Testimonials

Claire didn't even have to ask me to write a testimonial...it was the first thing I asked when we finished our training.  That said, I can't imagine that I will ever be "done" working with Claire as I'm sure Molly and I will seek her guidance for some time to come.  

I got Molly at 8 weeks and really wanted to start training right away.  I was intent on ensuring that I was going to enjoy my dog and have my dog enjoy me.  I have seen too many people who don't train their dogs and always seem frustrated.  

I immediately stopped calling Claire our "trainer" and started calling her our "puppy doula"!  She helped me understand my dog, the phases of her development, how to motivate her, and how to really work with her in a way that gave us both enjoyment....even when we were in the midst of the puppy craziness.  Not only does Molly have amazing foundational skills, more importantly....I do!  I know how to continue working with and training my dog.  

Regardless of the age of your puppy or dog, I would encourage you to work with Claire. She makes everything easily consumable, not overwhelming and seeks to really understand what you, your family and your dog need and tailors her approach to you.  She goes above and beyond, sending tools and resources to help you.  

Thank you so much Claire...and Lexi!!  While Molly and I are going to take a little time now to reenforce our learnings...we will be back!!  

- Lisa M., dog guardian, and Molly, the busy-bee Cocker Spaniel! 

 

Before we met Claire, every outing with Gus was a real challenge. Most ended in tears, on our part, and a general feeling of hopelessness.

We had no idea what to do with Gus. He is a fearful reactive dog, and because of his size, it was getting harder and harder.

We worked with Claire for 4 to 6 months (during a transitional time in our life - moving to a new province, starting new careers) and we felt incredibly supported the entire time.  We still have a long way to go, but with the toolkit Claire gave us, we feel confident we can get there!!

We cannot speak highly enough of the experience and are so grateful that she came into Gus’s life!

- Amanda & Andrew, dog guardians, and Gus, The Ball-Crazy Teenager!

--From Dancer and Dasher, the miniature Golden-Doodles:

Hi Claire,

We have learned SO much and have had FUN with you!! :)

Thank you for everything! Every session with you has been the highlight of our day. We will miss you! Love, Dancer and Dasher, xo xo.

--From Dancer and Dasher's owner:

Thank you Claire!! Your training has been exactly what was needed.  Thank you! Thank you! 

- Donna K., dog guardian, and Dasher & Dancer, the curly doodles cuties, pictured here with WAGDogs' mascot, Lexi, their new best friend!

We needed guidance to raise the kind of well behaved, well trained puppy we'd always wanted.  We signed up our 8 week old pup Cali with Claire for 16 private sessions to get the individual attention we needed.  We are thrilled with the result.

Classes are fun and challenging for human and dog and you will be tired but it's so rewarding when your pup responds and learns a new skill.  Claire introduces skills in a way that builds a good foundation for the important things we wanted from our dog: loose leash walking and an excellent Recall, a reliable Stay and Drop/Leave It.

Claire has excellent resources and has answered questions and helped with any problems we had.  If you are committed to doing your homework, you will be rewarded with a pup you can be proud of.

- Lois & Kevin S., dog guardians, and Cali, The Mischievous Labrador Retriever Pup!

Well for starters, my dog, Arthur and I, live in the UK. Claire is in Canada. Already there is a problem! However thanks to technology, ultimate dedication and commitment from Claire to help me get out of a huge training slump with Arthur, we are now going along the right path. I cannot recommend Claire enough; her knowledge is vast, her caring commitment is outstanding and her training WORKS, providing you put the work in once she has set the plan.

Arthur is now a 2 ½ year old border collie and Claire offered her expertise when he was around 20 months. Arthur is the second border collie I have had but the first one from being a puppy. I have been a conscientious owner and accessed training right from him being 15 weeks old. However other than the initial 6 week puppy classes, I wasn’t getting what I needed from any training I accessed, mainly for the reason that dog trainers shied away from offering advice about border collies or just didn’t know. Arthur wasn’t badly behaved; for a border collie actually, his problems were few but were big and I was struggling. Claire listened, something no other dog trainer had done before. She gave me a plan to work on a couple of problems at a time in a manner that fitted my personality and my commitment to Arthur. For example, Arthur jumped out at buses (he is always on a lead near a road!). Claire gave me a training plan that started even before going anywhere near a road, I worked hard on it, slowly introducing road walks back into our routine and within six weeks, Arthur saw the bus, sat next to me, looked for a treat whilst the bus drove past us with no other reaction. We then carried on with our walk. I cannot tell you how liberating that was, to be able to walk down a road with Arthur with no reactions. Claire recognised that I was becoming anxious walking Arthur as he is a bang-noise sensitive dog and was reacting to hearing any noises when with me, in the worst way possible; that anxiety was travelling down the lead making Arthur significantly worse. Her encouragement to start enjoying Arthur again by playing games away from any areas where there could be potential bangs, helped build up that relationship so he trusted me more. We turned a corner in our relationship – things still need working on and will always need work but I feel now that I have a significantly better relationship with him and I have the tools and knowledge to deal with problems that may come my way.

Claire is the most caring, approachable and knowledgeable trainer I have ever had contact with. She gave me her time and expertise and I cannot thank her enough. I consider her to be a very good friend and fabulous ‘auntie’ to Arthur now. I look forward to the day that we get to meet in person – I know Arthur wants to say thank you!!

- Suzanne R., dog guardian, and Arthur, The Super Border Collie!

We decided to call Claire because we hadn't had a dog since my husband and I were kids. We now have 6 kids and we wanted our family to be on the same page with training. The kids loved participating in the classes!

Claire was wonderful and taught us to have a well behaved dog. Gryphon was about 4 months when we did the classes and he would get excited every time we pulled up for a class. We were so happy to have Claire be with us to learn about our puppy and teach us to teach him! We recommend her to everyone now.

- Michelle W., dog guardian, and Gryphon, The Super Cute Puppy!