Cara is excellent training your dog. She is very knowledgeable and very patient. Has great methods…read morethat does not include a shock dog collar. I would highly recommend her!

I can't recommend Cara enough! From the very first session, it was clear that she truly understand…read moredogs and their behavior. Cara took the time to assess my puppy's individual needs and developed a training plan with the goal of forming a strong relationship with my dalmatian, Ruth. Cara was incredibly patient, calm, and encouraging. Check out her YouTube videos to get Cara's vibe for traning and see if her apporach works for you. Unfortunately, due to personal circumstances, we were not able to complete our eight-week training plan, but Cara was completely understanding and refunded me for the remaining sessions. I was beyond grateful that she was so understanding of situation. Cara has a genuine love for animals, and it shows in every interaction. If you're looking for a knowledgeable, kind, and results-driven dog trainer, look no further. I'm so grateful for the transformation in my dog's behavior (even in the short time we spent training together) and I would recommend Cara for anyone struggling to train their dog basic obedience, or develop a relationship with their new puppy, and much more!

**Life-Changing. Truly.**…read more I don't write reviews lightly and I especially don't write emotional ones--but Bark Busters of San Diego quite literally gave me my life back. For years, I lived in silence and stress. I couldn't leave my home without my dogs barking, howling, scratching at their crates, and spiraling into panic. The mouth watering alone was enough to break me. So instead, I stayed home. I adjusted my life around their anxiety. I suffered quietly because I loved them and didn't know what else to do. Until one day I broke down completely. I realized this wasn't living not for me, and not for them. We deserved calm. We deserved peace. We deserved to live our "best" lives and this wasn't it. Some people complain in reviews that dog training "doesn't work." Let me be very clear: anxiety whether in humans or dogs is not something you fix by checking a box. A true behavioral therapist understands one thing above all else, "awareness". Anxiety comes from surroundings and perceived safety. The work is learning how to respond and create calm and that takes consistency. I spent three straight weeks training four hours a day, every single day. I cried. I doubted myself. I wanted to quit. But I followed the Bark Busters program exactly as taught--daily simulations, real-world scenarios, repetition, and patience. And then something incredible happened. My dogs slept. They relaxed. They trusted. Today, I can leave my home and my dogs are calm, quiet, and peacefully sleeping, knowing I'm coming back. Visitors come and go with ease. My 9- and 6-year-old Maltipoos are relaxed, confident, and happy. And so am I. Here's the truth people don't want to hear, there is no magic pill. There is no shortcut. The training never "ends" because leadership and love are lifelong commitments. And honestly? That's the gift. Once it becomes part of your daily life, it feels natural. I walk more. The cuddles are calmer. I'm no longer being climbed on out of anxiety I'm being loved in peace. And about the cost? Think about it. You've already spent more on multiple trainers, treats, wasted time, emotional exhaustion, and a very unhappy household. Bark Busters' training is guaranteed for life. If you move. If life changes. If new challenges come you're supported. That matters more than people realize. Justin and his team are beyond words. Compassionate. Honest. Direct. They don't just train dogs, they train families. Value your pet's life. Value the short, precious time we get with them. Happiness--for everyone in the home is worth the work.

I'm updating my original 6-month review now that it has been a full year since we hired Bark…read moreBusters to help with our rescue dog Mimi. As first-time dog owners, the early support really did help us. Having someone we could call during those overwhelming first months was a relief. Over time, though, I realized I was hoping the training would shift toward more positive reinforcement. The constant, harsher corrections worked at first but eventually didn't seem effective anymore and started affecting my relationship with Mimi. I noticed this during a family trip where Mimi, who is usually fearful of strangers, bonded more easily with my husband and his family. She gravitated toward them when scared, and I realized it might be because they weren't following the correction-heavy approach, while I was. I also asked for help with Mimi's fear and reactivity toward other dogs, but was told they didn't have dogs available for training and that I would need to bring a calm, socialized dog myself. As a non-trainer, that was very hard, but we tried by traveling many hours to introduce her to my husband's family dog. The experience ended up being chaotic since the family didn't fully understand what the process required, and new people and dogs kept appearing even though Mimi wasn't ready. Her reactivity came back in that environment, which made me feel like the training had only put a bandaid on deeper fear issues. Maybe I should have clarified expectations better from the start, but with a high-need dog and being new to all of this, I didn't know what to expect. Since then, we've switched to a positive reinforcement trainer who organizes structured group activities. Mimi is still scared of bigger dogs and can still be reactive, but she's improving slowly and has been able to meet a few smaller dogs. She's also still fearful of people, but she nips a lot less now, so progress is happening. Overall, Bark Busters helped us in the beginning, but long-term we found that a different, more positive approach has been a better fit for Mimi.

We hired Dogs on the Run to have our dog be part of our wedding day in June 2025, and I truly…read morecannot recommend them enough!! Especially our handler, Misty! From the very beginning, Misty was incredible. She carved out time weeks before the wedding for us to meet each other and talk about our dog's (Louie) temperament, our expectations, and the full game plan for the big day. It gave us so much peace of mind knowing she was prepared and genuinely cared about making everything go smoothly. On the wedding day, she was amazing. She arrived early to the Airbnb and was able to get used to walking and handling Louie. She walked Louie down the aisle, handled him and helped him greet guests during the ceremony and cocktail hour, and kept everything completely stress-free for us. She kept us updated via text throughout the day, and when it was time to drop him back off at our Airbnb in the evening, she sent photos and updates so we knew he was settled and happy. She even left us the sweetest wedding gift, which was such a thoughtful touch. Misty was kind, professional, organized, and clearly loves what she does. We are SO grateful for her and would absolutely book Dogs on the Run again. Highly, highly recommend!

We contacted DOTR for dogsitting at our home. We were called back within an hour. All communication…read morewith DOTR & Phoenix, the sitter, have been timely and affable. Phoenix connected with our dog immediately when she came to interview. That hasn't always been the case with our dog. We had to cancel our reservation due to unforeseen circumstances. We will definitely keep DOTR & Phoenix on our list for future dates.

Shout out to K9's Doggy Day Care and Boarding! Luke and…read moreMaggie May are always so excited to go play with their canine buddies--it's truly their favorite place! The entire K9 team is absolutely amazing and clearly love our dogs as much as we do. Play time is the best time, and I always know they've had a blast because they come home completely "dog" tired (the best kind of tired!). Thank you so much for loving and caring for our fur babies like family. We're so grateful! Highly recommend!!!

I took my buddy Hoss for training. He is a Bullmastiff and was what I called aggressively…read morefriendly.... He could not control his love for people.... He jumped on people scratched and was a crazy big guy.... After two weeks I was shocked at how he changed... night and day. He is now a controllable very friendly guy. They turned him from a crazy ball of energy... to a wonderful family member. He even obeys our granddaughter who is 7 when she tells him to go to his place

Rachel was an amazing puppy training instructor! She provided excellent tips, practical guidance,…read moreand clear explanations that were easy to follow. She was very knowledgeable and always willing to answer any questions. We learned so much and saw real progress with our puppy throughout the program. I highly recommend Rachel and Woof Academy to anyone looking for an effective, positive puppy training experience.

I have my puppy Butters in both the Puppy Socialization camp and their Puppy group training program…read moreand I've seen so much progress with how he's getting along with other dogs and he's been very hesitant and leash reactive once I could finally start socializing him safely with other dogs. I first started with their puppy socialization camp and he's been to around 12 so far and he went to a shy, timid puppy in the corner to making lots of friends and having a lot of fun during these 3 hour sessions! Then I put him in the Puppy group training program to help with his leash reactivity with other dogs and to also help with some basic commands and I've seen tremendous progress with how he's he is around larger dogs now. Everyone at the Woof Academy are also super friendly and want Butters to succeed and I would highly recommend this place to anyone!

Thought I would give a review since I've had Megan as my dog walker for roughly around 9 years now…read more Just goes to show how much we love her so much; we want to keep her as our own little secret! I found Megan when we had Flexo at the time. I looked everywhere for a specific type of walker. Our boy was a rescue with a rough background. He was reactive to dogs while on leash and took time to trust strangers. I definitely wanted a dog savvy walker! One who has a background in training and tough pups like ours. Since day one, I remember coming back from work and noticing our boy feeling a little more relaxed. Not as pent up or stressed. I quickly realized how much he needed this! Whatever his situation was before, I wanted to give him a better one, an upgrade. Megan helped me with that. She was very professional, confident, and worked with our boy during her walks. He eventually loosened up to her and her little girls and it was so great to hear how much he improved over time. Flexo has since passed, but we adopted another rescue, Brody. We had him at 7 months old and, although was the complete opposite of Flexo, his puppy stage proved to be quite the whirlwind, to say the least! While we did our part in training, Megan did her part with socializing and walking. He was a little ball of energy, but now at 3 yrs old, has since calmed down and is the best boy. He loves Megan and her pack (both humans and dogs)! She also does boarding and daycare. Another plus, she is very flexible! There are often times I've had to cancel last minute because I worked from home during the pandemic, and it was no issue. She also updates by leaving a message in a little notepad she provided. There are so many positives, I can't say enough how much we love having Megan as our walker. I only hope, if there comes a time when we have to move away, we can find someone just like her. She's definitely set the standard for who I want in a professional walker!

Megan and Marla are incredible! They are basically family at this point…read more After making a very late decision to visit family over the holidays, I desperately needed to find someone I could trust to take care of my dog, Wilson. I didn't want to leave him somewhere he would end up in a cage all night and most of the day. Fortunately, I found the Balanced Pack. Wilson stayed with Marla and her family during the 6 days I was gone. As any dog owner knows, a lot of stress accompanies leaving a dog with someone else for an extended period of time - even with friends. That was not the case with the Balanced Pack. I received regular updates and daily photos of a very happy Wilson. Further, it was so nice knowing that Wilson was with people who cared about him and had plenty of playtime with his canine buddies. The only concern was that I'd have to drag him back home ;-) Since then, I have used the Balanced Pack for day boarding on a regular basis. Megan picks him up every morning on time and then drops him off around 5:30pm and feeds him dinner. He is so excited when I tell him in the morning that Megan & Marla are coming. And it is amazing to come home from work and find your dog both exercised and fed. And I do mean it - Wilson has tons of energy and on days when Megan has him, he is worn out when I get home! That says something. The bottom line is that Megan and Marla are awesome. They will treat your dogs with love and care. And you will notice an extra gleam in your pet's eyes after a fun day with the Balanced Pack.

Excellent place to take your dog for obedience and/or behavioral issues. Laura is very experienced…read moreand knowledgeable. She has helped me with my Great Dane, Daisy. She even helped her not be scared around big dogs ! Thank you so much ! I will continue to use Laura to have a very well behaved Dane. I recommend her !!!!

I'm really disappointed in how this business handles communication and customer service. I enrolled…read morein a 4-week group training class for my 9 month old puppy. I reached out nine days before the first session to ask about moving to the following 4 week session since I would be missing two out of four classes. I wasn't asking for a refund--just to switch sessions. My email went unanswered, and I had to call the facility to leave a message before the owner finally texted me back. I was told there are no changes or cancellations allowed, and to simply watch videos for the weeks I'd miss. One of the main reasons I chose this trainer was for the in-person group training and socialization, which can't be replaced by videos. I can find plenty of training videos online. This 4 week training was expensive, but I was very much so excited to grow with a training facility nearby. As a Carlsbad local, I love supporting small businesses, but this experience has been very disappointing. A little flexibility and better communication would have gone a long way.

Pam and her entire crew at Woofingham Palace are amazing. There is no doubt how much passion they…read morehave for the pets in their care, providing training and guidance to pet parents, and providing a safe facility for the fur kids and her staff. I got a new boxer puppy that was in desperate need of some socialization and proper etiquette when playing with other dogs. I signed up for the puppy socialization classes and within a matter of a few sessions I noticed a dramatic improvement. I'd give Pam 100 stars if I could.

Pam Chandler, of Dog Sense Training is truly amazing! I've been using her classes, pack walks, and…read moreprivate sessions for two dogs over about 2 1/2 years. She truly knows dogs and makes it fun and interesting for the humans too. She recently expanded by purchasing Woofingham Palace, so her new business name is rebranding to Woof Academy. Still amazing and just added a great location for classes, socialization sessions, and boarding.