We were having a behavior problem with our older dog Pepper. He is 11 and this was a new problem. He has always been the sweetest, best behaved dog. But in the past several months he began odd behavior. He began growling, particularly in the evenings, often at nothing. Just walking around. Sometimes, if he heard a noise upstairs. If our other dog came to the stairs, he would growl. If my son or daughter came down the stairs, he would get up on his hind legs and put his feet on them, bare his teeth and growl. And of course, like many small dogs, the barking. In excitement when people came over, and in response to every sound. We met with Vivianne and she was amazing! She taught us some games to play with Pepper to build his confidence. She also taught us many different techniques to manage his behaviors. Over time the growling and the aggression have stopped. We have learned his triggers, and how to avoid them, and how to redirect him. Friends and family are impressed with how quiet he is when they come over to visit! Thank you Karma and Vivianne for helping us to help Pepper go back to his old happy self! read more

Karma Dog Training - Pet Training Near Me

Viviane Chen a trainer from Karma Dogs in Palo Alto was such a big help in training our 8 month old Golden Retriever, Rover. He is 10 months old now and we can successfully loose leash walk him. She gave us a lot of help and instructions to help us train him to stop biting, chewing, counter surfing....He has a ways to go but we are hopeful. Viviane also gave us a lot of good ideas for toys that he really enjoys. Thank you, Viviane, you truly have a love of dogs and your job. read more

Viviane has been such a gift for us and our dog Basel. We came in with a long list--impulsivity, chewing, guarding, approaching other dogs--and she's handled it all with so much competence and care. We trust her advice completely, and it's made such a difference for us and for Basel. We had worked with three other trainers before finding Vivian, and none came close. We won't go anywhere else now--she's truly the best! read more

Karma Dog Training - Pet Training Near Me

We've been wanting our dogs to go through behavior modification training, but the timing was never right. Well, when we moved to Milpitas, we were connected with Vivian and she said moving is the perfect opportunity to train. Background on "the boys": we adopted Bear and Buddy in 2018 when they were both six. They are bonded brothers and I think the pack mentality grew stronger in 2020 with my husband and I being home. Anyway, our issue was how reactive the boys were on leash towards other dogs. They were fine in day care and boarding, but on leash they were embarrassing. We weren't sure how well they would train at nine years old, but they did fairly well. Vivian showed us how to get their attention with small treats, praise good behavior often, and adjust our behavior. Since I'm the one who is home all day, the bulk of the training is on me. I admit I am not consistent, but we are working on their behavior (and mine). They still bark when someone knocks on our apartment door, but it's a bit easier to get them quiet. If they hear something in the hallway and start to bark, I click my tongue, call them, and reward them with a small treat (when I don't have to repeatedly call them). Their on leash behavior is hit or miss, but when prepared with treats and being proactive in getting their attention, it works well. Sometimes they're just themselves. Overall, I think we made great progress with just three lessons. The boys don't whine as often when my husband leaves for work or when we go out for dinner and leave them home. Adjustments still need to be made with my behavior modification, though. read more

Karma Dog Training - Bear & Buddy - 9 y.o. coton de tulear - Pet Training Near Me

Viviane at Karma Dog Training helped change our lives! Our rescue dog is unique for a variety of reasons: -She's big: 91 lbs. -Poor breeding: backyard breeder who bred her with "relatives" -She lost her three other rescue Saint brothers and sisters over -the last few years with the last one dying last June - making her an "only dog" for the first time in 6+ years -She'd become less socialized because of the pandemic We called a local "dog trainer" before we called Karma and he would not get within 15 feet of her. HE WAS TERRIFIED. He shouldn't be training dogs - or trying to. We couldn't quit on our dog so I did some research and found Karma Dog Training San Mateo and thank goodness they quickly returned the call and scheduled a visit with Viviane. VIVIANE IS SO GOOD I THINK SHE IS OTHERWORLDLY. She came in with quiet confidence to our barking, fearful 91 lbs. of dog and before long, she was hand feeding our girl treats. My husband and I are not ignorant people but we quickly saw some of our mistakes. We listened and acted on Viviane's instructions. Viviane has a sixth sense that makes her just what your animal needs. She is savvy so we discussed everything including our dog's nutrition, her exercise habits, our habits, etc. and together we built a plan - a 5-visit package. It went so well, we never needed the last session. We learned what motivated our dog, what triggered her and then practiced daily. When Viviane met our dog, she would not people get near her. In 30 days, Joy was able to take a 5+ hour flight to Hawaii to our new home. NONE of this could have happened without Karma Dog Training San Mateo. If you want kind, aggression-free, SMART training, call them. If you are lucky and get Viviane, jump on it. We are forever grateful to Viviane & Karma. Aloha! read more

Karma Dog Training - Pet Training Near Me

I am so glad I happened to find Viviane Chen through Karma Dog Training in San Mateo. I have a little Shiba Inu female puppy who is 1 year old, and unlike most Shibas she is friendly like a golden retriever, but also high energy. She used to be very quiet when I took her to eat outdoors at restaurants, but I made the mistake of taking her on a trip to Mexico with friends, where she was fed grilled chicken at restaurants for daily meals. After this, she would bark incessantly or try to jump up on the table any time I took her to a restaurant. She would also tug on the leash on walks and pick up all sorts of chicken bones or other things. Thankfully, I found Karma Dog training through a simple google maps search. Viviane was amazing and has a wonderful awareness of the psychology of dogs and how to get them to choose the more polite behaviors themselves. She exceeded my expectations in terms of what my pup was able to accomplish in just 3 sessions at my home (with the last one at a favorite restaurant). After every session, Viviane sent an extremely detailed summary of what we covered, which was so useful to keep us on course because it is easy to forget all the exercises. She also sent very helpful suggestions in terms of proven high value treats, which really made a big difference in keeping my dog's attention during my daily training. Thanks to Viviane, my pup is now a polite walker and can eat out at restaurants again! Overall it has also been a very bonding experience for us. I could not recommend Viviane and Karma Dog training more. read more

Karma Dog Training - Pet Training Near Me

Viviane worked absolute wonders with my two dogs. We hired her because we rescued a 6 month old black German Shepard puppy who had not been socialized at all and was not getting along with my other dog. After just 2 sessions my dogs are now getting along and napping together read more

Karma Dog Training - Pet Training Near Me

Viviane was an incredible help in getting my good, but slightly feisty pup into great dog shape. I would (and have) recommended her to all my friends :) read more

Karma Dog Training - A well trained pup! - Pet Training Near Me

I have used Karma both previously in Texas and now in the bay area. I have a leash reactive Labrador and was paired with Viviane. Viviane was so excellent and within three sessions my dog was more calm, more responsive, and happier in high stress situations. Viviane did a great job training me as well to better communicate with my dog. She was great, she met me first at my home in San Francisco, and then we met in the middle in San Mateo. Karma and Viviane provide after action reports and items to practice in between sessions. HIGHLY RECOMMEND! read more

I worked with Viviane and she was wonderful! Zeus had been struggling with living in an apartment around lots of people and was very leash reactive. He is nine years old so I wasn't sure how much progress we would make. In just three sessions we were able to get him to walk on a leash without reacting to dogs, people, or children! We'd seen several trainers before but Viviane was the first to really understand Zeus and she was able to teach us how to read Zeus' body language as well. I feel like I understand him better and he's much more comfortable now :) read more

Our shelter girl has major fear aggression issues with other dogs that kept getting worse and worse to the point she was a safety hazard. Vivian helped us understand where the underlying fear came from, and what the telltale early signs of aggression are so we can divert her attention and avoid incidents before they happen. Vivian recognized that she had been trained in her former life, and built upon the commands that she already knew. Our girl is probably never going to love other dogs, whatever the trauma was is deep, but Vivian taught us strategies and routines that help to reduce stress (for all of us) and build positive exposure over time. We've already seen some change. read more

Karma Dog Training - Pet Training Near Me

I joined Karma Dog as a trainer and behaviorist in the summer of 2021, and was so lucky to be connected with Viviane as a mentor. Since my joining, I have accompanied Viviane on many of her cases, during which I experienced first hand her incredible expertise, intuition, and knowledge regarding dog psychology and behavior modification. Her ability to communicate with and read the dogs she works with is nothing short of impressive, but potentially more importantly, she is talented in her communication of these readings to her clients. Dog ownership is a beautiful thing, but when problems arise it is often due to a disconnect between what the dog is signaling to the world and to their owner, and the owners ability to read these signals and respond appropriately - this is where Viviane comes in. She is empathetic but firm in her work, functioning as an advocate for the dogs she works with in order to improve their relationships with their owners (and vice versa!). I would highly recommend Viviane to anyone in the Bay Area who may be struggling with unwanted behaviors in their dogs and is looking for a positive and effective approach to training. It is not a mystery to me why she is so highly regarded within our company - Thank you for everything you do Viviane! read more

Karma Dog Training - Pet Training Near Me

Viviane from Karma has been and continues to be amazing. She taught as a family with young children how to understand our puppy's behavior and how to respond. As soon as our puppy knew Viviane was coming she would get excited but somehow like magic Viviane could get her to do things we did not know she could do. Viviane listened to the goals we had for training. She summarized our sessions in an email and told us what to work on. She even drove me to have my puppy play with another dog because I don't drive. She has given us all sorts of resources. She has made us and our puppy such a happy puppy family. I have recommended her to all my friends. read more

I adopted a year old rott/sheppherd mix that was full of energy and very strong. He was leash reactive with other dogs and pulled to meet every dog. He goes bananas over squirrels. He would be over excited, guarding and barking when guests arrived. He is and was a good boy in so many ways but his strength and determination required training. I preferred to use a positive reinforcement model if it was possible. I had doubts! I've worked with Viviane from Karma Dog Training and I feel like she taught me so much. She is a like a dog translator! I came to understand and read my dog so much better. Thus, I learned how to communicate more effectively with him and manage his behavior. The more time and consistency I provide, the better he does. When he regresses, I know it's my lack of focus/time on training. Viviane has been available and flexible since the start. My dog loves and respects her. read more

Karma dog training knows their stuff. I learned so much in just 1 and a half hours. I had no idea. They explained to me why I was having the snipping issue I was having. They also accepted my followup questions. I would recommend them to anyone having dog issues. read more

This company is absolutely wonderful. From the very beginning on-line contact and the quick reply by no less than the owner himself within a few minutes after my request. The reason I mention this is I had left a dozen messages with their competitors and a week later only heard from one after filling out all the information and sending it in to their addresses. A few minutes of conversation and I knew I had the right company. Sure enough he arranged for one of his associates to call us (same day) and we scheduled a visit and never looked back. The professional trainer he sent us was a patient, kind lover of animals and I think a dog whisperer. Our German Shepard puppy loved her at first sight. The trainer's name is Vivianne Chen. You should be so lucky to meet her and even more fortunate if you engage her talent. I own a large company dealing with the public for over 60 years. I know people if I know anything after all these years. If you want to talk to me I will authorize Yelp giving you my contact information. I am so grateful that companies like Karma Dog Training exist and they have associates like Vivianne Chen to represent their philosophy. I wanted to reciprocate my gratitude by writing this review on their behalf. I will continue utilizing their services by recommending to my fairly large circle of contacts. Thank you, Don V. read more

Karma Dog Training - Pet Training Near Me

We booked 3 personal sessions with Viviane Chen and they helped so much! We got our dog Bowie at 9 months old from an online posting. He is a Frenchton (French bulldog and Boston Terrier) so we weren't worried about behavioral issues. We soon learned that he was not exposed to many dog, people or environments before we got him so walking on the leash was a huge challenge (major stalling and staring at other dogs), along with greeting strangers (jumping/shying away for pets) and even playing with other dogs (dominant & aggressive). After an incident at the dog park, we found Karma Training and were matched with Viviane. On our first session she showed us bonding with your dog is the base of everything, and even though we thought we were bonded, she helped us understand his body language was anxious and on guard. She was kind, firm, honest, knowledgable, adaptable, and generous. By our third session we went back to the dog park where the incident occurred and it was a success! She gave us confidence to take him back and very helpful tips on how to read his body language. We can walk around the block in a reasonable amount of time with no stalling, and he's learned some cute tricks like down and roll over. Around strangers he has improved but its hard during a pandemic of course. Bowie is not perfect and we still do the work we learned with Viviane everyday, but as owners we have gained confidence and Bowie has too! We've made great strides in bonding and look forward even more success! We highly recommend Viviane, and will work with her on any further issues we encounter!! (p.s. she was very safe and took all precautions necessary such as mask wearing and social distancing) read more

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