Alta

Hello Canine Academy Friends!

Catherine, Alta, and I are on our first "Dogcation" together this week up in Traverse City. We wanted to let you know that Alta is a GREAT DOG. We are having some great adventures that include several new environments, hikes, and last night we took her over to our friends' house for dinner and Alta was an angel. Even with their three year old son running around! She stayed on her place mat throughout the whole meal and listened well all night. On hikes and in parks we have been able to remove her leash and she comes enthusiastically each time she is called. Completing the off-leash program allows us and our dog to live the best version of our life together.

Thank you for all of your support. Looking forward to some upcoming outings!

Love,

Ross, Catherine, and Alta

Bella

We adopted Bella (1/2 Doberman, 1/4 Staffy and 1/4 Weimaraner) when she was six months old. Bella has always been full of personality, loving and enthusiastic.  However she was not very disciplined, she jumped on people, licked faces, barked relentlessly at other dogs and vigorously pulled us along on her walks.  She would occasionally even snatch unguarded food (potentially off plates!).  She did all of these things in the best of humor often looking at back at me or licking my hand to say “aren’t we having a great time?”  Her rescue organization had recommended obedience training and I located Canine Academy on the internet.  We began beginner classes and day training.  The classes changed a  lot of Bella’s behavior and things were really improving at home, but if you added any distractions (other people or dogs) she would not respond to commands quickly, or at all.  I left a few pet stores to put Bella back in the car and then went I back in to the store complete my purchase.  People were intimidated by her behavior and it was embarrassing.   The trainers in Birmingham suggested that off leash training would help Bella overcome distractions.  I was very nervous about a six-week separation and worried that all of Bella’s personality would be trained away.  But I read a lot of other testimonials on Canine Academy’s website and I thought that it would be unbelievable if  Bella could respond to all the commands described in off-leash training.   So after meeting with Linda and Lisa who explained the whole program, Bella attended off-leash training for six weeks in November and December.  All of the Canine Academy trainers and staff helped me survive the six weeks while Bella was away at “boot camp”. I watched the blog and the Facebook page and made an occasional phone call and the time flew by.  When Bella came home, I had the same experience that other people described. She still had all her quirky and endearing traits (somersaulting into you for cuddles and defining her conditions for watching television as a family (must be touching!).  She immediately sought out and began playing with her favorite toys.  The difference is that she does all these things in a well-behaved fashion and listens and responds to all her commands under all sorts of distractions. Her behavior is amazing and we continue to take her into more and more new situations with great success (she even recently attended a party and did not sample anything off the buffet).   Bella is now a Great Dog!  We wholly recommend off leash training. Everything Canine Academy said was true and we am very happy we did it!

Paul, Jane and Bella

"Rosie"

We have had 2 dogs trained by Lisa and the Trainers at Canine Academy. Our first was 10 years ago and because she was trained so well we were able to have 10 fabulous years with our beloved Janie.

We have since acquired our 2nd Weimaraner and we are able to enjoy our very energetic puppy so much more than if we had tried training on our own. She listens to all of the commands that we were taught to use with her. I believe her training enhances our quality of life so much because we are not constantly frustrated by a puppy who does not know how to listen. 

Weimaraner's are very high energy dogs that need a lot of activity and space to run. I can take her for a long walk on or off leash and be sure that she will stay safe and respond when I call her. She is not a nuisance when people come over, we can put her on her Place and she will stay. We don't like a dog begging while we eat, we just put her on her Place and she stays until we are done. We are enjoying our puppy every day!! Thank you Lisa and everyone at Canine Academy :)

Sincerely,

Ed and Maureen LaBarge

“Calvin”

The Posa Family – “Calvin” Weimaraner

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Calvin was a happy but uncontrollable puppy before training, almost feral. Although the six weeks seemed to pass slowly, the results were worth the wait. Calvin is still a happy boy. The Off Leash Training Program has given us a dog that is wonderful to have around. We no longer worry about what will happen next, he is responsive to commands, much calmer and a great companion. We highly recommend this program!

Karen & Michael Posa