Ben is absolutely the kind of person my family was looking for in a dog trainer and translator and 10x more! When we first contacted Ben to tell him about our situation, merging households involving an ornery street cat and a cat-phobic doxen/basset pound pup, we were not really expecting much due to past experiences with other trainers. My pup is very anxious, attached and easily excited by any furball smaller than him and my girlfriend's cat does not have any intention of giving up her role as queen of the house and seems to somewhat enjoy riling him up. :) We love them both but could never make any progress in their relationship throughout 3 years of trying. When I explained things to Ben over the phone he immediately gave me clarifying advice as to what was going on in our pets' heads and a couple quick steps we could take right away to start making progress. From there we set up a home visit and Ben walked us through the first big steps at adjusting my dog's anxiety, regulating his schedule, detaching and all together transforming him into an obedient and calm(er) pup. Ben's program is no-nonsense and has no room for excuses, he is upfront about the true amount of work having a pet entails and explains the reasoning behind each element of his advice. He was honest as to the purpose of his recommendations, how they differed from other programs' and gave measured comparisons between his techniques and others available, all of which was greatly appreciated. It was as much a class for me, as a dog parent, as it was for my dog and I am a better dog parent for it. We took a few weeks to put those tactics into place and settle into a routine and Ben came out again to begin working with both the cat and the dog. Though it was clear my pup's feelings towards cats were quite a bit more intensive than many of his other clients, Ben never skipped a beat in adjusting his plan and advice and giving us the tools we would need to keep making progress. These past weeks, with careful adherence to Ben's plan and techniques, we have seen the first signs of actual improvement in our pets' relationship after over 3 years of trying. My dog has gone from not being able to be in the same house as a cat without constant whining, gnawing on leashes, and barking to being able to lay somewhat undisturbed on the same couch as the cat. We still are in a supervision-required stage, but everyone who knows our animals and has seen them recently is in awe at the amount of progress so far. We can have family over, we can sleep sound at night, we can go on walks around other people and animals, and we can join our families. We are extremely grateful to Ben and his program and would recommend him to anyone for ANY pup training needs. read more

We were fortunate enough to find Ben Davidson of Devotion To Dogs here on Yelp. After reading the reviews and getting a good sense of Ben and his abilities, we decided to schedule a training session. To begin with, Ben is just a really good guy. From the start Ben spends the time getting to know you and your family, especially the furry faced kids. Our situation was in regards to introducing a 12 week old male Jack Russell Terrier Puppy (Snoopy) to our existing dog pack. We have 5 dogs in our pack (2 males and 3 females). Four out of our five dogs had already been introduced to Snoopy on the first day we brought him home with no need for any professional guidance. However, the last member of our pack is a 5 1/2 year old Pit Bull (Sweet Pea). Upon first encountering Snoopy you would have thought Sweet Pea thought Snoopy was a little bunny rabbit. Sweet Pea immediately got wild-eyed and very intense body language, not good! For three days we had to make sure either Sweet Pea, or Snoopy was crated to avoid any potential disaster. As a result, we were resigned to the fact that if we could not make it work with Sweet Pea, we would have to try to re-home Snoopy with another one of our family members. Again, we feel very fortunate to have found Ben to try to help us introduce Sweet Pea and Snoopy in a way that was safe and professionally monitored. Ben was patient, answered all of our questions/concerns and took the time to get a good read on the dynamics between Sweet Pea and Snoopy. Within a matter of minutes Ben had Sweet Pea under his control and decided to bring out little Snoopy. We witnessed something very profound as Ben was able to control every aspect of the environment and read every body language detail of Sweet Pea in reaction to Snoopy's presence. Within minutes we were walking the two of them outside in a completely controlled, safe manner. We then incorporated the other four dogs both inside and outside our home. Ben took the time to explain every nuance and detail while giving us very specific, easy to understand instructions and training protocols to follow over the next week. By the time Ben left our home after just two hours of training with us, you would have thought Sweet Pea and Snoopy were long time pack mates. We are so grateful as Snoopy is an exceptional little Pup who we would hate to have to re-home. With Ben's help and with the professional training tools he gave us to work with, we feel confident we can continue to move forward and work with Sweet Pea and Snoopy. Ultimately we feel that we can work toward having our 6 dog pack family live in harmony for years to come. Thank You very much Ben! read more

We are so thankful to have connected with Ben and his company! We are a family of four with two young boys ages 6 and a year old. Our family had one dog named Einstein for about 6 years when we felt it was time to add another dog to our family dynamic. We knew we wanted to rescue a dog. It was very important to us as we had previously rescued our dog from the Gaines animal shelter. After an old work friend had posted a picture of a dog up for adoption on Facebook I had commented about how beautiful the dog was. Our mutual friend then told me that Devotion to Dogs was housing this dog named Akira. We set up an appointment with Ben and his wife Nicole to meet Akira. Initially, we were very nervous on how everything would work out. We brought our youngest son with us so we could get a feel on how Akira would be around him. After hearing about Akira's background and the traumatic experience she had survived through we were pretty unsure if we could adopt a dog with so much baggage. Thankfully, Ben was such a calming and positive guide to us. He encouraged us in such a natural way that we felt confident in bringing her into our family. He was extremely professional and even set us up with a crate and e-collar to get us started while we bought our own to get Akira acclimated to her new home. Ben introduced our dog Einstein to her and even gave us training on how to incorporate her into our life. The way he teaches dog training is in a way that is so manageable! We never felt intimated or uneasy because he never talked down to us but rather looked for a solution to fit our needs. Ben even helped us curb our previous dog Einsteins' bad behaviors which drove me mad. Einstein would never listen to any commands my husband and I gave. He would whine and have an overly anxious personality when I was giving attention to our kids. Since we have worked with Ben, Einstein is a new dog! I have actually discovered a newfound love for him as he is much calmer and now listens to us! He is such a joy to be around and I am thankful that Ben has given us the tools to appreciate him. If you are looking for a quality dog trainer who is professional and makes you feel comfortable then please check out Devotion to Dogs! I have been getting compliments from multiple neighbors on how well our dogs walk with me when I have a stroller and my 6 year old in tow. We feel so fortunate to have been able to have adoptable a dog that Ben was able to rehabilitate because she was the missing piece to our family!! Thank you so much Devotion to Dogs for giving us a wealth of knowledge, confidence, and most importantly Akira!!! Forever grateful!! read more

Devotion to Dogs is FANTASTIC!!! My husband and I rescued a pup from the San Diego Humane Society, and we had no idea the struggles that were to come as she adjusted to her new life with us in our apartment. Luna had all this energy and was very reactive towards people and dogs, both inside and outside of the house. We had tried other trainers in the past, but we couldn't seem to break through her behaviors and it was a constant struggle. When I got pregnant, I knew I needed more help with her reactivity so I could take her on walks with a baby and not have these concerns. I was referred to Ben and Devotion to Dogs through a friend who also used them for her reactive pup and we decided to reach out. Ben came over for our first initial consultation and immediately saw her reactivity issues. He spent hours with us talking through his experiences, his recommendations and the structure of the training he could provide. We did a stay and train with Luna for 3 weeks with Devotion to Dogs, which included us having in-person training sessions with Josh and Martina. She was a changed dog! We got her a doggy treadmill at home to help with the energy, she was conditioned with an e-collar to help us with her training, and she has changed so much for the better! I can now walk down the sidewalk next to dogs and people and not have to worry about her reacting. We can introduce her to strangers and even have people come over again without worrying she will react or show aggression. Once you book with Devotion to Dogs, you have access to the wonderful trainers to answer your questions, and even attend group socialization classes to keep up with the training for your pup. Luna loved her time so much that Ben, Josh, Martina and Courtney are some of her favorite people and she even gets excited to hear their names when we go to class! I can't thank Devotion to Dogs enough for helping us have a well behaved pup before we add a baby to our family in March. I know they will continue to support us through our next chapter as well. If you are thinking about reaching out to a trainer in San Diego, you should absolutely consider Devotion to Dogs! They are so friendly, treat your pups as their own, and are so knowledgeable. Thank you Ben & Team! read more

I can't say enough good things about this place. I've been bringing my dog here since he was 10 weeks old, and he's now a year old. I honestly don't know what I would've done without these amazing trainers. This isn't a one-time service. The support continues with weekly social classes and a monthly pack walk, both of which have been incredibly helpful. Whenever I have a question or an issue, I can call and count on them to help. Their dedication and follow-through truly stand out. This is an update, and I wanted to address the one star reviews that have been left. I'm doing this because I care deeply about dogs and the people who work hard to help them. I've seen lives changed through the trainers here, and I believe it's only fair to challenge these reviews with thoughtful questions. Reviews matter. They can impact a business and, more importantly, they can affect someone's decision to get their dog the help they need. 1. Cecelia - Just because a trainer came to your house one time does not mean your dog would be instantly transformed. Their job is to teach you and give you the tools needed to continue training on your own. Every time I've reached out to them with a concern about my dog, they've responded with help, free of charge, and with genuine care. They've always gone out of their way to guide and support me. Training requires consistency. You're expected to do four to five short sessions a day, lasting five to ten minutes each, for your dog to start learning. If you don't put in the work, the results won't come. 2. Kara - It's hard to respond seriously to a review from a fake Yelp account with no picture, written by someone supposedly in San Francisco. Still, I'll entertain it. I'm confident you never spoke to Ben on the phone, as he doesn't handle administrative calls. When exactly did you make an appointment? What is your dog's name? What issue were you calling about? What behavior concerned you? I can't help but wonder if you're affiliated with another dog training company that feels threatened. 3. Andrea B. - What email address did you use? What was the date? Did you ever follow up with a phone call? I'm genuinely asking because your review comes off as entitled and lacking context. read more

I rarely if, if ever, review anything. But I have to give a huge shout out to Ben and the rest of the Devotion to Dogs team. They are phenomenal. I have a 4-year old Australian Sheppard named Bandit and he was severely reactive around other dogs to the point I was only walking him very early in the morning or very late at night to avoid him seeing any other dogs. He would bark and lunge and generally become very anxious anytime he was around another dog. It was stressful and embarrassing. It also deprived us of the opportunity to do fun things like go to dog parks and the beach. He's a really active dog that loves to play fetch, catch the frisbee, and swim, and we could no longer do those things without putting ourselves at risk. My girlfriend was referred to Devotion to Dogs and I called Ben to get more information about his board and train program. He listened to my concerns and issues with Bandit and what we were experiencing and wanted to help. I put Bandit in the 2-week board and train program and throughout Ben and his staff kept me updated daily on his progress. He was able to communicate with Bandit and clearly outline rules and behavior expectations in a way I could not. When I went for a training session a few days before the program ended, I was astounded. Bandit was extremely obedient and most importantly was no longer reactive to other dogs. He was down staying in a park with tons of dogs, kids, birds, etc. - basically all distractions possible and he was purely focused on doing exactly what we wanted him to do. One of the best parts of the Devotion to Dogs program is how Ben and his team were able to teach my girlfriend and me how to communicate with Bandit and get the same responses/behavior. He was patient and answered all of our questions about the program and what we need to be doing as owners. Ben also is great about following up to check in on how we are doing. He cares about the dogs and people he works with. Devotion to Dogs really changed our lives for the better. I cannot recommend the program enough!! read more

Coheed is my boyfriend Jacob's dog. Jacob is active duty Navy. (Side note: we are from Iowa and I didn't move to San Diego til December when Jacob returned from deployment)Jacob has spent 1000s of dollars to keep him during his deployments all of his training's. With being boarded up, came behaviors. His last deployment, Coheed was fortunate enough to spend the last 4 out of 7 months with the Cesar Millan Foundation at the Dog Rehabilitation Center. He did great there, but since being home he has regressed. We reached out to a few dog trainers and was pretty much told because of his age(going on 8) he was a lost cause. You can imagine how we felt. We had faith in him. I was told about Ben and his beliefs. I immediately called him. I explained our situation and his first response was.... "no dog is a lost cause" A huge sigh of relief. Ben was absolutely true to his word. What he did in an hour... 25 minutes working with Coheed was amazing We can't thank him enough! He is not 100% but Ben gave us useful tools. Coheed would loose his mind when seeing another dog, person or car that would walk by. With in 25 minutes, Coheed was walking with Ben's beautiful dog Luka. I highly recommend Ben to anyone who has a 'lost cause' dog. We are looking forward to seeing the chance in Coheed! I'm sure Ben will be posting before and after videos! Thanks for your time! read more

I am so grateful to have met Ben. I was referred to him by a friend who had dog behavior issues that Ben was able to help take care of immediately. I told my friend the issues that I was having with my Great Dane, and she told me Ben would be able to help without a doubt. And she was right! He was absolutely amazing. My Dane was suffering from intense separation anxiety and lack of a good foundation. He pooped and peed in the crate no matter how long we are gone, whether it was 8 or 2 hours. He destroyed 2 crates since we've had him.. He was very destructive, he would chew up shoes, the corners of the walls, anything he could really get into honestly. He also would jump up on me and bite at me when I tried to take him to the bathroom and take him on walks. And that's just the short of it. So as you can see Ben was working with a difficult dog with a long list of issues.. But he was able to address every issue in one visit to our house! He taught us the tools we needed to create a good training foundation for our Dane and we saw results right away. In just an hour after Ben left our home, Zeus was a completely different dog. The crate training has been a huge issue and extremely stressful, but with the tools we were given, I know we will have a well trained dog in no time! So give Ben a call, he will change you and your dogs life! read more

Over the past 3 years, I have been through several highly rated dog trainers in San Diego, spending countless hours with different training techniques that had me clapping, yelling, and even "bahing" at my dog. I've used countless of other old/outdated techniques that ultimately did not work, leaving me completely defeated and helpless at the end. Ben came over for my first consultation, helped assess all my issues that I had been struggling with, (territorial issues/growling and lunging at guest) and then proceeded to show me HOW to communicate with my dog to help condition him to understand that he is not in charge. If your someone like me who has been through a handful of trainers, I promise you, you will see why Ben is the best at what he does. He doesn't use tools to mask the problem, he is different because he dissects the problem and then proceeds to show you how to communicate with the dog to make things work. COMMUNICATION IS KEY. And at the end of the day and all money I have spent, not one trainer has shown me how to communicate with my dog but Ben. The picture you see below is my dog in a down stay, without having to be kenneled or muzzled to be around guest.This was the next day after Ben's visit of helping to address a dog with a bite history. Looking forward to more progress :). read more

My dog, Karma, is (was?) a very reactive dog. She's a 5 year old bulldog mix and loves all people and small dogs but man, does she love to protect me from those passing big dogs. I've tried a couple of trainers in the past but for whatever reason they didn't stick - either I wasn't fully on board with their methods or I didn't quite click them. I decided to just learn to live with it and accept her for who she is as it's really her only "quirk." Then, along came an opportunity to work at a dog friendly office and bring her to work with me. Oh, except she doesn't like other dogs. Hmmm. Enter Ben at Devotion to Dogs. A coworker has been posting videos of her dog's progress with Ben for months now and I've been getting more and more interested. I'm so glad I finally pulled the trigger. After just one meeting with Ben, I have a different dog. I'm no longer stressed out walking her and I'm confident that when we move, I'll be able to bring her to work with me. We've only had one session but the changes are already incredible. This morning we sat at the coffee shop and when the dog that she usually goes nuts over came in, she barely cared. I couldn't believe it! Thanks, Ben! I cannot wait for our next session and to see where we can take my little goober-butt. read more

Wow!!! Ben knows dogs...all breeds of dogs. He and his wife, Nicole, have been great to work with and we couldn't be happier with their services. Ben understands how your dog's brain works and uses his studies in psychology to humanely teach YOU and your dog how to correct bad habits. Ben's behavior modification skills have a wide variety of applications. Does your dog bark, growl, or even bite? No problem. Is your dog bad with other dogs, chase cats, or pull on walks? Ben can help you fix it. We didn't go to Ben with a troubled dog; rather, chose to retain his services to train our 5 month old Labradoodle puppy who came from a 'free reign' environment. We chose a three week board & train program where our dog stayed with Ben and his family in their own home. The results were amazing. In just 3 weeks, our pup was fully house trained, leash trained and kennel trained (no whining or barking). He learned basic commands of 'sit', 'down', 'stay', 'place' (onto his cot) and most importantly 'come' (recall is huge!). We have two kids that are 6 & 7 and can tell you first hand how our training investment has paid enormous dividends. A word to the wise: don't spend a ton of money on the dog...invest in the training. Devotion to Dogs is the way to go! read more

Ben is a great trainer. I met some dog trainers so far. He is the best one and only one I can trust. I have a 1 year old Border collie. She used to jump up people every time when someone approached her. She was not friendly toward other dogs. She had many bad behavior such as nipping, air snapping, herding aggressively (typical border collie!), overexcited so easily and so on. We went to a dog obedience class before Ben. she was so nervous in the class and her bad behavior was worsen than before. I could not enjoy the class each time and wanted to cry after the class. I could not get any clear advice from trainers either. Even so, I knew my dog was smart enough and she deserved good training from the best trainer. Ben is a very fair, kind, great person. He always gave me clear advices during sessions. I always enjoyed dog training with him. He encouraged me a lot too. Now I have more confidence to train my dog. I am not afraid of anything anymore. My dog dramatically changed after 3 sessions with Ben. My dog is calmer and friendly toward other dogs. No more jump up!! She can do perfect loose leash walk too. She listens to me and makes eye contact more than before. read more

Ben is a fantastic dog trainer. His tactic is to give you all the tools you need to know in order to train your dog in everyday life in just a few short hours (as opposed to spending tons of money of a trainer who takes weeks or even months to fully train your dog). His methods are quite impressive and what's really great is he is very thorough, gives you examples, makes sure you understand what he's telling you, and above all else, he makes everything EASY to understand. My dog is notorious for being annoyingly excited all of the time, pulling while walking, and for aggression towards other dogs when it comes to her food and toys. He brought his handsome, gentle giant of a dog with him to help with those sorts of problems and I couldn't believe the change in my dog. We never once ran into any sort of problems. Immediately it was as if she was a different dog, she was so well behaved with him! Ben definitely knows what he's doing and has the experience to prove it. My family was present during some of the training and they couldn't believe what a great job he had done with my pup. Also, he comes to you (bonus!). Definitely recommend Ben you won't regret it :) read more

If you're reading this, chances are you're having a hard time with your dog. Do yourself a favor and call Ben. He is absolutely brilliant. My pup was showing signs of fear aggression at an early age. I spent hours a day reading articles and watching videos on how to help aggressive behavior in dogs; nothing worked. Months passed and it was progressively getting worse. It got to the point where I was losing sleep and questioning my capabilities as a dog parent. Thats when a friend recommended Ben and Devotion To Dogs. ONE SESSION. One session is all it took to see immediate results. It's been 2 months and you wouldn't believe the confidence my sweet girl is showing. Not only has Ben helped her, but he has helped me as well. I'm much more confident in becoming the leader my pup needs me to be. Ben and his team have given me all the tools i've needed and helped, and encouraged me every step of the way. Not once did Ben make me feel like I wasn't a fit dog parent. He takes the time to understand and communicate the necessary ways to make our trainings a success. You can tell he loves what he does, and he's great at it! Ben you da best! read more

Ben and his team are without a doubt the best dog trainers in San Diego. I heard about Ben through a friend and when I first looked at reviews, I thought they were fake because of how glowing they all were. However, after working with Ben his expertise and passion for dogs was very clear. He helped my 5 year old Lab / Staffordshire mix Jasper become fully off leash trained and tolerant of other dogs. Before working with Ben, we could not bring Jasper around other dogs without an incident happening. Now, Jasper tolerates other dogs and we have a strong pulse on situations we can put him in and situations we can't. Not to mention Ben had him fully off leash trained in 2 weeks. Ben's honesty and knowledge gives him the ability to breakdown the dog's training needs in a very thorough and accurate way. Ben and his team were very personal and provided daily updates on training via email and text. We worked with Devotion to Dogs when COVID first hit, and Ben was incredibly understanding and flexible in dealing with our concerns/questions at the time. We highly recommend Devotion to Dogs to anyone looking for professional dog training! read more

So I NEVER, EVER leave reviews, but I felt like this was necessary! I have a German shepherd mix that we adopted through a foster program. They told me she didn't have any issues. Well when we first took her home she was extremely aggressive towards us. I eventually worked her to a point where she is comfortable with people who live in my house. Anytime we go out she is extremely nervous and chases after anything with wheels and little kids and she has fear aggression towards people in general. It was just a hassle to take her on walks all the time. So I called Ben out. And let me tell you it has been a miracle. Is she perfect no, but she is a ton better since our training session which was about 5 days ago! WHAT!!!!! I can take her out now without pulling and without reacting to every little thing. Ben gives you the tools that you need for you and your dog to feel more comfortable. She was also extremely anxious and loud in the car and now she doesn't make a sound and actually laid down!!! I am so surprised with Ben's training technique. I will definitely be using him again! Thank you Ben for being so amazing!!!! read more

I was recommended to Ben by a co-worker whom he had previously assisted. Upon contacting Ben, I explained the obedience issues I was facing with my 2 dogs. He recommended some great items for me to get to facilitate the training process. On the first day of training, Ben arrived at my home promptly and we discussed in detail the issues, the training we would cover to correct the issues and we got to work. Ben worked with us for about 3 hours that day and gave us recommendations to work on for the following session. On the second visit, Ben followed up with us about improvements in behavior and continuous unwanted behavior in our dogs. The training that day reinforced the good and addressed new techniques to correct the lack of cooperation from the dogs in other areas. There is a huge improvement thus far and with continued work on my part, I have no doubt my dogs will be completely obedient in all facets within the next few weeks. Ben trains you on a variety of techniques to address your dogs issues. It's up to you after that to commit to conducting the training. It was money well spent! read more

I can not say enough about the assistance Ben gave us. He has an amazing understanding of dogs and why they behave in the way that they do. We came to Ben with a very difficult situation. We had a 4 year old chihuahua/whippet mix rescue dog (Jack) that had become so territorial that he had become a liability to our family. Those that were in Jack's world he loved endlessly however those that were not in his world he would very aggressively go after. After one hour of work with Ben we had Jack walking by people he did not know with no issues. As a group we determined that my son and his Fiance' with their work and school schedules simply did not have enough time to spend with Jack who needed far more daily attention. Ben assisted in modifying Jack's behavior and assisted in re-homing him to a fabulous retired couple who have the ability to spend a lot more time with him. I can not tell you how thankful I am for all of Ben's help. Jack is now thriving well in his new home and although we miss him greatly we know that it was clearly in his best interest. Thank you Ben!!!!!! read more

Wow. Ben truly understands dogs, their body language, the mental aspect - everything. One of my dogs, Eli, is a pit bull that we rescued from the shelter. He is super nervous, fearful, and dog-reactive. We were doing the best we could, but we had no clue how to help get Eli to a balanced and calm state of mind. Enter Ben Davidson. He is AMAZING. He has taught us how to walk Eli, how to correct him, how our energy and state of mind affects Eli. He basically was the translator that Eli the dog and us humans needed to understand each other. Ben is patient - nothing rattles him and he doesn't get frustrated. He is encouraging and kind when dealing with us frazzled humans. He cares about your dog, and you! And the dogs can tell that a true pack leader is on sight. It was kinda crazy how well they responded to him, immediately. And it's all instinctual. (I think Ben might actually be part dog! Lol) We are still a work in progress, and I cannot wait for our next session. In the meantime, we are working on all of the tools that Ben gave us and see improvement each week. read more