Sit Means Sit, Phoenix Dog Training in Arizona
Call: 602-992-8743
E-mail: tdrugmand@gmail.com
Certified remote collar trainer specializing in problem behaviors, basic obedience and competition. Serving the following cities in Arizona: Phoenix, Tempe, Scottsdale, Mesa, Paradise Valley, Glendale, Cave Creek and Carefree.
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 Charlie at Vallecito Creek Name: Charlie
Owner: Marilyn Stevens
City: Phoenix, Arizona
Breed: Pointer Mix
Likes: His pool & sliding in the grass/when Lily steals his stuff
Favorite Toy/Treat/Walk: formerly stuffed reindeer, bones are his favorite treat and his favorite walk is Castle Hot Springs Canyon
Best Tricks: Charlie’s best trick is being cute!
Arrival story/bio:For ten years, our gentle Golden, Buddy, was a central part of our family. A rescue himself, he welcomed Lily the Shepherd mix into our home with opened paws. Although Lily tormented him when she was a youngster, Buddy was always sweet and patient.
Last fall, we lost Buddy to an acute brain disorder shortly after he’d had surgery to remove his eye. All three of us, Lily, my husband Paul and I sank into a deep sadness. Lily curled up in a chair in the living room, totally disinterested in anything. I felt the same way.
So began a new obsession: cruising the online rescue websites for a new puppy. Not a replacement for Buddy; there could never be a replacement. More, I was looking for something positive and joyful to focus on. Charlie became that something. A 16-pound puddle of puppy pudding when we adopted him, Charlie amazingly melted Lily’s normally anti-dog heart. She quickly became Charlie’s adopted mom and we all focused on turning Charlie into a fine young adult.
That meant training. After interviewing several companies, Lily settled on Sit Means Sit, feeling it would give Charlie the structure he needed, while focusing on positive reinforcement.
Was she shocked when she found out that she, too, was going to the training!! She was so unhappy at first, she had to be muzzled because all her anti-other-dog behavior came out.
Charlie, meanwhile, could not bear having his mom ALL THE WAY ON THE OTHER SIDE of the training circle, and cried loudly through most of the first few classes.
Fortunately for both pups, they learned quite a lot in their first few months — enough that they could go on an extended camping and visiting trip with us this summer. Charlie,now 40 pounds, folded himself into the tiny floor space behind the passenger’s seat as his “spot” and traveled there for the whole trip.
Some highlights: chasing away a raccoon (or might it have been a bear?) the first night we were camping when we left the dog food out. Splashing in Vallecito Creek and gopher-digging on Middle Mountain. Finding out how cool it was to stay in a motel after all that tent stuff. Being outstanding house guests in Little Rock, Arkansas. And coming back home to the comfy king bed and fun splash pool.
Charlie brings joy to us daily. Whether he’s chin-sliding across the front lawn while we have our coffee, chasing the sprinkler, playing “Where’s Charlie?” every day when I make the bed (he hides under the covers), or whining pitifully because once again, Lily has hidden his toy.
We’re also proud of his progress in Sit Means Sit class. Just this week, he showed off his superb heeling skills to some of his newer classmates.
 Wally is Super Athletic! Name: Wally
Owner: Toni Drugmand
City: Phoenix, Arizona
Breed: Belgian Malinois
Likes: Wally loves all toys. He also loves swimming, dock diving and practicing his protection work.
Favorite Toy/Treat/Walk: Wally’s all time favorite thing in the world is “biting the bad guy” aka Billy the human tug toy. If you want to see Wally in action go to http://youtu.be/4e49u_Psh-k
Best Tricks: The Call Off – Wally can go full force at the bad guy and stop in his tracks when given the command.
 Shiloh Foss-Sutherland Name: Shiloh
Owner: Patti Foss-Sutherland
City: Peoria, Arizona
Breed: German Shepherd Dog
Likes: Shiloh LOVES to run, and chase a ball, and run, and swim, and did I mention she likes to run? Shiloh says her pet-peeve is when the rabbits sit right outside the window of the den in our home. They taunt her by sitting completely still even when her nose is pressed against the window and she “booofffs” at them. (A “booofff” is different from a “bark”.)
Favorite Toy/Treat/Walk: Shiloh’s favorite toy is any ball (tennis, Kong) that she can retrieve. My arm gives out throwing a ball long before her legs give out running after one!
Best Tricks: Shiloh’s new trick is to run and jump off the edge of the pool after her floating retrieving toy. Hmmmmm – can anyone say “dock dog?”
Arrival Story/Bio:
Shiloh is four years old. We got her when she was about six months old. At that time she was all black except for some brown on her legs. Shiloh is a registered therapy dog (as are my other dogs Dakota and Dudley). We volunteer for Hospice Of The Valley in the “Pet Connections” program and currently make weekly visits to 11 patients. She has always been a very energetic girl. Her nickname is “Squirrel” (reminds me of a scene from the movie “Up!”). Shiloh likes to rearrange/re-place things….every morning when I wake up I find she has removed my washcloth from the bathtub and placed it somewhere else in the house. Shoes and magazines are not excempt from her attention. If they are left in the living room, she will simply re-place only one of the shoes outside (usually after chewing only one of the plastic tips off the end of a lace). I think the magazines are re-placed outside so she has something to read as she soaks up a little sun during the day. Shiloh has received her Rally Novice title from the A.K.C. and has one of the three “legs” needed for her Companion Dog title. She can’t seem to get the other two “legs” that are required — The “Squirrel” has a little trouble in the obedience trials during the long-down exercise. In two shows she got up to follow a Bernese Mountain Dog around the ring and once decided to stay in the down position but did a complete circle while watching a moth (which flew up out of the grass in front of her and flew around her). Ahhhh….we LOVE our “Squirrel” even though she drives us nuts!!!
 Dudley Foss-Sutherland Name: Dudley
Owner: Patti Foss-Sutherland
City: Peoria, Arizona
Breed: Goldendale (Golden Retreiver/Airedale Terrier)
Likes: His “brother and sister”, Dakota and Shiloh
Favorite Toy/Treat/Walk: Loves to bring (large) rocks in the house. They all have names: Chris, Rocky, Enrol, Abye, Hudson, Ofages, Balboa, etc.
Best Tricks: Dudley’s best trick is bringing smiles to Hospice of the Valley patients on his visits as a therapy dog.
Arrival Story/Bio:
Dudley is a wags-to-riches story. He and his siblings were rescued from a locked trailer on the Indian reservation two summers ago. He has gone from a 10-week-old shy puppy, to a therapy dog, to a movie “star”. He is in the movie “Cowboys & Aliens” which comes to theaters on July 29, 2011, and stars Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, and Olivia Wilde (to name a few!). He is also in a PetsMart commercial.
 Puppy nurses her adopted kittens!
Name: Puppy
Owner: Christine Bryant
City: Phoenix, Arizona
Breed: Pitbull / Mix
Likes: Favorite Game is Chase Me
Favorite Toy/Treat/Walk: Anything to Use for Tug of War
Best Trick: Shake
Arrival Story/Bio:
We found Puppy in Downtown Phoenix at 430 pm on 2/21/2010. She was about 2 months old. We tried to find her owners, posted posters and ads online, and we temporarily named her puppy. I thought her owners would come forward, but no one claimed her, so her name to this day is Puppy. I fell hard for her and we are the best of friends. I did try to breed her on her 2nd heat but i started to late and she did not take, but her body went through this phantom pregnancy. This has been ongoing now since April. Well 2 weeks ago a ferral cat had 7 babies here on the property, She took 3 to a new location and never returned to get the 4 other babies. So I started to bottle feed them. After about 4 days of going outside to feed them every 2 hours, i decided to put them in a small carrier and bring them inside. Puppy was very interested in these kittens who were just starting to open their eyes. On the 2nd day she stole them from me. She decided she wanted to think they were her kittens. The crazy part of the story is she even started to nurse them. She actually is lactating and cleaning them up as if they were hers. Its the funniest thing to see this big pittbull carrying these tiny kittys around everywhere she goes. Shes actually extremely protective of these kittens and lets it be known to my other inside pets to stay out of the room they are in. She’s a great pet and now a great Foster mom to these kittens.
 Taz Name: Taz
Owner: Ed & Cindy Steidler
City: Maricopa, Arizona
Breed: Doberman
Likes: Crawling in bed with mom in the morning and hangin’ with dad!
Favorite Toy/Treat/Walk: Rubber Ball – Taz loves to play catch.
Best Tricks: Catching Fish – he loves to go fishing with Ed.
Arrival Story/Bio:
We purchased Taz at four months old, he was the last of the litter and we fell in love with him at first sight. Ed was working out of the house for the first eight months we had him so he became very attached to him. He loves people and thinks everyone that comes to the door is there to see Taz!
 - Archer
Name: Archer
Owner: Jennifer Viel
City: Surprise, Arizona
Breed: Pitbull/ Lab
Likes/Dislikes: likes attention, treats, walks, dog parks and his brothers and sister
Favorite Toy/Treat/Walk: favorite toys are bones; treats are carrots and icecubes
Best Tricks: Hasn’t mastered any tricks yet but he’s really catching on to finding his “place”
Arrival Story/Bio:
BJ and I went to the humane society to look for a dog. BJ immediately fell in love with Archer (named Beethoven in the shelter) and asked to see him. After just a few minutes of seeing Archer out of his kennel and watching his floppy ears and goofy faces we knew we had to have him. We brought him home that day and introduced him to the dog we already have at home (his brother CJ). We were very please to see how well they got along. Archer now has 2 brothers (CJ who is a boston terrier and Ike who is another pitbul rescue) and 1 sister (Peanut who is also a boston terrier). We contacted Sit Means Sit to get help for our little guy because we knew he had so much potential but we were struggling with him. So far we have seen amazing results and he fits in much better now.
 Max
Name: Max
Owner: The Simmons Family
City: Phoenix, Arizona
Breed: Beagle
Likes/Dislikes: Max likes to chew on things he’s not supposed to! Max doesn’t like car rides!
Arrival Story/Bio:
Max the Beagle went to Toni’s Board n’ Train because he lives with a very busy family who needed help getting him under control. Max loved to chew on his dad’s baseball caps and on the kids’ toys. Although he is quite stubborn (not unusual for a Beagle), he has come a long way and the Simmons family gets to enjoy a much calmer and loveable dog!
 Tyko
Name: Tyko
Owner: Doug Porter
City: Phoenix, Arizona
Breed: Pit bull/ Whipet
Likes/Dislikes: Loves her family/ strangers stress her
Favorite Toy/Treat/Walk: Belly rubs and going anywhere with Doug
Best Tricks: Beg, shake,roll over and bang
Arrival Story/Bio:
I lost my 15 y/o Shepard/Rottie mix (Logan) to old age about 5 years ago. Because of my busy schedule I went for the last 5 years without a man’s best friend. Last year I finally was able to adjust my life so I could give the proper time to a dog being in my life.
I was not actively looking for a dog. I was walking to target at Desert Ridge with my boys and my girlfriend when we walked past PetSmart. There was a rescue group there with pit bulls for adoption. I only looked at one. Tyko. She caught my eye right away. She was small, had such a shy face and just really looked pitiful. Her brothers and sisters were very active but she was very quiet. I could not help myself. The lady who was running the adoption told me that Tyko was potty trained but would not walk on a leash. They had tried with her many times but she would just not budge. I remember carrying Tyko across the parking lot to my truck and how heavy and compact she was. She was terrified.
Owning a dog is really about training us humans. I’ve learned she does not like to be alone or confined. My first night with her I brought her into my home and within 2 hours I locked her in the laundry room and went out for dinner. Oh boy! That was the dumbest thing I ever did. When we came home 2 hours later the door , door jamb and door handle in the laundry room were torn apart. She got out and ran from window to window chewing and scratching at the window blinds trying to get free from my strange home. At least 3 window blinds were destroyed. WHAT WAS I THINKING?! Needless to say I put in a dog door wit in the week.
Tyko goes with me to work every day. She rides beside me in my truck as I drive around town checking on my job sites and lays in my office when I’m back at the warehouse. Tyko is very loyal.
Tyko has some issues stemming from her first few months of life being abandoned in a back yard and not getting the chance to socialize with people. This is why I sought out Toni and Sit Means Sit. Tyko has come a long way and we have gained the tools needed to overcome her social insecurities. I firmly believe Tyko would not be alive today if it was not for me and the knowledge ‘Ive gained from Sit Means Sit to protect her from her defensive biting habits.
 - Geneva
Name: Geneva
Owner: Terri Newton
City: Phoenix, Arizona
Breed: Border Terrier/Mix
Likes: Loves ball, ball, ball, other toys. Doesn’t like outsider dogs.
Favorite Toy/Treat/Walk: Tennis Ball / cooked pork chop / Any walk anywhere, any time.
Best Tricks: “How do you do?” (shakes hands), spin cycle (spins)
Arrival Story/Bio:
Geneva was rescued stray on our street. Three men were attempting to capture her but she was just too fast for them! I wooed her with moist dog food and clipped a leash to her too tight, welded on choke chain. We didn’t need or want another dog (nor did any of our neighbors) and she was not very friendly for a 7 or 8 month old pup so we planned to take her to the county shelter on Sunday afternoon (we caught her Saturday evening). Meanwhile, I tried to gain her confidence by just sitting in the back yard with her, totally ignoring her, and occasionally dropping a treat. Well, by morning you would think I was her Mom! She loved me. We took her to the county anyway and told them if she wasn’t claimed or no one adopted her that we would take her. They called Wednesday morning to tell me she would be euthanized for fear biting if she didn’t get along with us. I rushed down to get her. We saved her but she’s been a handful! Geneva’s a beautiful dog with high energy, intelligence, and extreme wariness. We took her through obedience with PFOC (excellent program), then thought she’d be good in agility as she was bored with obedience. She did enjoy breaking loose and chasing other dogs in agility. So we went to more obedience training with Sit Means Sit. It’s been excellent for obedience but has not been able to address her underlying personality disorder of wanting to attack certain other dogs . . . not all of them mind you. Just the occasional one that I guess smells funny or something. So she’s now going through sessions with Sam Kabbel, a behavior specialist. So far so good. She’ll be an amazing doggie citizen when we get her over her “issues” with other dogs. She’s amazing already to us as she’s very loving, sweet and fun to play with at our home and next door neighbor’s home.
She may be more dog than we wanted to handle, when we didn’t even want another dog, but she’s been wonderful with us and we wouldn’t trade her for anything!
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