning more about how to use the prong collar to communicate and to create safe, reassuring walks together. Tom knows his stuff. It's not easy to let go of what seemed to be working before he came, but he helped us to actually see the advantages for the dog in what he was proposing. We can't honestly say we have followed his teachings to the letter. For instance, we're still using the cot he prescribed, but we think it's probably going to be set aside, simply because she has a tendency to launch it behind her when she enthusiastically responds to "release" and leaps off with her 100 lb puppy bod. But she now heels going up and down stairs and through doors, etc. - essential with a 100 lb puppy! - and enjoys her walks. She only occasionally gets startled by a loud bus passing because she's much more confident in our leadership than before. She's a great dog. She has her anxieties, but they are rapidly receding in intensity and she's enjoying her new home more and more each day. She can be trusted to be calm and gentle when playing with and getting belly rubs from our quite small grandchildren, whome she greatly outweighs. Our grandson, in particular (a small 10 year old), enjoys taking the leash with her on walks (closely supervised, of course) ... and so does she. She's still a willful, stubborn girl, who will challenge a command now and then, but we're good with that. This is our first time with a prong collar, but definitely not our first rodeo with an anxious dog or a shelter adoption. We had a highly athletic, very anxious Portugese Water Dog (purebred; from a pup until he died after 12 years) who would have benefited from what Tom has taught us. We had a 70 lb pit bull rescue whose extreme anxiety (and aggressiveness) toward other dogs made him miserable. Our vet advised prozac, which helped him a lot - so we are not opposed to meds when needed. He became a great dog with that kind of help. But THIS dog loves her crate, loves her prong collar walks, and loves her new home. We don't hesitate to have her out with guests now - an impossibility before. She's calmer, happier and a great companion - and still a great watchdog. We recommend Tom to anyone wanting a loving, leadership based training experience for their dog. *UPDATE * 10/07/2022 The results have been robust: our dog continues to enjoy - and will actually initiate now and then - the exercises Tom taught us. They are, for her, essentially play - and she finds them familiar, predictable, and fun. She's more focused and relaxed every day. The more consistent we are with her, the more consistent she becomes in her behavior.

Tom's training has been a game changer for our relationship with our dog. Highly recommend for people who have been unsuccessful with other trainers, new pet owners, anyone! Before training with Tom: We had our 4 year old, 70 lb pit mix (first dog ever) for about a year who was reactive to cats and dogs. We also had two cats and were keeping the dog and cats on separate floors at all times for the cats’ safety. He also pulled on walks and lunged/growled at dogs, which had caused us multiple injuries. We love our dog, but it was getting exhausting. While training with Tom: Tom provides step-by-step instructions for success. He is very experienced and showed us how to properly walk him, what training exercises to do, and what routines we should create. Training never ends- we still use advice/lessons from Tom to strengthen and build our relationship with our dog. We would have never believed we could even get to a point where the cats and dog could be on the same floor- but the pictures do not lie! The picture with our dog and cat next to each other is about 5 months after the first lesson. Advice: Be open to making changes. It’s called dog training but it’s more like owner training. We learned how to be good leaders and for our dog and communicate with him. We feel confident as owners of a large dog and have learned so much. Thank you, Tom!

We engaged Tom's services about 3 years ago for our shepard mix. The training my wife and I received along with the tools for our dog including a prong collar and E-collar have been essential in training our dog and "tuning him up" from time to time. These tools are a great way, along with consistent verbal communication to build a strong attention span with your dog and Tom's guidance in using these tools was fantastic. Our dog recently underwent knee surgery and lost a bit of his good walking habits during the recovery. Having these tools and training made it very easy and quick to bring him back to good heel and attention to us while walking. The training was just as much about us as dog owners as it was about our dog. We would highly recommend Tom to anyone, listen and learn, and remember that your dog is not a tiny person in a cute winter coat!