Dog Nerd

Lisa is not only one of the most accepting trainer I have ever met but she also knows her stuff!

If I could give Dog Nerd zero out of five stars, I would. My pup and I were long-term customers and Lisa, the owner, treated me deplorably when she found out I had purchased a Mini Educator and consulted a balanced trainer on *proper* e-collar usage. I turned to Dog Nerd staff for support, as after two sessions I was unsure if e-collar training was the right course of action for my dog. Instead of educating me, offering advice, or trying to find another training method that aligned with Dog Nerd values, they cut off all my services and refused to give me a refund. I am now out roughly $500 and have been accused of “physically punishing” my dog. Lisa said I would not be getting my money back because I allegedly signed a waiver agreeing to not use these tools. However, when I asked for a copy of this agreement (it had all been done via her website), she refused to provide it. Instead, she told me I would have to go through her attorney if I wanted it sent to me. Lisa went so far as to guilt me by fabricating that my dog was behaving abnormally at daycare. She said he was “shut down” around food toys, his crate, and responding to cues on his walk. She never mentioned these behavioural health changes to me before she learned I had bought an e-collar. When I picked him up from daycare, she said he had a “great day." There was nothing noted in his daycare report card and he did not look “shut down” in the photos she shared of him on social media to advertise her business, either. The trainer of our class also spent *a lot* of time asking me how the e-collar is used and wanting to see it/feel the stimulation (she was quite excited when she learned it was in my pack). She asked how I planned on using it and how the balanced trainer recommended I use it (Lisa then used this against me and accused me of asking them for an e-collar training session). Our trainer failed to point out the particulars of what is and is not allowed and the rules I committed to when signing up my dog. How can I be penalized for something that Dog Nerd staff do not enforce properly at their own facility? This trainer also brought her own dog to the class and she had incredibly poor control over it. When we came into the building her dog ran up to greet us. The trainer tried to recall the dog but it ignored her. When the dog escaped its crate and she called it back it ignored her again. The dog was whining and when she gave it the “quiet” cue it did not settle. She told it to lay down and it refused to respond… Yet this woman is the one telling me how to control my dog? Honestly, what makes me most uncomfortable is the fact that Lisa allegedly saw a behavioural change in my dog and neglected to inform me about it until the e-collar issue popped up. t just seems quite neglectful Lisa brushed aside this supposed change when I was paying her to make sure my dog was kept physically and mentally healthy during his stay. Refunds and agreements aside, I am sure ignoring to communicate health changes of an animal to an owner is a BIG problem. Let’s also not forget that I was told by my class’s trainer that Dog Nerd does not have air conditioning. Our class could not even go for the full hour due to the heat and my dog was panting nonstop and gulping water both during and after the session. One hour is not necessarily long, but what about the Day School and Day Care+ dogs who spend eight hours or more at the facility in +35 degree weather? Do not trust this woman with your money or dogs. Theft is not cute and the fact Lisa thinks I have no recourse at all to get my money back shows the kind of person and business owner she is.

Lisa has been training dogs for over a decade and will help you build a solid relationship of trust and caring with your dog. She’ll help you train your K9 to do some pretty neat stuff as well! Highly recommend.

Lisa is an incredible dog trainer! We enrolled our 10 month old doodle in the 12 session Dog Nerd Day School program and were so impressed with how much his leash walking, basic manners and obedience improved! Lisa also put together an awesome custom training program to prepare our dog for the arrival of our baby. We cannot thank Lisa enough for all of her knowledge, support and professionalism. Our dog absolutely loved going to "school" and working with Lisa each week. We would recommend the Day School program to anyone!

We availed their day school and they decided to drop our dog halfway due to the reason that our dog is stubborn. Little did we know that our dog is suffering from Kennel Cough that they did not even tell us about, considering that they were supposed to be hands on in training. Also, this one time we picked up our dog, Lisa literally seemed to have just woken up from a nap. At this point it feels like we have been so ripped off and our dog learned nothing from there. This place does not even deserve a star.

Dog Nerd follows current best practices based on scientific evidence by using R+ training techniques. We took our reactive rescue to the Reactive Rover class and he is making great strides at being able to be in public without trying to fight everyone and every dog he sees. During those classes the dogs were suitably arranged to protect them from each other and to manage their stress so they were able to learn. More recently we've been taking our puppy to puppy classes, and have her enrolled in day school. We're very happy with the attention and care and training she receives at day school, and equally happy with the instructions, handouts, and feedback from puppy classes. I highly recommend Dog Nerd.

Dod Nerd is wonderful! The facility is clean, the pups are well looked after and the Staff is amazing! Jessie is always excited when she realizes she is going to daycare. I would highly recommend Dog Nerd for all your daycare/training needs.

I've read through the 1 star reviews on here and they're pretty ridiculous. It's not the trainer's job to review policy with you. The organization's policy is posted on their website and discusses that e-collars are not used in positive reinforcement training (which is what this place is committed to), and it also states that payment for classes or day care are not reimbursed. If you didn't read that, that sounds like a you problem. As for dogs not fitting into the day care - that can happen. In order for it to be safe for other dogs and people, dogs with certain types of fearfulness or reactivity can't be there. That's normal. It's also stated in their description of day care services. If you're not honest about your dog and then get told that your dog isn't suitable for the day care, then again, that sounds like a you problem. Dog owners need to do their own work on getting to know a training organization and reading through policies. If you do that, and you're honest about your needs and your dog's needs, then you won't run into the problems the 1 star reviewers did. These issues were all preventable by the owners who complained about them. But of course, some people will always think the customer is always right.