THIS PLACE IS NOT FOR ME OR MY DOG. Let me start by saying that Hillary and her team of dog trainers are very nice people. I have nothing personal against them. However, I have a very serious concern about what happened to my dog during her time in this program. I brought my German Shorthaired Pointer, Nuala, to Hillary's program at the request of my parents so they could better understand how to work with her. I got Nuala at exactly eight weeks old from a very reputable gun dog breeder, as she is being raised to become a hunting dog. From day one, I worked closely with her on basic training and early socialization with both people and animals, and everything was going great. An important detail: I bring my dog to the beach almost every other day. She is constantly around people, crowds, noise, and other dogs, and this has never been an issue. She has always been confident, friendly, and well-adjusted. She has no problems with other dogs at all. My parents had same experience until recently. Fast-forward about 2 1/2 weeks into her program--she is now 17 weeks old--and suddenly she is showing fear-based behavior toward people. She started barking and growling at strangers, running toward me for protection, and hiding from people. Again, she has no issues with dogs, only people. This behavior is completely out of character and not at all the dog I brought into this program. I don't know what goes on behind closed doors at this facility, but something clearly went wrong. My dog came in confident and social, and she left fearful of people. Because of this, I will absolutely not be bringing her back. Before spending $2,500, I strongly recommend doing extensive research on where you bring your puppy. Personally, I have had far more success training my dog on my own by watching trainers who specialize in my specific breed on YouTube--something I've been doing successfully since day one. Training takes time, patience, and consistency, and the best part is that those resources are free. In summary, while I don't dislike Hillary or her team on a personal level, I am deeply unhappy with what happened to my dog while she was in their care. I paid $2,500 to help my puppy grow into a confident, well-behaved dog, and instead she came back scared of people. Because of this experience, I will not be returning and would not recommend this facility to others. I am extremely upset and disappointed. read more

Fabulous!!! my puppy Coco Valentina loves going wonderful programs and staff. Puppies are so calm and happy to be there to learn,

Signed up my pup for the 4 week class. My expectations were NOT met. Loose leash walking - NO Recall - only with food/treats and not consistent Down - No Place - No I am not sure what I paid for. I'd rate it 1 star, but the email communication was good. This is NOT real training. Calling my dog knucklehead repeatedly should have been a red flag read more

We took our brand new French bull dog puppy here to train him while we were at work. We were hoping they could train him and then give us tips on how to train at home when we picked him up everyday. What we got was blamed for his "aggressive" puppy behavior and accused that we don't feed him enough or abuse him at home. Our dog came from a breeder and was with us for a few weeks before we brought him here. He was probably 3 months old at the most and we fed him exactly what was recommended by our vet and French bull dog experts. We absolutely do not hit our dogs or "play rough" with them. He was a puppy, they need to be trained to play nice. After the expensive 6 week session our dog came back untrained with no change in behavior. This place is just a very expensive babysitter. I do not recommend if you are looking for dog experts that will train you and your dog. read more

We signed our puppy up for a four week program here and decided that we loved it so much and our puppy was thriving so we decided to sign him up for two additional weeks. After six weeks at Hillary's hound house our dog has self-control, he can play nicely with our kitten, he comes when we call him and has a lot of control over his impulses. They trained us also so we know how to handle him and continue training him after his graduation today. Hillary is there almost every single day and she leads the training classes on Saturdays. The love for her job and the great employees she has really shines through and makes a very positive experience for her clients. We appreciate them so much and would highly recommend them to anybody who has just gotten a new puppy and doesn't know how to train it or have the time to be with the puppy all day every day. read more

Hillary's Hound House - Pet Training Near Me - San Rafael, California

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I would give Hillary 10+ stars if I could. Hillary's Hound House was the single best thing we ever did for our puppy. We brought our Goldendoodle puppy to Hillary's Hound House when she was 13 weeks old. She showed up a very socially awkward, at times unsure/fearful of other puppies, overexcited puppy. All in all had a sweet disposition, but had poor impulse control, was a serial jumper, and had energy to burn. Hillary and team took that energy and channeled it into training - AND IT SHOWS. She is so much more in control of her energy and impulses, doesn't jump anywhere near as much, and overall is a much more mature puppy. She's also now so great at walking loose leash. We've also taken her to several puppy socials since starting at Hillary's Hound House and she's so much more comfortable and friendly with other puppies. Now she's like the life of the party at puppy socials. Hillary's team really cares. We received videos from time to time of some of our puppy's lessons for the day. The staff was always so friendly and ready to give updates when we picked her up for the day, giving us a sense of her progress. All in all, we really feel like we've seen such a change in our girl since her time at Hillary's. Highly recommend. Book for 6 weeks, not 4. Trust me. read more

Hillary's Hound House - Pet Training Near Me - San Rafael, California

I signed my puppy up for "training" and I was very disappointed with what I got for the very expensive sessions. I felt like I paid for puppy daycare with a couple of group outings. read more

I was very excited to take my puppy to Hilary's. He was scared at the beginning but after a day or two I was told several times that he was doing really well and getting along with the other puppies. Hilary called me after his 5th day there to tell me that he is not welcome back because he scared some of the other puppies during recall training and she felt he was aggressive. He has had training with other trainers and spent time at a small daycare and they all have told me that he is not aggressive and does really well with other dogs. I was very disappointed that Hilary kicked him out after one incident. He had just started bonding with Kayla, who really did well with him, and liked going to "school." For the amount of money I paid there should be some correcting of questionable behavior. I think that most of the puppies she accepts come from breeders so they don't have any behavior that needs to be corrected as an adopted dog might. There also might be some bias towards pitbull mixes, as my puppy is. read more

Hillary's Hound House - Pet Training Near Me - San Rafael, California

This place is an absolute joke and nothing more than an over-priced doggie day-care run by an amateur who is masquerading as some sort of dog behavior expert. Our puppy, Humphrey, spent literally only 2 days at this place, only to be unceremoniously "thrown out" via e-mail today, despite my husband literally being there in person yesterday afternoon. We were told he was shy, timid and sensitive and they he became overwhelmed when in the pen with larger dogs. Hilary told us they would work with him slowly and surely to make him feel more comfortable and confident. Obviously after the second day it was too much trouble for Hillary and the staff so they told us today she thought it better "he didn't come back"! Forgive me for thinking the entire premise of your facility is to help socialize and train dogs?! Yeah right. Don't waste your money. We're obviously not the first people this has happened to so think carefully before you spend $2500 of your well-earned money. Go to a properly qualified professional. read more

I can't say enough about how wonderful my (and my sweet puppy Sadies) experience was with Hillary and her team. Sadie enthusiastically went off to her school for 4 joyful and transformative weeks. In addition, since it had been many years since my last pup I needed some "hands on" help to socialize and train Sadie. Hillary, Hannah, Travis and Kayla did an amazing job. We are forever grateful! Thank You! read more

You would think that someone with so much experience like Hillary would know that border collie breed is more energetic then most dogs. However, when I brought my 10 week old puppy to train with her for 4 weeks she did not mention anything that she would not be able to do. Only three days into this training, Hillary called me and said that she is not sure if she can train my puppy because she is "attacking" other dogs. She said she'll give it another week but she is just too aggressive. Well, it's a puppy and that is why I payed for training so that she learns how to behave while she is still a baby. Would you prefer me to bring you a trained puppy?! If I brought an adult, vicious dog and you said you cannot train him, I would understand that. But this is a border collie puppy, which was much smaller and younger then any other puppy you had in the group. I found this very unprofessional, you gave up after only three days of having my puppy. If you are considering to bring your dog to train with Hillary, please make sure your dog is actually trained. read more

Hillary's Hound House - My vicious puppy - Pet Training Near Me - San Rafael, California

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We had our Golden Retriever puppy start with Hillary from week 8 and its been an incredibly helpful experience for all of us! He's a well behaved pup (for a rambunctious 6 month old) who has had extensive socializing with dogs, outdoor space and I know he's well taken care of all day. We work long hours and wouldn't be able to have a puppy without this help. He's always excited when Annie and Nathan pick him up so I know he's happy and I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving him without knowing he's well taken care of and loved. Hillary has also spent time with the family so that we understand what she's teachimg him. Puppies are very hard work, but our experience has been easier with the help of Hillary and her team. read more

After a friend looking for puppy training asked if I had any experience with Hillary, I logged onto Yelp to see if there were any other negative reviews since I posted mine several years ago and saw that Hillary had responded. To clarify: 1. I trained with you for 1 month before leaving my puppy with you. You did use a prong collar (I still own it) and you did use a shock collar using the shock, not the vibration. You left the shock collar with me for a week to use in between sessions to try to break her of jumping on the counters. You encouraged me to increase the shock if it was having no impact. You may have changed your approach since then, but we both know what tools you used with my dog. I find it insulting that you lied in your response. 2. While I appreciated you taking her to the vet to try to get some medication to calm her when I was away, I did not appreciate how difficult it was to get the pills back from you once I returned. It took multiple phone and text requests. I also did not appreciate you telling the vet staff that my dog was aggressive. It was written into her file and for the next 1+ year every time I brought her in they asked if we needed to muzzle her because she was an "aggressive" dog. We don't. 3. You did not care for my dog for 2 weeks. I had my dog walker retrieve her after 7 days when you told me you refused to keep her over night, even though I had paid you for 2 full weeks. Contrary to what you wrote in your last paragraph, her behavior and training were not improved at all when I returned. If anything, her anxiety and separation issues were worse. People with energetic, high spirited dogs need to find a different trainer who has the skill and patience to deal with these types of dogs. The negative reviews here all have a similar story. I was not surprised to read your former employees review saying that you call young puppies names as you told me my dog was "an a*hole who didn't care about me or anyone else enough to have separation anxiety." You rescinded this comment the next day saying, "She definitely has separation anxiety." Maybe you said that in a moment of sheer frustration, but it was unprofessional and was the beginning of me realizing I had made a grave mistake leaving her in your care. read more

Hillary has been taking care of my dog since the beginning. I was not a fan of the puppy stage.(Potty training, early wake up's) She did all the puppy training. He is 4 1/2 now and I still use her for the dog walking and boarding. My dog is a bit nervous around most people he doesn't know. He absolutely LOVES Hillary and Nathan. I know he is happy, safe and in good hands here! read more

Less than impressed with this business. Train all dogs together no matter what size you dog is. Kicked my dog out because he bumped into smaller dogs. All week we were told how great our dog was doing, then one event and he's not allowed back. That's some stellar training. I would choose another business for dog training read more

We have been a client of Hillary's for over five years. She and her team are reliable and great with our Australian Shepherd . Our 8 year old loves his hikes and comes home exhausted and playful. He loved boarding with her and is always happy to see Hillary and spins for her. I've seen excellent response from her training with recall and good puppy behavior. I highly recommend Hillary and her team to all pet owners read more

Hillary's Hound House - Pet Training Near Me - San Rafael, California

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I signed up our 5 year old mixed breed Kona (and myself) for Hillary's 'Recall with Distraction' in January. We just finished the training today, and I highly recommend Hillary and her programs. She was very patient with learning styles and speed of both the dogs and owners in our little group of four dogs. I learned a ton about how training works and how much the dogs love the work. I now look forward to walks with Kona, as I understand now what I need to do to get Kona's attention and obedience under different condtions--other dogs, people, etc. Thank you, Hillary! read more

Hillary and her staff are wonderful! What a huge difference it made for my new puppy. I was afraid to leave him there the first day but it was fine from the start. They know puppies (and dogs)! During these weeks, he settled, learned how to listen, learned to COME (and fast), SIT, how to walk on leash, get along well with others and many other things. He is happier and we are happier. Hillary gave us all great start and lots of tips for handling things at home and with other animals. I give the highest recommendation! read more

Hillary, in your entire comment back to my review you don't deny telling me that your facility isn't big enough for Baylor. You own a dog boarding business! you should accommodate every size dog. You don't tell a customer that ! Especially after they paid you 1,000 for your services!. I asked several times ( ask your employees for you to call me back and let me know about meeting on a weekend. Never got a response. Yes Baylor is a puppy and he is a high energy dog , but guess what that's why I was seeking someone to take care of him during the day and work with him while my husband and I work. I never asked you in the beginning to train him on an e-collar only until the very end when you pretty much kicked him out! I asked you if it was a good idea for an e-collar and you said no, but then they very next day you came up to me while I was picking him up and said " I think he's ready for an e-collar" and that you don't train on e-collar. That you will find someone that does! Ps. you never sent me an email stating that stuff you said. up to almost the prior day to last you didn't even have my email address! I asked you if you had it to send me a video and then you saw in your computer that you didn't have it! I also asked you if you can at least refund me half of my money paid you said no that we can come out last lesson that we still had one more left!. Baylor didn't learn anything. We always have worked with him at home. He didn't learn anything new. read more

Hillary and her team are amazing trainers and they love all of the puppies in their care. Our puppy started at nine weeks old and she learned recall like a pro, basic commands and had a lot of socialization with other puppies. I'm so grateful for Hillary's Hound House for giving our puppy such a great start in life! read more

Hillary first trained our Bernese Mountain Dog 7 years ago and we dubbed her the "Dog Whisperer", it was truly astounding to watch how my dog behaved with her and the tips and tools that she taught us were invaluable. We then have had her company dog walking our dog ever since which has been a true blessing as she has been so well taken cared of and loved. Can't recommend them highly enough. read more

Hillary and Kacey and the rest of the team are amazing. We have a new french bulldog and the difference in him is incredible! So well mannered, instantly potty trained and he loves going there. Great investment, and incredible experience! read more

Our Labradoodle puppy, Rose, has been a student at Hillary's Hound House, as has her mothers, since Rose was 8 weeks old. She is now 16 weeks old and has flourished into puppyhood under the wise and skilled guidance of Hillary and her staff. We have taken advantage of several of the services including pet training, pet grooming and pet sitting. We are all delighted with the services and the outcomes. read more

Hillary went to great lengths to not only help me choose my pet, she and her staff worked with my 10 week old Golden Doodle puppy,Ella in the Hound House Jump Start Program. The trainers are graduates of one of the most accredited Canine Training programs in the US. After 2 weeks, my highly intelligent, highly curious Goldendoodle puppy had mastered many of the most important behaviors needed to socialize and train her to be the perfect addition to our family. Hillary and her team use positive reinforcement and the word "NO" was never spoken to any dog... or human. The Hound House Client services are exceptional and I highly recommend her training and day care programs. I chose Hillary because my breeder, Carina Guilroy of God's Glory Farm has worked with Hillary since.... forever and HIllary also trained my sister's dog, Bailey. Bailey is the most well behaved dog that I have ever encountered. To meet Bailey is to love Bailey. I can recommend, without reservation, Hillary's Hound House to help you and your dog enjoy the most of your time together. read more

This will be my only negative review in all my history of writing a Yelp review. And hopefully my last. I just can't say anything and not warn people. I brought my sweet, crazy golden doodle puppy to Hilary! It has been a nightmare. Having a new puppy can already be stressful and a lot of work. I went to Hilary for some training and boy do I regret it. She was always telling me "your dog is too wild" , "she can't be barking at other dogs" "she has crazy energy". I thought to myself, "well yeah she's a puppy and that's why I'm bringing her to YOU, for Training?!?! So that was the first red flag. The second red flag is when I went on vacation and the first night I was away, I was told my puppy is wild and won't sleep. Hilary wanted me to contact my vet to get sedatives for my puppy. Because she couldn't handle her. It was stressful because I was on vacation and couldn't do much to help. I contacted my vet. And they said your puppy is too young. Any sedative could possibly delay my puppy's brain development. So I did not allow Hilary to give my dog any medication! Come to find out, Hilary told me that my puppy wasn't put in her crate (she is crate trained and had always slept in her crate) instead put in a room in a strangers( to my puppy) home. Hmmm no wonder why my puppy was up all night?! Why would any trainer do that?!? Why would she not put her in her crate?!?When I went to get my dog after my vacation, she seemed sedated. Few days after that my dog was asked not to return. Which I was more then fine with. Hilary still had my $ I had paid for trainings. Trying to track Hilary down to do the trainings was quite tough. She would get confused and not show up at times. Then once we finally did meet up, Hilary had her own agenda. All I wanted to work we're basic commands. Hilary was obsessed with working on things that were not issues..AT ALL! Waste of time and money!! I then took my puppy to camp k-9. Wow. What a difference! I was scared at first thinking something was wrong with my dog and that she would get kicked out. But when I went to pick her up. I heard nothing but positive comments. 6 months later still nothing negative. She's a normal happy dog! Hilary seems like a nice person but if your dog or puppy needs training... I would look else where. Hilary only wants dogs that are easy and do not need a lot of training. Heaven forbid a puppy be a puppy! Hilary will stress you out and make you believe you have a bad or defective dog! Don't waste your money or time! Again... I only wrote this review because of my concerns of Hilary giving puppies and dogs sedatives because she can't seem to train/handle them?!? That scares me and I can't believe such a great trainer would ever recommend this at all!!! BEWARE! Not a place to take puppies or dogs that need actual training!! read more

Major foot surgery + 10 month-old puppy = dilemma. How can this little Pom get the exercise and socialization she needs when mama can't even walk? The answer - Hillary's Hound House, where little feisty fur ball spent 5 days a week for my months of recovery. A beautiful, well-kept environment for dogs to play but - it gets better. Most days, the doggies are piled into a van or two and driven out to a ranch in Novato, where they get to run in fresh air (and training too, if that's your need). A quality place, full of positive and knowledgeable employees, run by an owner who is a class act. Whatever your dog needs, there isn't a better place. read more

Hillary and her team have done a wonderful job with our new Labradoodle puppy. The atmosphere is always happy and full of energy. He loves going and eagerly greets them. She has taught him so much about good puppy behavior, appropriate response to commands and paying attention. A tremendous place for dogs to learn, socialize, play and be stimulated. read more

Our pups just finished recall training with Hillary and team. What a great experience for us and our pups! Hillary's bond with the pups is amazing and so loving. We highly recommend Hillary for getting your new pup used to the world as well as for re-training some bad habits of us humans and our furry kids who have been around awhile. read more

We signed our rescue Lab puppy up for "puppy playtime" to socialize and "Jumpstart Puppy" to work on basic behavior, approx 6 months ago. Our little girl Gracie, has learned so much and just loves to go. When we pull up in the parking lot she can barely contain herself she is so excited. I love the approach Hillary and her team take with the dogs. You can tell they not only are there to train and work with you and your dogs, but really do care for the dogs and all their different personalities. With in the first week or so Gracie was sitting, laying down and coming on demand. They also, helped with A LOT with potty training! We just completed the recall with distraction class. We are still a work in progress but wouldn't have come as far or seen the potential in Gracie, if it hadn't been for Hillary and her staff. They have brought the best out of our girl, Gracie and we will continue working in the programs that Hillary offers. read more

Hillary is amazing with the dogs and they really love her too. My dogs have learned so much over time from her and I think this place is really the culmination of her talents and love. read more

I signed my puppy "Earnest" up for Hillary's "Jumpstart Puppy" program and it was absolutely the best thing I could've done, both for Earnest and for me. Hillary and her team worked with Earnest and taught him all of the basic good dog behaviors we all hope to see, and best of all, Earnest learned to ring a bell at the door to tell me he had to go potty. Believe me, it doesn't get any better than this!!! Also, Hillary worked with me, coaching me on how to give Earnest clear instructions and reward him for his efforts. After the program, I continue to bring Earnest to the Hound House for socialization, and to enjoy the daily romps at Hillary's lovely ranch in Novato. Earnest always comes home quite happy and ready for a quiet evening. Hillary has helped us to transition a new member of the family into our routines, and a loving relationship with Earnest is a great reward for everyone's efforts. We next plan to attend Grad School...can't wait! read more

Hillary and her crew at the Hound House are the best. My dog Bailey, full size doodle, is a wonderful part of our family. She started in the Jump Start Your Puppy program with Hillary and then graduated to walks and agility programs. Bailey is the most well behaved dog that I know - and we owe it all to Hillary for training her and training us! We get a new pup this week, and our first stop is the Hound House - here we go again! read more