Sit Means Sit Dog Training - Phoenix » Fearful dogs

Patty and Rick Bennett

dogonitmaster — Fri, 07 May 2010 18:59:15 +0000

I wanted to let you know that my veterinary office, Foothill Veterinary Service in New River, is really impressed with how much Tila has improved in her behavior, confidence and how she is a lot less skittish each time I take her for her visits. They have gone from having to hold her down and be careful not to possibly get nipped, to just holding her still on the table so she doesn’t try to come to me.
The vet that I always have for my babies is Dr. White. The entire staff is an amazing group of people and are very caring.

I have her wear her collar daily (when we are home) and I have it on her when I take her to the vet, which is always a conversation piece. Over time they have come to realize just how much this training has worked for her. Another example of her improvements which I have told Dr. White about is that she will even let family/company approach her and she will let them pet her and, with some, even play with her which never use to happen.
In 6 months she has only had a handful of pee accidents in the house when normally it would be a daily thing.

I have told them all about ‘Sit means sit’ and the ‘positive’ training you guys teach us, in order for us to teach the dogs appropriately…. Tila has been a true testament to the training success.

Tila is like having a different dog and I can’t thank you and Elsa enough! Here is the site to the office with the address and phone should you need it.

http://www.foothillsvet.com/

Allison and Emma, the border terrier – a follow-up!

dogonitmaster — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 18:48:22 +0000

Emma earns her Rally Novice title.

Here is Emma’s Rally Novice title picture. What a wacky girl, holding up her paw! Emma also earned her CGC (Canine Good Citizen) Tuesday night. I ran her tonight at class without her collar and she was the woman! No problems at all. Hope all will be fine when I run her in one class a day at the JC Thanksgiving trial. I am optimistic.

Thanks again for all of your continued help.
We wouldn’t have the RN or CGC without you. More importantly, Em is a much happier dog!

See you soon,
Allison

Hi Toni,

Thanks for all your support this weekend with Emma! I am so proud of her!

Thank you for our graduation certificate too! We will still be coming Monday mornings. I was too tired today but will get back on track!

Have a great day,
Allison

(Emma in her first agility event after she was pulled for being nervous and snapping at the judge. She was just perfect!)

Allison and Emma, the border terrier

dogonitmaster — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 18:45:50 +0000

I am so incredibly happy and impressed with the progress Emma has made in only two short months!

Just wanted to thank you so much for helping me and Emma. I admit, I did have reservations about the e-collar in relation to Emma’s issues and personality. As several people had highly recommended you and your training, I thought I should at least try and see if we could improve Emma’s quality of life. I am so incredibly happy and impressed with the progress Emma has made in only two short months! She has been rudely approached by a number of dogs since we began classes with you, and she has consistently kept her cool and made good choices despite the obvious discomfort she was feeling. Even if I decide not to show her again in agility, her happiness has increased to the point of truly improving all aspects of her life.

To my surprise, I am enjoying the structure and respect of our new partnership and am considering trying rally and maybe even obedience with Emma! I will continue to train Emma for agility and perhaps may trial her someday again too. I very much appreciate the certificate you sent us. It has an honored place in Emma’s paperwork folder. We will continue to come to Monday morning classes through the summer and beyond and will start adding some advanced classes in the fall. Our summer schedule got busier than I had expected. Who knows, maybe Todd will even venture out again to a class or two!

Thanks again for all you have done for me and Emma. Goodness knows, we have issues of our own and most of the times, more than the dogs!!

Allison and Emma

Deb Scott and two pups from Phoenix

dogonitmaster — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 18:43:48 +0000

Mostly I just want to say “thank you”. When I saw those two scared pups in downtown Phoenix, I knew that they had found me… I have to admit, I’ve been overwhelmed with the responsibility, and didn’t know if I would ever get a handle on this challenge!

You and Dana were so reassuring, and provided so much insight and guidance. Without your assistance… I shudder to even think about it!

Thanks again, Toni – you have a special gift that is needed in this world. Please tell Dana the same.

Deb Scott

Bogey and Jesse

dogonitmaster — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 18:43:12 +0000

It is difficult for me to put into words the changes I have seen in my two dogs Bogey and Jesse. Bogey is a six year-old Beagle, and Jesse is a two year-old Lab. Over the last year, I have seen a transformation in the two of them, especially Bogey. Since Jesse is young, her work has been basic obedience, which has been very effective. The majority of my issues were with Bogey, and he required the most work. If he could get out the door, he would take off. When left outside, there was barking and howling. He was very aggressive with bones. He hated the car and would jump over the seat to sit in the front seat or attempt to sit in my lap. When I would take him for a walk and we would see another dog, he would bark and behave totally out of control, not to mention that he pulled me down the street when on a leash.

Toni has helped make Bogey a more enjoyable and manageable dog. He now walks on a leash without the slightest tug. He can control his emotions when he sees other dogs. He can sit on a “place” for hours and be happy and content. He will let you pet him and even wags his tail while he is enjoying a bone. I can now stand and talk to someone at the door with the dogs quietly sitting beside me and they won’t even step over the door jam! I have re-established my role as the leader in the household. We started with home sessions and have continued with one of her outdoor classes, just to keep the dogs fresh and on their toes! Everything Toni has taught me and all of the time I have spent has paid off! I can’t thank Toni enough for providing me with the tools I needed, and helping make my dogs be the best they can be!

Andy Gastelum and Xena, the Presa Canario

dogonitmaster — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 18:42:32 +0000

I own a 3 1/2 year old Presa Canario named Xena who was extremely shy. At two years-old, she would hide behind me whenever someone approached her. If someone attempted to pet her, she would lay down or drop her head close to the floor. I began taking Xena out to PetSmart and other places three to four times a week to try to socialize her so that she would get over her shyness. She also stayed with a professional trainer for about a month who took her out every day. You could see some changes, but not rapid changes. I had her agitated lightly to see if she would gain a little confidence. When the agitator came in, she ran behind me so we stopped the agitation. After about four months of light agitation, Xena finally went after the agitator.

In the sport of agility, Xena’s shyness did not allow her to perform well. Xena would run from me when I would wave my arm and hand to get her to go out or turn. Even with all this training for over a year, she still was extremely shy.

Around Xena’s third birthday, I took her to a two-day e-collar training seminar with Fred Hanson. Within a day, Xena was really having to deal with everything in a sitting position with her head erect. She would not sit in this manner with a lot of distractions without an e-collar. I started to take Xena with the e-collar to PetSmart and other places four to five days a week for approximately one to two hours each time. We trained with the e-collar. Xena sat with her head erect and allowed children and adults to pet her. Xena and I took a open obedience class with Toni using exclusively the e-collar. She did very well. Xena will now approach people both male and female, children and adults. I had the same agitator lightly agitate her again. Xena really came out hard to get the agitator. The agitator, a professional trainer, was impressed with her progress with the e-collar. In agility, Xena is now excited to go to the classes. She now watches my body, arm and hand movements to determine what I want her to do. She will not run away from me now when I move my arms and hands. Xena is happier and more confident now. The use of the e-collar has helped Xena tremendously in less than a year.

I would recommend the e-collar to anyone for any type of training. It teaches the dog to think and to respond to your commands faster than any other method. It also addresses the many different behavior problems that dogs may have developed.

ANDY GASTELUM