Seattle Board and Train

Christine is an absolute gift to work with. Her knowledge is vast and her creativity unlimited. She improved our life significantly by teaching us and our dog to work together to manage her very intense anxiety and leash aggression. We were very anxious about how to manage these serious issues but Christine broke things down and helped us find lots of small successes quickly, always giving concrete homework to build on. Sessions with her were fun for us and the dog. Her expertise is worth every penny. Our life is better because if Christine.

We absolutely love Christine. Everything she does is evidence-based, and she is always ready to explain the science behind her approach. Her enthusiasm and genuine passion for understanding animal behavior is contagious. Her commitment to our family and dog is constant. We tried other trainers before her for our then 1-year-old Great Pyrenees, but they dealt too much in fear and shame. Christine's approach is incredibly effective and based in an accepting appreciation for each animal breed's learning behaviors. Our dog is as well trained as we're willing to make her - Christine gave us the tools, and it's up to us to use and maintain the training. If ever we come across a new behavior that we aren't sure how to handle, we simply get in touch and she's always responsive. Sometimes I text, other times we do a phone call, and we still stop by for playdates! We adore her and would recommend her to anyone!

It’s been almost a year since we first started working with Christine. Our girl Lemon was struggling with anxiety, leash frustration/reactivity, recall, and learning how to settle and be calm. The most challenging part for us was learning what motivated Lemon. Christine truly came to our rescue when we called for a consult and immediately fit Lemon into her schedule for a week of day training. During that time, Christine taught us how to read Lemon’s behavior and body language, and how to work with Lemon rather than against her. We learned that our girl is highly motivated by toys and play, and that her leash frustration/reactivity was mostly due to her eagerness to say hi and play with other pups. Within a matter of months we were able to take what we learned from Christine and apply it all to our daily routine. Lemon, now 22 months old and weighing in at 117, walks like a champ on leash, has beautiful play and social skills with all dogs big and small, and can settle easily in public spaces. Lemon also does really well off leash, staying close, and coming when called. We really owe Christine so much. She’s kind, compassionate, professional, and truly cares about setting the humans and the dogs up for success. Christine is also the only board and train locally that doesn’t use force, fear, or pain as part of her methods for training dogs. She’s an expert in animal behavior and does her best to train the dog in front of her. What we loved the most was being able to see her working with our dog via the videos she recorded and shared with us! We learned not how to train all dogs, but how to collaborate with our girl, and how to not compare her to others. Even today, Christine still checks in on Lemon and always makes herself available to us when we have questions or find that we might need a bit more support as she continues maturing. Christine has really become part of our family 💛 I cannot recommend her services enough! Thank you, Christine, for helping us understand and love our girl for who she is with all her goofiness, love, and spunk!

Our then 16 month old Rottweiler, Kona, spent 3 weeks with Christine at Seattle Board and Train in May. Since Kona was a puppy she has struggled with separation anxiety and at about 8 months she also started struggling with leash reactivity, barrier aggression, and impulse control. Before we started working with Christine, we were unable to leave Kona alone, as she would have anxiety induced accidents, and walking her in public areas in Seattle was extremely difficult, as she would lunge at cars, dogs, people, and skateboards. Elevator rides in our apartment building were always tense as Kona was scared the door would open to a dog she didn’t know or didn’t like. After working with Christine, we are now able to leave Kona alone in the apartment for several hours without worrying about her peeing or scratching at doors. We’re also able to walk Kona around our neighborhood in areas congested with people without Kona lunging. She now even lies down in the elevator waiting for treats rather than staring at the elevator door worried a dog will appear. There is still room for improvement for her dog to dog reactivity while on leash, but progress is certainly being made. Kona used to be alarmed when another dog was within 200 feet of her while on leash, but that distance has greatly reduced. Christine checks in with us on Kona’s progress and because of Christine we are confident that she will one day be able to pass another dog on the sidewalk. If you are looking for a force-free, positive reinforcement trainer in Seattle, we highly recommend you work with Christine.

Christine is a saint and a dog whisperer. More than training dogs, she trains their humans to be able to train their dogs. She uses positive reinforcement only so both you and your dog are happy throughout the process and form a really strong bond. Her facilities are like dog heaven with a pond and creek and lots of tall grasses to hide and play in and trees to weave in and out of. Juneau, our dog, loves Christine and I honestly don't think I would have been the kind of responsible dog owner I am now if I hadn't been graced by Christine's guidance. I honestly don't think there is anything I would recommend more to any dog owner than private training with Christine.