Top Dog Trainer in San Juan Capistrano
Sit Means Sit Dog Training South Orange County
27184 Ortega Hwy. #109, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675, United States
I want to begin my review with saying how grateful I am to Stephanie, Nick, and the Sit Means Sit team for training my boy - a now 8 month old labradoodle to follow commands in the home and out in the community. At about three months old, he was disobedient, stubborn, and learned to bite as a way to escape/avoid my commands. His temperament was far from what labradoodles are described as. I made excuses for a while due to him teething and being a puppy! I was told these behaviors would pass with time. Meanwhile, his behavior just escalated - he even drew blood from my hands and arms several times which brought many tears and frustration. Prior to SMS, I had two separate and negative experiences with a private trainer and a popular training facility in South OC.I want to both COMMEND AND THANK specifically Stephanie and Nick for all of their communication, dedication, and hard work during my dogs training. I have witnessed positive outcomes in my pups confidence, compliance, and socialization. The previous experiences made it beyond difficult to trust anyone with my dog, but Stephanie made it easy. She was beyond patient, empathetic, and kind. Without any hesitation or annoyance, she would answer my text messages and phone calls! Overprotective first-time dog momma, for sure! LOL. We began Jumpstart and I was assigned Nick as our trainer with few others in between to help my pup generalize the skills he was learning across different people and settings. Although the cost of training may be a little expensive, you get what you pay for. It eased my mind to know that it also comes with a lifetime warranty!Nick is knowledgeable and helped our pup acquire a great new skill set! He was thorough in his explanations of the process and the tools used to help train our dog. I was a little skeptical on if the e-collar will be used as a form of punishment or if it will hurt him. He went above and beyond to allow us to feel the e-collar in different settings and educate us in the manner it will be used which is to gain the dogs attention, especially my pup who is highly distracted and self-directed. This was reassuring! At every session - which was typically outside our home, in our community, or on a field-trip, Nick would begin with the goals he would be targeting for the session and at drop off provide us with a very brief description on how our dog did. Nick is professional and personable. He worked really hard with our pup and showed us how to continue working with our pup to ensure that he maintains his skills. At our last check in, our pup was able to be off leash in a highly distractible area and heel for a few minutes. He is able to comply with all basic commands with minimal prompting/use of e-collar. One of the biggest accomplishments is that my pup is able to be pet by children without jumping on them. He will comply with sit or down and waits to be pet. At our last session, we allowed a 1 1/2 year old little girl with her mom pet him and he lied down with his belly up for cuddles. Made my heart melt! My pup has been transformed from a little T-Rex to a teddy bear!THANK YOU Nick, Stephanie, and SMS Team for this invaluable experience! Our pup is now able to join group classes. We look forward to this upcoming experience and future opportunities that our pup can continue growing with you. For those that are reading reviews for the purpose of making a decision, look no further! You are in good hands!!!
K9 City
32967 Calle Perfecto, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675, United States
So glad we took our pup to Paul. About 15-20 years ago he worked with two of my parents dogs growing up via home visits/lessons (a Mini Dachshund and a St Bernard). So when I realized my 10 month old St Bernard mix was acting aggressive towards people after nipping at a neighbor, my parents referred me to Paul. First, we took our pup (Oliver) in for a consultation. The consultation was a little over an hour and he stayed until after 7pm to meet with us. Paul has a very direct style and was honest with us about what he saw in Oliver. While hes seen much, much, much worse, he said human aggression could be in his DNA and unfixable, but he was willing to spend time with him and had some exercises he wanted to try. I was pretty defeated after the consultation because I was hoping he would say this is fixable. But this was our reality and I wasnt going to give up on our dog just yet. We ended up scheduling him for a day lesson with just Paul at k9 city, with a private lesson involving us afterwards. When we showed up at the end of the day for the private lesson, Oliver was acting different than Ive ever seen. Paul told us about the day and said without us around, he was actually a really good dog. (Like I said, Paul is direct with his approach, so for a split second it hurt our feelings but woke us up at the same time). Turns out we dog parents were part of his problem... We were not direct/commanding enough with Oliver (babied him too much), therefore he felt the need to protect himself. He had taken obedience classes for sit/stay/lay down etc but I had never seen him so focused on leash as he was when Paul had him. Paul told us that he was even able to use some of the neighbors around K9 City throughout the day to practice around strangers (they are apparently used to him coming around with dogs who have issues). Oliver was suddenly a working dog and we were coached how to keep him attentive to us, and how as dog parents we could show him we are pack leaders. We left with some exercises that we implemented the next few weeks before booking our second private lesson to learn come - so he will come to us no matter the distraction even off leash (dogs, people, food, animals, if he has something he shouldnt etc). Olivers progress has been amazing - but no matter what Paul can do/teach he was adamant that its up to the dog owner to follow through with the exercises. We have been diligent every day in practicing at least one of the exercises, and are still cautious with Oliver around new people, but have absolutely seen a change for the better in our dog. I definitely recommend at least a consultation if you have a dog with aggression or an issue. I re-homed a dog due a number of years ago due to dog-aggression with another one of my dogs and even though he has an amazing home and family now I am so sad that I didnt know about/take him to Paul.
K9 City Play n Stay
32967 Calle Perfecto, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675, United States
I wouldnt give him a Full star but I had to rate it. My situation was soo serious. Maybe Paul, owner, takes on easier dogs. IDK but my dog was between 1-2yrs old at the time, gad been in 2 shelters for over 6 months prior to me adopting her, she is perfect with my husband and I but Barked at noises, people walking by our apartment. She had social anxiety esp. With large built men, the shelter Never told me only specific people could get her out of her kennel. Pual showed No patience he wanted to go straight to a Shock Collar after 2 private visit and 1 class. I could not do the classes because she wasnt ready, yet. Paul is one of the worst trainers Ive worked with.I would keep him posted on her progress by me calling him. Always calling him. Never did I get a call to check up w me even when we did not show for the next class. He knew she was a bit more challenging. He has a big ego. Will NEVER refer this place no matter how much he talks about his accomplishments.
Top other services in San Juan Capistrano:
ProSport Physical Therapy & Performance
32302 Camino Capistrano Suite 106, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675, United States
ProSport is my go-to place whenever I have an injury or need to avoid surgery. I started at Prosport Laguna Hills under Laura Scott who has kept me from two surgeries. She was so good she got promoted as a director (no longer treating patients) and she referred me to Jonathan Yeh, in SJC location. What a wonderful outcome for me! Jonathan is a phenomenal diagnostician and has helped me tremendously in avoiding shoulder surgery while allowing me to keep playing tennis 3-4 times a week. Hes brilliant w/r to his understanding of body mechanics and corrective exercises. They recently added a new PT aide, Courtney, who is so sharp, and has upped my game in terms of my exercises. At my age and my activity level, having a place like Prosport to keep me going w/o injury is such blessing. Thank you to the team there, Laura, Jonathan, Courtney, Olivia and Tyler! And of course, Cory the trainer.
American Horse Products
31896 Plaza Suite C4, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675, United States
Bought a helmet I ended up not needing. Never used. I did try it on in the store. Went back for a return and was informed they can't accept returns because of COVID, and they stated this was on signs around the store (that I never saw). I was never informed at the time I purchase that they were not accepting returns either. Small writing at bottom of receipt stating no returns. If you're going to play the COVID card, then why even let people try things on in your store? Glad to waste $60 here. If you're in the SoCal area try other equestrian stores that are much more reasonable, like Mary's Tack & Feed. They also said they couldn't accept returns in the future once the COVID dilemma is over.
The Zuri Pet Spa
32423 Calle Perfecto, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675, United States
Update: we've used Zuri multiple times now and had great experiences every single time. This latest stay included an unexpected extension when our flight was cancelled and we were stranded on the opposite coast. It was a super easy process and eased our anxiety. Seeing the staff interact with the dogs on the daycare cameras and getting the report cards with pictures every few days continues to show us our dogs are genuinely happy and thriving during their stays and that the staff really are great. I recommend Zuri to everyone who asks for boarding recommendations.Boarded my 3 dogs ( 1 senior small dog and 2 large older dogs with bad anxiety) for 12 nights. One of my large dogs had failed the test day at Camp Bow Wow, the other large dog passed but was shaking by the gate the entire time. We decided to try Zuri instead after much research and we are so glad we did. We watched our dogs on the daycare cameras every day- both large dogs did incredible with the other dogs, and the staff were very attentive. More than once we caught staff sitting in the small dog area and petting/playing with dogs. My one large dog with the worst anxiety laid along a wall the entire first day, clearly a little scared. The next day I saw t hat a piece of play equipment had been moved to where she laid the day before where she could hide under the piece of equipment, So they were clearly paying attention to her and felt that would make her more comfortable which was very sweet. All of my dogs upon pickup were not crazy trying to get out like they have been before, they were all calm and we genuinely believe they had an enjoyable stay. We will definitely use them again!
PetSmart
33963 Doheny Park Rd, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675, United States
As soon as I got my new puppy home I signed her up for puppy training here. Raising a puppy is hard work, and dog ownership has changed a lot since I had one as a child. I wanted to “do it right.” I'm sooooo glad I did. Sarah Schusler is FANTASTIC. Sweet, stern, playful and extremely knowledgeable, she knew just when to ignore my pup's barking and when to tune in and handle.I was amazed at how quickly we learned to do things. Every single day we left with new useful commands. And she kept it fun. We had a range of fur all sizes personalities and problems and through the course, we all saw our dogs (and us owners) evolve into better bonded, more comfortable and confident pets and partners. Plus, she has helpful relatable personal stories of her own, pre-trainer experiences with her dog as well as her time working with actual wolves in a reserve. As a result she has great insight into why dogs do what they do and how they'll respond when we do what we do.I recommend Sarah 100x for anyone who wants confidence in their role as fur momma. It's better for your pup and better for you!