Recently added to the repertoire of services available. Highly recommend Hannah for your grooming needs, no matter what breed or what requirement exceptional on all of my German shepherds, and it shows both in the way they look and how healthy their coats are with regular grooming read more

Boarded my dogs, wonderful family and experience. Clean beautiful kennels. Thank you!

First off, I find many of these one star reviews inaccurate and unfounded. I had all three of my German Shepards trained here and the results were amazing. I've also boarded my three dogs here and they love it. They receive refreshers in their obedience training, exercised, and are well fed and groomed before they come home. Her dogs are excellent examples of "true" German Sheperds. I wish I had gotten my pups from here. There have been many times when she's proven my vet wrong. Melanie and her staff are very responsive despite how busy they are. Just like any popular business, it takes time. A lot of people forget they're not the center of the universe. Melanie has trained and studied at some of the most well established kennels in all of Europe. For those that don't know, there's a reason why militaries and law enforcement agencies around the world (including the U.S.) purchase their dogs from these kennels. These kennels have been around longer than our young nation. The training is firm but fair. People forget that dogs are animals at the end of the day. There are corrections that come via the leash, choke collar and e-collar. Some people might consider these methods harsh but kennels have been utilizing these methods are longer than any of us have been around and to great effect. I'm willing to wager that there is more wisdom there than people who watched one episode of "Dog Whisperer." Also, the training isn't just for the dogs but also the owners/handlers. Often times the problem isn't the dog, it's the owner/handler. A lot of people let their dog walk them instead of it being the other way around. I've been to the group sessions and they're great. Sometimes you get owners who think they know better and don't realize they're reinforcing bad habits. You can't have thin skin and this is one of those enterprises where the customer isn't always right. I know some people might go into shock about this or take to yelp to cry foul and leave a bad review because their ego was bruised. I have nothing but great things to say about Melanie, her staff and most importantly, her dogs. I also implore potential customers to ask to come to one of the training days and watch the protection dogs work. I've trained with "bite" dogs from multiple law enforcement agencies and the military; her dogs can perform with the best of them yet still be a family pet. Also, not all dogs have the drive to be protection dogs. Purchasing a German Shepard, a Belgian Malinois or any other stereotypical working breed doesn't mean that dog automatically has the drive to be a protection K-9. People also forget that you have to work and reinforce the training for yourself and your dog after obedience training. I get nothing but compliments on my pups. I can walk all three off leash. They won't acknowledge other unruly dogs, people, won't sniff you or lick you. They do as they are told and pay attention to me at all times. 10/10 recommend Melanie and her staff. Leave your ego and Internet expertise at home. Come with an open mind and accept the constructive criticism. read more

Guthrie's International - Suns out out, pups out. - Pet Training Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

Buyer beware- irresponsible breeding!!! I purchased the most intelligent and beautiful female puppy from the Guthrie's. Throughout her life she remained the most beautiful and intelligent dog I have ever known. At 8 years old she developed degenerative myelopathy and as it turns out she was homozygous for this disease which means each of her parents had at least one copy of the gene for the disease. I had never heard of this disease prior to my dog's diagnosis. Unfortunately the Guthrie's either do not test their dogs for the gene that causes degenerative myelopathy prior to breeding or they just don't care and breed them anyway. I would like to think it's that they don't test for it even though they should. Attached are the undeniable test results which show the lack of responsibility on the Guthrie's part. They were well aware that the disease existed and perhaps they didn't know their dogs they were breeding carried it but that only points out their negligence as breeders. If they knew and bred them anyway it's only demonstrates their greed and lack of responsibility. If you are considering buying a dog from the Guthrie's dog the quick test for degenerative myelopathy on the dog first so your dog does not suffer with this debilitating disease. My dog was also trained with the Guthrie's but this review is regarding only the irresponsible breeding practices at Guthrie's not the cruel training practices of Melanie and Ben Guthrie. Kicking and choking dogs is common practice and how they get the dogs "to respect" them. read more

Guthrie's International - Genetic test results - Pet Training Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

We got our sweet girl here! She's sometimes too smart for her own good, but we had her trained here and she does what she's been taught. We still board her here and they're so great with her that we don't trust anyone else with our girl. Thanks for helping us with her! read more

Guthrie's International - Pet Training Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

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Guthrie's is amazing, plain and simple. You want your dog to be the best behaved dog in public, at home, or wherever? Take your dog to Guthrie's. I bet the people on here who complain have dogs they're embarrassed to take in public because they don't understand dogs. I had my German shepherds trained at Guthrie's. Every single time I take my dog in public or have guests over, I receive compliments on how well behaved my dogs are. My dogs will not sniff or jump on you. My dogs will only be told a command once. My dogs are well trained on AND off leash. My dogs will not acknowledge your dog is rudely barking as we are walking by you. My dogs are OBEDIENT. Are yours? If not, ignore the bad reviews and take your dog to Guthrie's. Furthermore, they not only do dog training, but do boarding as well. I have boarded my dogs at Guthrie's multiple times and am never disappointed. They receive more training and are exercised while they are boarded. Lastly, the protection dogs are incredible. I have seen these dogs work first hand and am mind blown every time. There's a reason Guthrie's is producing top notch dogs. Go experience this magic yourself, you won't be disappointed. read more

Our story begins in 2007 where I contacted Gutheries to buy a GSD. We purchased and fell in love with our Hans. When he was a year old we progressed from obedience training to protection training. Hans was superb ! Family oriented and level headed. His temperament was what you want and would expect from a Gutheries dog. In August 2019 we had to say goodbye to our beloved boy. It was heart wrenching but he was in pain.... it took a few weeks but we contacted Gutheries to request to be put on a list...well Melanie called me and we spoke for awhile. The following weekend I drove to Tucson to meet a puppy and I put a deposit on him. His temperament and ball drive was exactly like our Hans. We met a 2 year old that needed a new home due to divorce. We happily brought her home-- she's as wonderful as Melanie said she was. read more

Do not take your dogs here! The owner is rude, arrogant, unprofessional, and very irresponsible. My dog went 11 days at this place and not one single word from them regarding the status of my dog. I had no idea how he was doing even after numerous calls and leaving messages for them. Then when I called from a different phone number and was able to speak to Melanie, they claimed they didn't get one single call or message from me. When I told her I just wanted to pick my dog up, she said, "we'll see about that." I had to call the sheriff's department to escort me over there to pick up my dog. After several hours of the cops trying to get my dog, the owner went AWOL. She wouldn't answer her phone and the son and daughter said they had no access to the dogs. Only the owner did. Mind you the son was the one training my dog and he had no access to my dog? The cops explained that if they did not release the dog that they would be arrested for theft. The owner chose to be arrested and not give me my dog. What are they hiding? Why won't they release my dog? Run as fast as you can away from this place. I have been put through hell and back with these people. WHAT A NIGHTMARE!!! read more

Scary, frightening, they honestly hit your dog with a leather strap, often. I could have beaten my dog trained myself, oh no way was extremely sorry we chose this place for training. Our sweet rescue was horrified as much as we were!! read more

My aunt took her German shepherd puppy here to be trained. After more than a week and multiple calls to the business inquiring of an update regarding the puppy, there was no response from the Guthrie's. It escalated to the point where law enforcement was called because the business refused to return the puppy to my aunt for unknown reasons. Really shady business going on here, stay away! read more

They are great for training German Shepherds! I would recommend them for this type of dog.

I bought my dog in November for a personal protection/working dog. Guthrie's helped to match me up with the right dog in order to fufill my needs specifically. I have really been impressed with the education, support and help I have received in my lessons and with my dogs training. I am continuing my lessons each week and can see myself as well as my dog making great improvements. I can see that Guthrie's cares deeply about the wellbeing and safety for each animal and it shows. I also want to add that they have a beautiful facility with state-of-the-art equipment and helpful and friendly staff that obviously share the love of animals. Thank you Guthrie's! read more

Guthrie's International - Pet Training Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

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Guthries is right for you if you like: -Your dog yanked off his feet with a choker collar -your dogs head shut hard in a doorway -your dog hit with a leather leash This is what happened in the "evaluation visit" while in front of us. In addition, their own dog didn't "come" with a verbal recall, they used a e-collar for it to comply. read more

My mom took her dog here and explained that she wanted him to have basic obedience training done, and to be for protection. She told them she just wanted to be able to walk with him on a leash in public without pulling, etc. During my mom's first training session, the lady advised my mom that her dog's DNA was messed up because he had contracted parvo, and that in order to be used for protection he would have to be in the top 1% of dogs and her dog wasn't. The lady also checked out my mom's dog's teeth, and tried advising her that she was lied to about her dog's age based on his teeth. Her dog has seen SEVERAL vets, and he is confirmed to be the age my mom originally told them. After all this, my mom told them again that she just wanted basic training done for her dog, they advised she put him in a kennel or outside all the time and he is only suppose to show affection when my mom tells him to. She was also trying to tell her dog to sit and said, "sit" several time. The trainer that was standing there told her not to do that because she sounds like a nag, and no one likes a nag. I wouldn't recommend this place for people who want basic training. I don't know how they treat their working dogs, but if this is How they treat people and their PETS, I would find some place else. My mom was so upset when we talked that she was crying. NO TRAINER SHOULD MAKE AN OWNER FEEL LIKE CRAP ABOUT THEIR PET!!!!! read more

Their German shepherds are never bred to standard, and frankly, ugly examples of the breed. Many of the gunthries I have met have health issues. If you want a good German shepherd, keep looking. read more

This review is for their training. I took my German Shepherd to Guthrie's for training a couple years ago. I rescued him from an abusive home, which had mentally scarred him. Guthrie's transformed him into a whole new dog. They taught my family tricks and tips (they train you too so you can better handle your dog; the proper way). I am bringing my Saint Bernard in next week for private lessons, and I am very excited to see what they can do to transform her, as well as me. Thank you Guthrie Security Dogs! read more

We started our pup with puppy classes with the local German Shepherd Dog club at 6 months of age. It just illustrated that not all GSDs are the same - our working line pup exceeded the knowledge of these show dog people. I am not a novice with large dogs (boxers, rottweilers) but I knew I needed help communicating with this supremely confident and headstrong shepherd as he had become very leash reactive and was out of control around other dogs. I was just an annoyance on the end of the leash to him. We took him to Guthrie's and in that first session Melanie had him over being an adolescent nightmare. We continue to train with her regularly and the insights she has shared about what our working line shepherd needs, and how to communicate with him, have been invaluable. Our dog is very much finished in terms of being a great home companion and joy to live with and take out in public, but we keep going back to continue getting trained ourselves. Melanie is a wealth of information on dog behavior, nutrition, and picking up on the slight mistakes in our technique that are not getting the best results out of our dog. read more

My dog came out of this boarding experience in critically ill condition, according to my vet, with bleeding colitis/diarrhea, a wound to his left hind leg that required anesthesia, IV antibiotics, and debridement, a 9# weight loss in 7 days, and a total of $1K in vet bills. He also came home head shy, as if he had been hit, or yanked around. When I informed them of his status, their resopnse "Perhaps your dog is not a candidate for boarding". Wow. RUN from this place! I would have given it zero stars if I could. read more

I purchased my german shepherd from Guthrie's. The facility was clean and well kept. Prices are competative with any breeder that approaches their quality. Staff is very supportive, always available to answer questions quickly. My dog has also gone through their training program. Staff was knowledgeable in all areas of behaviors I encountered and helped me correct the behavior. I highly recommend Guthrie's based on quality of dogs, their knowledge, and support. read more

The quality and character of the dogs are amazing! You could not ask for a more knowledgeable people for this breed then Guthrie's. Highly recommend, we have our amazing, caring, loving and protective German Shepherd for 14 years. read more

Guthries saved my dogs life. Let me start off with telling you about my dog, an overweight aggressive 3 year old German Shepard. He lashes out at people and tries to fight other dogs. It was to the point we couldn't even take him out for walks anymore, he was miserable but he had to stay outside at my home. We had no other options either get him help, let him live a miserable life, or put him down. I was looking everywhere for a trainer but there are so expensive for such little time. That's why I found Guthries because they are very budget friendly! I met with Ben the trainer. He is such a funny kind guy with an amazing sense of humor. He explains everything in a way that is very easy to understand. 30 minutes with him he told me what was wrong with my dog and what needed to be done. I left my dog with him for a few weeks where he was trained, fed, groomed and loved. The first time I saw my dog it was like I was given back a different dog. They helped him get down to a better weight and his personality changed 100%. We have done a few lessons but only 1 month later I am able to take him on walks, to the store, to the park with him acting perfectly. He doesn't bark at other dogs or people, he minds his own business, he listens to me when I ask him anything. Not only did they change his personality they give you the skills to work with your dog which you can have forever! I can show him off now!! I wish I could truly explain how Guthries saved my dogs life. No matter how horrible your dog is trust me, give them a chance and they will change your life! Thanks Guthries, you will forever have my business! read more

We took our two year old German Shepherd to them for training and boarding. He stayed there for a month and although he was better, we were appalled by their training methods. They whipped our dog with a heavy leather leash, they hung him by his neck until his tongue turned blue, his eyes rolled back in his head and he was unable to stand (they did this several times), they slammed him down on the ground, he came home with bleeding feet, wounds all over his body (including his neck and legs) and he was very skinny due to them starving him for nearly a week. They justified not feeding him by saying he had a "stinkin' little attitude". Our dog can't even bark or howl anymore due to the damage they inflicted upon him. THIS PLACE TORTURES DOGS and calls it training. We did some research and found out that this kind of training is common among security dog trainers as late as the 90's, but let's be honest here. This isn't training, it is abuse. Slavery was common 200 years ago, too, but I think we can all agree that it was wrong. SO IS THIS! Bottom line: If you love your dogs and feel torturing them is wrong, please stay away from this place. We paid $1600+ to have them hurt and torture our dog for a month. read more

I brought my one year old GSD here for training. I ended up leaving him at the ranch for 3 weeks and it was one of the best decisions I have ever made. My dog has done a complete 180 in terms of behavior. For some background, he had nearly every problem in the book (dog reactive, neurotic, excessive barking, pulling on the leash the list goes on and on). I dreaded taking him out of the house on walks or to the park and when I came to Guthries I was nearly at the end of my rope. Fast forward to today - my dog walks perfectly by my side off the leash, passes other dogs with ease, can sit, lay down and stay until I tell him to get up. In addition to that he is able to entertain himself while inside the house and be respectful of guests. I'm convinced Ben speaks German Shepard. He was also able to equip me with the tools and knowledge to properly handle my animal. If you are considering it, this is your sign - just do it! Your life will be so much better! read more

I bought my first German shepherd from Guthrie's. I was looking to get a dog with a high drive because I wanted to do protection work with it. The dog I bought (which cost several thousand dollars) was great. He had a very high toy and food drive and wanted to be active all the time. I enrolled him in classes with Guthrie's to get him started on obedience (the instructions were another thing I was not impressed with, but that's another issue) and they noticed he was constantly scratching. They told me I would have to keep him off dusty ground (I live on six acres of Arizona desert!), and hose him down regularly to keep the dust out. They said it wasn't allergies or anything medical, but poor care on my part. Mind you I fed high quality food with salmon and no grains, and the other five dogs on my property had no issues with scratching or dust. After owning him for a few months, my friend (who has trained dogs professionally) and I noticed that the hind end of the dog was not moving naturally. We suspected hip dysplasia, so we took it to our vet to have him x-rayed. Our vet told us that, without a doubt, it was a clear case of hip dysplasia. Two other vets confirmed. He was 11 months old. Not wanting to put anymore training into a dog that had hip dysplasia, I contacted Guthrie's about the problem and requested an exchange, as was provided for in the purchase agreement specifically for hip dysplasia. The owner, of course, guaranteed that she knew more about German shepherds than my vet. She looked at the x-rays (with obvious loose joints in the hips) and said there was no way this dog had hip dysplasia. She said the joints were loose but it was normal and he would outgrow it. I told this to one of my vets and they disagreed. After about a month of arguing with this breeder, and her trying to ignore my calls, I finally had to accuse her of not holding up her end of the contract and threaten legal action against her. That prompted her to finally accept an exchange. Now the new dog that I got (the only one she was willing to offer), and which I currently still have, does not have nearly enough drive to do protection work. She is a great dog but very docile and shy. I was not happy that I paid an enormous amount for a well-bred protection dog only to end up with such a low key dog, but at least she makes a good house pet. The first dog, by the way, was from an accidental breeding. Stay far away from this place and consider other options. They talk a big game but if you have any problems, too bad for you. read more