Focus-Based Dog Training In Michigan

When Oreo first came to us, she was terrified of anything outside of her house. She’d shut down and urinate submissively, which meant that her owner didn’t want to take her out. This led to a self-perpetuating cycle; we taught Oreo (and her owner) that things didn’t have to be this way! We taught Oreo how to be more confident, and gave her mom the tools to show Oreo that “hey, we’re a team, and we got this together.” By the end of the program, Oreo was happily working for food, performing drop-leash obedience, engaging with the trainers, and had transformed into an eager, willing participant!

When this pretty girl first came to us, she was herding her owner, jumping on him, scratching, and nipping at his pants to get him to go where she wanted him to. In fact, she bit Ash on the hand the first day she was here! To say that she was a firecracker was an understatement! She was also starting to become dog reactive due to the fact that she was overstimulated, and didn’t have an outlet for all of her puppy energy. She knew “sit” and “down,” but would bounce right out of the position. Within her first two weeks here, she was crate trained, beginning to focus on us, and was starting to hold “sit” and “down” for longer and longer durations. Nova is now more well-adjusted, and her owner has all of the tools he needs to help her succeed in life.

When DaVinci first came to us, he was extremely dog aggressive. In fact, he attacked a dog statue at the vet’s office! During his evaluation, Matt had him at one end of a football field, with another dog at the other end of the field, 300 yards away! Despite his small stature, DaVinci was letting the other dog know in no uncertain terms what he thought about them! By the end of his 6-week stay with us, DaVinci was participating in our group class with zero issues, and even passed his Canine Good Citizen test! Part of the test is greeting another dog; his response was to look away. In canine parlance, looking away and avoiding eye contact is a signal that says “I’m not a threat.” DaVinci’s owners put a lot of work in, and it shows! Great job!