Success Stories

Communication

Kayla

"Canine Dimensions was the best thing we did for ourselves and our new puppy. We learned to effectively communicate with our new family member, turning frustration into fun, disaster into discovery, pandemonium into play, and rampage into respect.

Thanks to Canine Dimensions, we have a loving puppy well on her way to being a wonderful adult companion. Canine Dimensions showed us all the right stuff from the onset. Their multiple-phase methodology ensures that you and your puppy get the proper training needed at precisely the correct intervals.

If there were more services like Canine Dimensions, there would be far less animal shelters in the world, as people would be better educated about communicating with their dogs. allowing the true human-dog relationship to develop."

Clark M.

Adding a dog to the family

Jack and Marcie

"We really did not know what we were getting into when we brought Jack home. Our first dog Marcie wanted no part of him. They fought constantly. We listened to our friends telling us "just let them fight it out and they'll get along fine after a while".

After 2 months of hell, we finally realized that either we had to get some help from a professional, or Jack would have to go.

I can now admit that before you came over neither of us was very optimistic. It just did not seem possible Jack and Marcie would ever be able to get along.

That first visit was a real eye opener. You explained the reasons for their behavior, and worked out a plan of action to correct it. I began to feel for the first time that there might be a glimmer of hope!

People don't believe me when I tell them this, but literally THE FIRST DAY that we started doing the things you suggested, we started to notice a change in their behavior. After a few days, things continued to improve, and in about 2 weeks the change was like night and day.

They get along great now, and peace has been restored to our home. We cannot thank you enough!"

Gary and Bonnie B.

Unbelievable energy

Beau

"Beau has unbelievable energy. He's a great dog but was a real handful before we met you. I can definitely see a huge improvement. And now if we have a question or a problem with him, we know where to turn for a solution."

Kathy M.

Special needs dog

Linus

"Linus is our newest "special needs" student. A double-dapple dachshund blind from birth, he was saved from euthanasia by a rescue group, lived in foster care for a while and was later adopted by his new permanent family. A great student eager to learn new things, he is learning all of his basic commands with enthusiasm.
Welcome Linus!

Pulling on leash

Dawkins

"I cannot thank you enough for coming out to work with myself and Dawkins, my year old mix. He was a rescue with the friendliest attitude and a lot of energy- he was very responsive inside the apartment, but once we walked outside the apartment, I lost all control as he bounded everywhere.

He was out of control when I tried jogging with him, yanking and biting on the leash to go the direction he wanted to. I was always scared when we went by another dog as I knew I wouldn't have enough control. I bloodied my knees and scraped up my elbows on a regular basis when he pulled me off balance. I was at the point of having to return him to the shelter if I couldn't get control.

Dawkins had me exhausted with his pulling and lunging toward other dogs- his 50 lbs of determination overwhelmed me. I tried the buckle collar, 2 different kinds of body harnesses, the gentle leader muzzle harness, the gentle leader front harness, and a nylon choke collar - over $200 in equipment that didn't work or he destroyed! All of these just gave him a creative outlet for ways to pull me around, knock me over, and startle innocent bystanders!

I worked with 2 other trainers who just kept telling me I had the wrong treats and that if I found the right food, all of a sudden my dog would do anything for me. The real result was he just stopped eating his regular dog food and made me give him a treat to do the sits and downs he did prior to the trainers' advice.The few hours you spent with us was more productive than the weeks of food based trainings we went to!

You pointed out where my communication was not clear to him. Then, you showed me how to show Dawkins that I was the boss- not him.

We went out for our first walk the morning after your lessons and it was easy - no food treats - and I was not frustrated or forced to coax or yell at him. I could not believe how easy it was to finally get him to walk right by by side.

Even inside the apartment, I have more control already, as my leadership is no longer dependent on our location.

I love my dog and was heartbroken trying to explain to everyone what a good dog he was- but you have provided me with the tools to let my dog prove it himself. Thank you again!"

Jacqueline B.

Took in a stray

Frodo

"It was hard for us from the beginning – two busy people with no dog experience taking in a stray – but we felt sure that we didn’t need any help. We can wing it! We’re intellectuals! We can learn how to do this reading books and using the internet!

That idealism lasted three whole months.

After three months, it stops being cute that he took a man-size dump in the dining room and ripped up my books.

Once he put his teeth on the Shakespeare, I knew we needed help. Because if he touched Shakespeare again, I was going to make him into a hat.

We tried obedience classes at our local pet store. The people were really nice, I learned some helpful basics, and Frodo had a great time. However, we were still having problems and the trainers there often had no idea why.

Needless to say, we were frustrated.

Why is he still humping me months after we’ve had him neutered? We does he seem to be housebroken until he’s alone in the dining room for five minutes? Why is he always barking when we’re watching TV?Ed and I constantly argued over whose “internet source” had the correct method. All our friends had advice to give us, and all of it was different.

In desperation I started looking for trainers on the internet. I called five before I got to Phil at Canine Dimensions. When he came over, he spent a lot of time answering our huge list of questions and giving us specific instructions.

He warned us the first week would be a difficult adjustment in some respects, but if we could get through it we would see results. He wasn’t kidding. Some of the results were immediate. We were amazed at how such simple changes could have such a profound effect.

Our neighbors have said that he seems like a totally different dog.

He does commands I never thought he’d master (like “Come!”) with ease and enthusiasm. And even Ed - the biggest skeptic in the known universe - talks about how well behaved Frodo is since Phil visited our home.

We haven’t had an accident in the house for eight weeks, including the dreaded dining room.

Now we can get Frodo to stay politely in one place when guests are entering the house. Before, we couldn’t even open the door without barring Frodo behind several toddler gates like it was Fort Knox!

Maria H.

Adopted dog

Coco

Coco was adopted from a local shelter and is now a well behaved member of a wonderful, loving family. A very bright and attentive student, Coco easily learned all of her basic commands (sit, down, stay, come, drop-it) and is now walking nicely on the leash instead of pulling. She just graduated from CD Basic, and is looking forward to starting Intermediate/Advanced lessons next month. Congratulations Coco!

Preferred training method

Hendrix

"I called other trainers, but I really liked the fact that there is no punishment, shock collars or anything like that in your training program. Hendrix enjoys each lesson, and he's doing great so far. "

Board and train

Duke

Kenny and I can't tell you how pleased we are with Duke's two weeks of training. Prior to his training, it was really a chore to walk him. He always pulled and got distracted very easily. The bigger he got, the harder it became. Now, he walks nice and doesn't pull us, even when he sees something he wants to explore or chase. The bonus...We all get more exercise now since it's a pleasure to walk, not to mention all the positive comments from all our neighbors. As Duke got bigger, most of our neighbors started expressing their fear of him (partly due to a neighbor who had a shepherd and let him run amuck), which is one reason why we brought him to you. We knew Duke had a great personality when we got him, and we knew we needed to make sure that he wouldn't scare the neighbors, or more importantly, be too aggressive with the kids. In the past we have trained our other dogs, and have always had a great deal of success with it, but, we also didn't have four kids during those times, or a dog this big. We continue to be very impressed with his level of discipline after his training and more impressed that he has kept his personality and playfulness. He didn't even bark or go after the UPS guy the other day. He even let him pet him.

We are so pleased we brought him to you. We can't thank you, and your family, enough for your treatment and dedication to our Duke. We liked that you took in Duke to your household (even with two big dogs of your own) for this two week training session and treated him like a family member. For us, that was a key factor, and I definitely think it was better for him to learn in a constant loving environment as opposed to a kennel. No doubt it made it easier for him when he got home. It was like he never left. There were times when he tried to fall back into the routines he had before we brought him to you (jumping on the furniture, barking non stop, etc) but, after your educational seminar we had before we left your home, we were able to correct those issues with little effort.

Overall, we could not be happier. There is truly not one thing that we were not happy with. Well worth the money!! We can tell you that we have already recommended you to several people who were very impressed with Duke's progress. We would absolutely do it again for another puppy, and in fact, are considering another puppy in the not too distant future.

Thank you again!! We were happy with him before, but we are even happier now thanks to your training.”

Sincerely,
Laureen and Ken K.

Out of Control

Smoke

" …I used to be able to take her everywhere with me, but as she got older, Smoke became more difficult to control on leash.

She was easily startled by people walking by us, and by people walking other dogs. All kinds of things just seemed to set her off. She would bark and lunge at them. She’s a big strong dog and I was having trouble holding her back. So I decided to sign her up for the “Board and Train” program at Canine Dimensions.

When I picked her up a few weeks later, the trainer demonstrated what he was able to accomplish with her, and it was really amazing. The leash pulling had completely stopped.

He took some time to teach me how to reinforce what she had learned, and then he handed me the leash. She walked nicely by my side – there was no pulling! She sat automatically whenever I stopped, and remained seated politely right next to me until I started walking again.

I could never have accomplished this on my own. Our walks are a pleasure now, and I can once again take her with me wherever I go. We walk right by people with other dogs and she stays glued to my side. I couldn’t be happier with the results of her training.”

Diane M.

Leash pulling

Mazie

"...I'll never forget the day that you were able to show me how to get Mazie to stop pulling on the leash and walk nicely by my side. You were able to fix something in 10 minutes that I have been dealing with for 3 years. Mazie is a different dog on the leash now."

Fran B.

He is a new dog

Junior

"Just a note of thanks for helping us with our American Bulldog, Junior. Looking back and comparing the dog he was before to the dog he is now, it really is amazing all the changes we see. We feel that we have control now. Thanks again for everything!"

Barbara and Anthony S

No more nipping

Tucker

"Tucker is doing very well. Our son was born July 11 and since he came home Tucker has been awesome…he is much more behaved, no more nipping or begging for attention. We could not be happier with the results of his training. We did not expect to see such immediate results and we learned so much on what we need to do to make sure Tucker continues to get better. Thanks again.”

Justin G.

A new spark

Pogo

Pogo is such a joy since he graduated from training. There is a new spark that we never saw before. His tail starts to wag when we give him a command. It's so cute! He's such a ham, he just loves the attention. He loves doing all of the commands that he learned. It's almost as if he wants to show us what he knows. It's hard to explain, but it's easy to see. There is a big, big, big difference in him. He is a very obedient dog now, and he seems happier. Everybody wants to know how we did it."

Kristin R.

Bailey

"Bailey is a different dog since he completed the training. To say that we are thrilled with the results would be an understatement. He obeys all of the commands you taught him. He now looks to us for our approval in everything he does. We are amazed at how much he has improved with his daily behavior around the house. No more running out the door, no more looking for food on our kitchen table, all those things we had on "our long list" when you first came to our house. There truly is a 100% improvement. You guys really know your stuff! Thanks again!"

Jamie H.

Dog aggression

Jazz

" We just wanted to give you a progress report on Jazz. The aggression on his walks has completely stopped. He is a complete gentleman on the leash now, even when we pass a dog who is barking at us. Last Saturday I took him to my son's soccer game and he sat right at my feet. This would not be a big deal to other people, but it is something that I never dreamed would be possible with Jazz. He paid no attention to the other dogs, which is nothing short of miraculous. Thank you so much for all your help."

Rescue and Shelter Dogs

"I own four German Shepherds and I also foster dogs for a local rescue. I call Canine Dimensions whenever I need help with difficult behavior problems, or advice on the occasional conflicts that can arise among the dogs. Canine Dimensions has always come through for me. I would recommend them to any dog owner, especially to people who have adopted dogs from rescue organizations or shelters."

Kim C.

Adopted Puppy

Jozie

"We adopted Jozie as a puppy from a PA rescue group in November of 07.  She came from a high-kill shelter in VA.  She was crate trained and fairly well house-trained (but not perfect there).  We are first time dog owners and we definitely needed help training her - even though she is shy she's a high energy dog and was difficult for us to handle.  Phil at Canine Dimensions was the perfect answer for us.  We learned so much from his first visit and shortly after that we were able to teach her SIT, DOWN, STAY, DROP-IT and COME, which was useful recently when Jozie had her first "jail break!”

But more than just the training - I think it was critical the things he taught us about communicating with her.  There are many ways that dogs communicate that are not obvious to people that don't have much experience with dogs - but Phil taught us what to look for and how to react to her.  That made the biggest difference of all."

Joe and Janelle

Counter Surfing

Charlie

“Charlie is doing great. We followed your suggestions to correct the counter surfing and it worked the first day. And he is now a pleasure to walk on the leash. We still have some work to do, but his basic commands are coming along nicely. We are very happy with the results of his training.”

Lacey and Phil H

Before and After Leash Training

Magnum

Magnum is a big strong dog who was never trained to walk nicely on a leash. Notice in the “before” section of the clip he is paying no attention to the handler (pulling and lagging) and is very difficult to control. The “after” section of the clip was taken after just 15 minutes of training. He has stopped pulling, lagging and sniffing and instead has been taught to pay attention to the handler and walk politely by her side.

Dog rescue

Hershey

This handsome fellow is Hershey, a recent Canine Dimensions student and one of many superb companions adopted from Garden State German Shepherd Rescue. He is doing great, and he is healthy and happy in his new permanent home. Congratulations Hershey! (If you are interested in finding out more about  adopting a German Shepherd, please visit gsgsr.org.)

Two Types of Personalities

Shadow & Woolf

"We can't thank Amanda enough for showing us the way with our pups.

We have Shadow, our beautiful black lab, and Woolf, our very handsome black GSD. Both pups have temperaments and personalities that require very different training. Amanda worked with us, helped show us the different styles we would need to use and how to implement it. The results have been amazing.

Woolf had a rough start in life and the results of it didn't start showing until we had him on leash and out walking. Amanda has been right there with us, answering questions and more questions, helping to get him on the right track. The support Amanda provided has been far beyond the call of duty.

We are always hearing someone say 'I wish my dog was trained like that.' We tell them it couldn't have been done without the trainer we had. We let them know that Canine Dimensions and Amanda is the best way to go for training."

John and Twyla D.