I recently started training sessions for my 4 year old rescue dog Blue. She is a highly eneregetic,…read morepeople friendly dog; a pit bull hound mix. The biggest challenges were that she does not get along with other dogs and needed to be socialized and trained on basic commands. Several of my neighbors recommended Hope Lock and I am so happy that we are in training there. We first completed private lessons with Wayne. Within a matter of minutes, he helped transform Blue's behavior, and my ability to handle her more effectively. Not only did he help socialize her with other dogs, he taught us some basic commands and obedience, while being very supportive and complimentary of our progress. We then started Basic Training wth Missy a few weeks ago, along with 11 other dogs and handlers. I am so pleased with how well Blue is doing, and so thankful we had the private lessons first. Missy is also a fantastic trainer, I was amazed at how quickly she got the group in order, 12 dogs of all shapes and sizes, and not all well behaved yet. She is patient but firm and has great results. I am so thankful for Wayne and Missy and her Team and the wonderful support at Hope Lock. These sessions helped further my bond with Blue, and have taught me so much about how to handle various situations. I am looking forward to continuing our training through intermediate and advanced levels. I highly recommend Hope Lock!! They really care about their clients and dogs and make such a meaningful difference in our lives with our pets!

I am getting ready to register for the intermediate obedience course and wanted to take a moment to…read morewrite a review about my experience with the basic training class. We rescued our Catahoula Girl, Charlie, 2 years ago. She is very sweet natured but she was becoming more and more reactive to people and dogs. She weighs 76 pounds and is very strong. I had to get a handle on this powerhouse or one of us was going to get seriously hurt! She was starting to lunge at rabbits, men in hats, certain dogs, delivery trucks and something had to be done to protect both our safety! We had done a treat/reward based program and it only worked during class. Out in my neighborhood, where the rubber meets the road (literally), Charlie was completely uninterested and unmotivated by treats. She was much more motivated by her nose and her instincts! I was working hard but she was becoming more and more unmanageable. The first night of class, my instructor asked me if I wanted to try a pronged collar. This sounded so harsh and maybe even dangerous, so I said that I would see how it goes. Well, after 15 minutes of struggling with Charlie's willful behavior, I was willing to give that bad boy a try! All I can say is GAME CHANGER! They fitted my hooligan for a pronged collar and taught me how to use it correctly, so that it imitates the correction a pup feels from its mother. She grabs her youngster with her teeth and applies pressure to the neck and then releases her grip. Suddenly, Charlie was paying attention to me and she has been improving her focus and self-control, ever since. We are still working on socialization, but the experience has been an extremely positive one for us. I will give you one caveat about the instructors at Hope Lock. You'd better be prepared to put in the work and that includes weekly homework. These classes are not for slackers!!!

Kristi was great. She takes the time to explain how to address certain situations. The training…read morearea is heated, air conditioned and clean. I highly recommend her services. She has put our Golden Retriever "Friday" on a path to another level of obedience.

After much research we are so thankful that we found Kristi....We brought our 18 month old rescue…read moreHusky mix "Nellie" who was showing some aggressive behaviors and having difficulty with commands . Kristi was fantastic with her, and us. As first time pet parents, we had a lot of questions and she answered them all, whether in person or through text message. She explained everything to us and when we left every session we had goals based on Nellie's training. Nellie loved her training sessions and has learned so much. She now walks in heel, sits and stays in place, comes when called, and drops the ball among many other skills. Kristi truly was professional, compassionate and committed to helping us help Nellie be her best self.

Shiloh and I love Ali! She is extremely knowledgeable and offers a wide variety of classes to suit…read moreevery dog and owner. With her knowledge and support, I've become a more confident and competent dog owner.

My girl Inis and I can't say enough about Great Companions, where learned to be a team! We put the…read moreskills we learned to the test at a recent doggie fun event. While other folks struggled to get their pups to sit and pose at a photo op, Inis sat and stayed like a pro! Thanks, Ali, and Inis says, "Awoo!"

Kailly was a total pro when handling our Siberian husky Vincent. She got him to do things we never…read morethought possible and he is still doing them. We really looked forward to her weekly visits and she still reaches out to see how we are doing. We highly recommend her if you need assistance with your dog.

Our world would not be the same without Kailly. For starters she is the reason we discovered our…read morecattle dog is deaf. How's that for a game changer! Kailly's professionalism, knowledge, dedication, heart and patience are a rare combination. Let's not forget Kailly's effortless skill which is most assuredly part of her DNA. We have one more session left in our second round of lessons, and both humans and pups will miss her immensely. But we will forever carry her with us every time we mark the boys for being "good boys" or use a command we'd long ago adopted as mere habit.

They treated our senior dog with kindness and gentleness. Great people! Strongly recommend them…read morefor anyone's pet

I feel they did not give my puppy a chance at their daycare. He's a friendly, loving dog, but I…read moreguess just wasn't getting cues from other dogs when they didn't want to play. He just wanted to keep playing. Not aggressive at all, as they said not a mean bone on his body, but yet was not welcomed back unless some formal training. And mind you I was only sending hm one day a week for some Socialization.

Sophie loves Passion 4 Paws. She has dog friends at school and people friends too. The trainers…read morehave been amazing with her. when we first came to class they asked what we wanted to accomplish. we told them we wanted a house pet with nice manners. Mission accomplished

I hired Leslie because my dog was convinced he was the CEO of the household and I was just an…read moreunpaid intern. Walks were a disaster, commands were "suggestions," and treats were treated with open contempt. Leslie took one look at the situation, calmly assessed the chaos, and immediately started fixing both of us. No weird dominance stuff, no guilt--just clear, smart training that somehow made my dog go, "Oh... we're doing structure now?" The real magic is that Leslie makes the whole process fun without turning it into a circus. She explains things in a way that actually sticks, gives realistic steps, and somehow turns "my dog is a menace" into "wow, we're kind of a team now." If your dog is sweet but spicy, stubborn but lovable, or just fully unhinged--book Leslie. Your dog will behave better, and you'll feel like a competent adult again.

Pepper absolutely loves Leslie and her team, and that says everything. They are always reliable,…read moreprofessional, and truly care about the dogs they work with. I never have to worry because I know Pepper is being well taken care of, loved, and getting the attention she needs. It's such a relief to have a team you can fully trust. I can't recommend them enough!

Andrea and John were great to work with, and we very much benefited from her knowledge and guidance…read moreas she trained our golden retriever puppy Rosie. Rosie was 2-ish months at the time of the training and we saw real results every single session. The best part is that they are such kind people and easy to communicate with. I was not afraid to ask many questions and get real time answers from Andrea as we're traversing the first time raising a puppy. I would highly recommend Andrea and John's services to anyone who is looking to train their dog and actually continue to see results even months after their session is completed!

Andrea truly is a dog whisperer. My dog was unruly and didn't have good obedience. She trained me…read moreand the dog and I now have an outstanding dog ALL BECAUSE OF HER! Thank you so much Andrea- you really are the best.