FirstBark
We recently enrolled our dog in the puppy training classes at The Dogs' Spot. From the beginning we were told that our dog was on the age border and may be better off in the Adolescent training class, and they told us they may recommend we move to that group after his first week…Read full reviewClose full review
We recently enrolled our dog in the puppy training classes at The Dogs' Spot. From the beginning we were told that our dog was on the age border and may be better off in the Adolescent training class, and they told us they may recommend we move to that group after his first week. We then had to delay training another 3 weeks due to kennel cough, so by the time we were starting his first week he was older than what they originally recommended for puppy training. We went to the first week and our dog had a good time, and he was the biggest and oldest dog there. He was pretty wild, in our opinion, but we were told he interacted so well during the few minutes of 'free play' with the other dogs and took their cues well when they were scared or nervous of a bigger dog. Our 2nd class did not go well, and my wife was asked to step out with the dog about 20 minutes in to class. She was told she could stay outside and watch, however, I'm not sure what that would accomplish with a barking dog and a very embarrassed and stressed out dog mom for how she was called out. We received an email later on stating he could not return to class until he saw a behavioral specialist. We are not talking about an aggressive dog here folks. He is a Golden Retriever puppy with tons of energy and was being asked to sit still for a majority of class while the instructors spent the majority of the hour speaking to the adults. Through one and a half sessions, the dog spent most of his time being required to sit still and silently in a room with 5-6 other dogs he wanted to play with while they spoke to the humans. This could have been better attained without bringing the dog's to class at all. It was miserable. To make matters worse, when we requested a refund on the remaining 5 classes, we only received a response that they felt bad we felt the dog was kicked out, and the refund matter was referred to Laura. Multiple emails and requests for refunds later, without a single response from apparently the one person who can address this, and now we feel obliged to write a review. Go somewhere else, and do your research on a more interactive setting for your dog. We've talked to multiple other friends who have done group classes elsewhere, as well as private, and they couldn't believe what we described our experience to be. It also does not appear to be the norm to pay in full before your sessions even start, which makes sense. I would never pay a contractor in full before they have completed a job on my house, so why would any other service be different?