Obedience training

“We adopted a Cavapoo into our family in January of 2023 and named her Rosie. We already had a dog at home, but wanted to get Rosie for a specific purpose. Our other dog, Mocha, has always been very nervous, and we thought that if we got him a friend, Mocha would be better. Rosie is like a therapy dog for our dog. But she also ended up helping my youngest son, Sean, who also gets nervous and anxious. She naturally calmed him when he got upset, and he loved caring for her. Sean never paid much attention to dogs before, but he was drawn to Rosie.

Sean thought Rosie was so special that he wanted to participate in her training. He wanted Rosie to learn how to help lots of people just like him.

1 heard about K9to5 from a co-worker who adopted a therapy dog through K9to5's nonprofit program called Anything is Pawsable. Her feedback was very positive, so we called, asked some questions, and set up an appointment for evaluation and training. I was really pleased with K9to5 training for many reasons.

• They were upfront with the services they offered and their pricing.
• They did an evaluation with Rosie to see what skills she already knew and used that to determine which class was the best starting point. Many other training classes we've been to had every dog start at the same basic skills class as all the other dogs.
• Our trainer, Sandy, was upfront about our dog's capabilities and full potential. She also planned our lessons around what expectations we personally had for our dog.
• Training lessons were one-on-one, meaning it was just our family, our dog, and a trainer.
• Sandy encouraged all family members to attend the training so that practices at home were consistent between everyone who had regular interactions with the dog.
• In our case, my son, Sean (age 12), wanted to be the main handler for Rosie; and Sandy was very good at working directly with Sean and teaching appropriate ways to train Rosie. She helped Sean have confidence in himself and helped him bond with Rosie.
  Our trainer was flexible with scheduling the lessons around our availability.
• Sandy is an AKC certified evaluator for the Canine Good Citizen test. She is knowledgeable in what skills are most important for becoming a Canine Good Citizen, and prepared us well for the test.

Overall, we really enjoyed our experience with K9to5 training. They were knowledgeable, flexible, and caring. They understand that each dog and family are unique, and they customize lessons for each dog's purpose. We highly recommend K9to5 to other dog

owners!

Amy Kerrigan

Sandy:

I appreciate the way that you and your staff have gone above beyond to assist in the process of obtaining and training Lila, our therapy dog at Fort Loramie Schools. From the initial consultation, through training and testing, you and your staff have been integral in Lila's growth and her improvement.

Lila has been a great addition to our staff. The positive interaction that I see so many students and staff have with her is amazing. I have seen students engage and interact in ways that maybe have not been typical prior to her addition. Lila has improved our organizational culture and all that meet her have benefited.

I cannot say enough how important the training process has been. The staff at K9to5 Doggy Daycare has been professional and knowledgeable. Kenzi, Lila's trainer, is an expert at her craft, and Lila has gained so much from her caring training and guidance. Personally, working with Kenzi has provided me with valuable insight into the benefits and abilities that Lila brings to our school. As an educator, having Lila as another tool to help students stay engaged and on task has been humbling. I have definitely learned along the way as well. They do not just introduce you to your therapy dog and send you on your way. They invest time and energy into helping this entire process be successful.

Since the first day I met Lila and brought her back to our school, she has continuously learned and progressed. The training prepares them for all that they will encounter in their daily work. I would recommend the Anything is Pawsable (AIP) program anyone. With the support of K9to5, I could not be more pleased that we now have Lila as an active member of our school. She will touch so many lives and truly make a difference.

Dan Holland

They say happy customers are the best advertisement a business can have! So, from one happy customer to a future one, let me tell you about my experience at K9to5!

My pupster is a very active doodle who loves to chew, fetch, play ball, play tug, romp with other dogs and BARK!  After being referred to K9 to 5 by a co-worker, we were already going there for Doggy Daycare and grooming. I had read that they offered training classes and had seen the trainer working with dogs as I came and went.

I decided to sign my girl up for a 6 week session to see what it was all about. I loved that it was one on one training and not a big group. I knew she was smart and capable of learning things quickly but having that individualized attention made all the difference!

The trainer was very knowledgeable and her experience was obvious. She took time to learn about my pup and listened to what I hoped to accomplish during our sessions. We worked on commands and behaviors and she then taught me how to continue reinforcing those skills at home.

We breezed through Puppy Kindergarten in the first session or two and continued right on to Basic Obedience finishing with the Canine Good Citizen test. I loved the fact that once she had mastered the skills for a session we were promoted right into the next level all during that 6 week period.

The experience we have had at K9 to 5 has made life with our pup so enjoyable. We can now take her to ball games, for walks in the park, camping and pretty much anywhere else we want to. She has learned the necessary life skills for an enjoyable life with her people! She has mastered walking on the leash, follows commands and has learned the skills needed to interact with other dogs and their people! I am so happy that we found K9 to 5 for training and all of the other services they offer.

Donna Nickles

"I highly recommend K9to5 obedience training. This organization took impeccable care for our school's therapy dog Rusty. The trainers were knowledgable, kind and communicated extremely well. To have a dog in a school, around 1400 students every day, the dog needs to be calm as well as listen and respond to commands. Rusty can handle any number of students, sometimes 30 at a time surrounding him, and stays calm. We are now able to be in school without a leash because of how he responds to commands. I credit all of this to the training he received at K9to5. I give this organization my highest recommendation and have referred everyone who has a dog that doesn't listen to this organization for training.

Doug Mader

Superintendent of Coldwater Exempted Village Schools

"We love k9to5! The dog training we have received is wonderful. Our experience was smooth and has changed our lives! Our dog learned so many new things. By correcting her bad behavior with pulling on a leash and barking. We have recently started fostering a dog "Monty". He has become part of our family and started doing training for him.

Our dogs training has helped our family is so many ways, we have started service dog training with her, we couldn't be happier to have a wonderful inspirational women help train our bundle of joy! Thank you Sandy"

Elizabeth Schneider

"I took my 3 year old Pitbull to Sandy at K9to5 for training. She is a rescue dog, and had no prior training. She graduated from the Puppy Kindergarten and Basic Obedience courses. Sandy is a very patient, skilled trainer. And, she is great at "reading" a dogs behavior.

Sandy not only trained my dog, she trained me as well. My dog started her training as a "wild child" and graduated as a completely different dog. I highly recommend this training!"

Amy Derr

I wanted to share the positive experience my puppies and ! had with training at your facility. Each week Harper and Willow were greeted with warm enthusiasm, and that made their training enjoyable for all of us. Sandy is a great trainer and helped transform my 2 wild hounds into obedient puppies.

She understands the ques given by each dog. When they got distracted she would suggest we work on leash walking around the shopping center. This helped calm them and command training was more effective when we returned to the building. By the last class both puppies knew how to sit, stay, come, down and walk on a leash with manners. Thank you for providing such a great service.

Kendra Zimmerman

 Classes are once a week for 40-60 minutes (depending on focus time), for six consecutive weeks. This class prepares the dog and handler to take the CGC Test, which must be taken without treats. Throughout this course, the dog will learn to perfect necessary training without treats. This class covers:  

• friendly stranger
• sitting politely for petting
• appearance
• heeling
• walking through crowds
• sitting and down 
• come
• greeting another dog
• distractions
• supervised separation

 Classes are once a week for 40-60 minutes (depending on focus time), for six consecutive weeks. This class prepares the dog and handler to take the CGCU Test, which must be taken without treats. Throughout this course, the dog will learn to perfect necessary training without treats. This class covers:   

• exit/enter doorway
• walk through a crowd
• appropriate reaction to movement, noises, and walking on a variety of surfaces. 
• controlled street crossing
• ignore food on sidewalk
• different greetings
• walks under control in building, down stay (3 min) 
• stairs, steps, or elevator under control.
• housetrained
• transportation

 Classes are once a week for 40-60 minutes (depending on focus time), for six consecutive weeks. This class prepares the dog and handler to take the CGCU Test, which must be taken without treats. Throughout this course, the dog will learn to perfect necessary training without treats. This class covers:   

• stand, sit, or down & waits under control
• loose leash walking
• loose leash through a crowd
• loose leash walk past distractions 
• small group sit & stay 
• greeting someone carrying something
• ignores food on floor 
• distance down or sit stay
• recall with distractions present 
• enter & exit doorways