Opportunity Barks Behavior & Training

After years of being on the fence about seeking out professional help, I finally did it, and I’m so mad I didn’t do it sooner. Ashlee and the team at OpBarks are incredible! They gave me the tools to be able to manage two high energy dogs, without depriving them of the joys of life. I now have two significantly more obedient dogs that are more confident walking around the streets of Philadelphia, which is a big deal for us. I know I still have work to do on my end, but I truly could not thank them enough for providing us all with the training we needed.

Our new puppy Bowie was VERY scared and timid going into her first puppy social and started off by hiding behind the furniture. Janet appropriately helped manage the pack and worked to put Bowie in a comfortable space (along with the other timid pups). Over the next several weeks, Janet helped Bowie blossom: by the third week, she was a full-on crazy (in a good way) participant and is wholly comfortable (and playing) with all dogs, everywhere. Would highly recommend OpBarks and Janet specifically!

Hi hi HI! I’m Archie (Certified Zoomies Expert, Border Collie mix, Age 10 Months) and I have MANY IMPORTANT THINGS TO SAY about my favorite place: Opportunity Barks! First, I am what humans call “energetic” and “too smart for my own good” and “please stop squeaking that ball for five seconds.” So my humans took me to Puppy Fundamentals when I was tiny and chaotic. It was AWESOME. There were treats and toys and another puppy to practice being a puppy with! Then we did Agility and ohWOWTHEREWEREJUMPS. I didn’t know I could bounce that high but now I do and now my humans know too and they look slightly concerned, but they were really proud of me and I can tell they had fun too. Right now I’m in a class called Leash & Leave It which I think means “please stop pulling this human’s arm out and trying to eat mystery trash.” I get to practice walking like a gentleman while secretly plotting to grab every leaf in existence. But the BEST part is my new friend Janet, a magical human trainer who understands my wiggles AND my stress eyebrows. Janet gives me lots of individual attention and somehow know when I’m excited vs. when I’m pretending to listen but actually thinking about what toy I want to destroy. Janet tells my humans what to look for so they finally understand that I bark with love, not chaos (okay sometimes chaos). Janet doesn’t make us all do the same things either because I’m a smart, mischievous boy with Opinions and Zoom Modes, so we get instructions that match our ages and brains and breeds. Janet is super clear and patient and give my humans homework (I call it snack practice), and recommends cool stuff like better collars and activities and toys for my humans to keep researching instead of panicking. Janet knew I was going to love my lure toy so much, and now it’s what my humans call “the only way we will get any peace around here”. Also, Janet gives me so many treats I think we’re officially best friends. I take them ever so gently (except the occasional, accidental chomp of love—sorry Janet!!). About Opportunity Barks itself: • It’s like a neighborhood clubhouse but for dogs AND the people who carry the treat bags. • There are classes for everything—not just “my dog chewed the couch” stuff, but fun enrichment things so we can learn and play and hang out together. • My humans said booking was easy and the website had lots of good info, but I don’t do keyboards so I’ll take their word. • The graduation ceremonies are SO CUTE. I wore a little bandana, I picked a toy and everyone clapped and I got so happy I wiggled my whole soul. • My humans say it’s a “good value” which I think means “worth every treat pouch.” • We’ve met lots of dog people there who smile at me instead of saying “oh no.” It feels like a little dog-loving community and I like that because I am very social and also nosy. Anyway I gotta go yell at a smaller dog outside, but if you’re a dog or a human with a dog, you should go to Opportunity Barks and ask for Janet. Tell them Archie sent you and that I can’t wait to see them next time! Wags and wiggles, Archie

We have a 7 month old lab who has drive (high energy and has impulsive moments). We started our training journey at another puppy kindergarten but it wasn't a good fit and wasn't really addressing our puppy's learning needs. We frequently felt like we had the bad dog in class. We were frustrated and wanted to help our dog become the best version of himself. Dogs are like people- they are all different and have varying personalities and learning/training requirements. They might not be easy to train.We read the description for the Knucklehead Foundations class and knew our guy was their poster child. I almost cried at our first private lesson with Leigh. Someone finally really looked at our dog and could identify his needs and help us. Between the Knucklehead classes with Janet and our private lessons we knew we made the correct decision to go to Opportunity Barks. They observed our pup and gave us tailored, real life skills to start working on our handling and finding his off switch. We finally feel like we found trainers that can help us achieve our goal. We are so grateful! Honora & Saint