The Becket School of Canine Training & Rehabilitation

We recently completed a 3-week Board & Train program with Stephanie at The Becket School of Canine Training & Rehabilitation. For anyone reading this who's been debating whether a board and train program is worth it, especially one as intensive as this, do it. We have a 3-year-old Australian Shepherd with severe underlying anxiety. For a long time, we hesitated. First, we thought we could handle it ourselves, even though his behaviors were progressively becoming more difficult. Second, it's a significant financial investment. And third, it requires a daily commitment once your dog comes home. But the reality is, owning a dog is a commitment regardless. After finally deciding we needed help, we were referred to Stephanie. Before reaching out, I did exactly what you're probably doing now. I researched the facility, looked into Stephanie, and read through the reviews. Honestly, the positive reviews were the reason I picked up the phone. That's also why I'm taking the time to write this one. From our very first phone call, I could tell Stephanie was kind, knowledgeable, patient, and genuinely cared about helping dogs and their owners succeed. She happened to have an opening, and within a week we were dropping our Aussie off for his three week program. Throughout the entire program, Stephanie worked one-on-one with him every single day. She kept us updated on his progress, sent frequent communication, and was always transparent about how he was doing. When we picked him up, she spent as much time as we needed answering every question we had. She was honest about his progress and made sure we understood that training doesn't stop when your dog comes home, it continues with us. We're only about a week into having him back, and I can already see the incredible foundation Stephanie built. The biggest change has been his ability to relax. Situations that would normally have him on high alert no longer consume him the way they used to. Seeing our boy settle down and relax throughout the day has honestly been one of the greatest gifts. Don't get me wrong, we still have plenty of work to do. Training is a lifelong process, and now it's our responsibility to continue building on the foundation Stephanie created. But having such a strong starting point has given us so much confidence. Even after the program ended, Stephanie has continued to answer every question we've had, no matter how small, and has been incredibly supportive. If your dog is struggling with anxiety, reactivity, or any behavior that leaves you feeling overwhelmed, don't wait as long as we did. Give yourself the confidence, and more importantly, give your dog the opportunity to succeed. No matter where our journey takes us years from now, I'll always be grateful for the foundation Stephanie gave both us and our dog. We can't thank her enough, and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend The Becket School of Canine Training & Rehabilitation to anyone looking for a trainer who truly cares.

We took our 3yr old dog here who was starting to show signs of aggression just two months before we had a baby due. I can’t express enough how grateful we are for Stephanie and all the work she did to train our dog. It has actually been life changing for the dog and us. We can take him places with no behavioral issues, he has learned boundaries, and behaves so well when people visit our home. All of these things were a disaster before Stephanie helped us. I can’t recommend the becket school enough!

We sent our golden retriever to Stephanie a few years ago. He has aggression issues, resource guarding issues, pulled in the leash and over all a very dominant unworkable personality for our home. Our boy spent 3 weeks with Stephanie and he came back with no fear, no anxiety, and overall just a better attitude when it came to feeding, and general attention from people. He still to this day walks perfectly on his leash with no pulling and we have not had a single bite incident and the resource guarding is way more manageable with the tips and tricks she gave us. Overall Stephanie is the most well rounded and thorough trainer.

I have fostered dogs and had my own (mostly dobermans) for 20 years. I adopted a fearful dog about 18 months ago from out of state that began showing some really fearful (looked aggressive to me and the people she bit)... I really didn't believe she could be rehabilitated. I had already been consulting with an experienced behaviorist from out of state that I have used before with success but she wasnt able to help. We had two bite situations so I was talking to the Minnesota rescue about returning/rehoming. The rescue explained that they had another dog that Stephanie was able to do wonders with and asked if I would consider taking the dog to her to see if she could help since she was here in Wisconsin. I honestly didn't think I would ever trust this dog enough to keep her. I am happy to say it has been a year since we brought our dog home. She was a different (calmer and more confident) dog and has remained that way. We love her and can't imagine ever being without her. We highly recommend Stephanie. She is wonderful to work with and really saved our dog. ** Update 3 years later. I wanted to provide update to show that Stephanie's training holds up over time. I had previously believed that training bookcamps worked at first but over time the dog reverts back to the previous bad behaviors. I can say that our dog has not had one even close encounter since her training and we lived in a hotel for 4 months while we were being relocated out of state. Our dog continues to be complimented on how sweet and well behaved she is. I can not explain the log term drastic changes that we have seen in this dog. I do not know how Stephanie did it but she is an amazing trainer! She offers a real gift to dogs and their owners. My family still is in awe of what she did for our girl and will forever be grateful for giving us the opportunity to love such a special dog.