"My 5 yr old dog, Tully, had attacked 2 dogs and was going to be put down. I heard about a trainer, Matt Covey from Suburban K-9, from West Suburban Humane Society that used him for all of the dogs with issues. I saw what Matt did for the shelter dogs so I knew Tully had a chance!!! Tully completed a 2 week doggie "boot camp" for aggression. To say Matt was a miracle worker, is an understatement!!! My dog is a totally different dog. Every time we are at Bark Avenue Daycamp for classes, Tully is on the look out for Matt. He absolutely LOVES this man. The staff was so friendly and never minded all of my calls to check on Tully, and there were many. Matt was awesome. He is so calm when working with the dogs, never raises his voice; you can tell he absolutely LOVES his job and the dogs. What a shock it was to see Tully intermingling with 20 other dogs and not one problem. Matt spent an hour and forty five minutes with my son and I -"training" us to keep up with Tully's training. Not to mention, that we had another follow up in a week to make sure that we have no other problems and answer any questions we might have. Matt and the staff were always available by phone to answer any questions we had. Even though I live over an hour away, it was worth it knowing my dog would be treated lovingly by all that work there. I had no reservations about leaving my dog in Bark Avenue's care. Not to mention, that Tully has learned his manners and is a pleasant dog to live with. Tully and I did 2 sessions of agility on Mondays and then for 2 years, we drove an hour each way to go to the Weds distraction class that Matt offered. That is the best class ever!! Then in 2010, we got a new addition to our family....a newfoundland puppy. I went to puppy classes with Bristol, obedience classes and now we do distraction classes. Bristol is a pistol, to put it mildly, and Matt has been there for us all the way. When I turn on my phone, I think it's automatically set for Matt!! Tully, Bristol and I have "been with Matt" for almost 3 years now and I see no end to this relationship!!!! Every week I learn something new as do the dogs. Thank you Matt and staff!!!!" read more

Best Training Service Ever! Lenny is as good as it gets! I wanted to let everyone know how happy we are with our dog and his new ability to allow people in the house without jumping on them or peeing on them! Lenny is an amazing trainer and we are grateful for his determination and hard work. Not only are we impressed but our friends and family think Lenny is a miracle worker! Duke had his puppy boot camp with Lenny when we first adopted him from Chicago Animal Control 3 years ago as a sweet, strong but very wild Pit Bull. We were intimidated but Lenny took Duke without blinking an eye and returned Duke calm,with no food aggression,and manners galore! Over the last several years we have successfully stuck to what Lenny taught us and have been very happy with our dog's behavior. We recently went out of town and thought it a great opportunity to have a refresher for Duke and work on little things like door greetings and excitement of meeting other dogs. Duke loves everyone but being that he is a big strong pit bull he intimidates most people and dogs upon first glance. Last month Lenny took Duke for a week to work on door and outside greetings. Lenny sent us updates, pictures and videos during the week to let us know Dukes progress. When Duke came home Lenny gave us OUR boot camp and patiently taught us how to get the results we want. He is a natural dog whisperer! We feel very supported by our trainer Lenny. We know we can always call Suburban K9 for advice or help and they respond within hours! Awesome support for us dog rescue nuts who like to take on the dogs nobody else wants! read more

We had an amazing experience with Suburban K9, specifically our trainer Holly. Our pup suffered from fairly serious leash aggression that made our daily walks very stressful. In addition, she was only ever motivated to listen to us if we had treats in our hands, but mostly ignored our commands otherwise. We were moving to a new neighborhood/building with tons of dogs and were really nervous we were going to end up getting kicked out of the building with how aggressive our dog would get around other pups. Initially I wanted to do the board & train with them, but because of her aggression, they were not comfortable with that. I was skeptical that we'd be able to make much progress just doing weekly sessions (mainly due to my own inconsistency with keeping up with training) but figured I'd give it a shot. Holly was amazing. Within one session we saw some huge improvement, and by the time we finished a few more our pup was able to go on walks without any trouble at all. In the past, a dog anywhere within 50ft of us would cause our dog to bark and lunge like a maniac, and now we can easily pass other dogs right on the sidewalk without any issues. She also will obey our commands without treats now, which is another huge improvement. We still aren't comfortable letting our dog off leash at the dog park to play with others, but Holly has also helped us come up with training strategies to slowly and safely tackle that someday as well. The price wasn't cheap, but for us it was completely worth it. read more

We got Oscar, a Great Pyrenees as a service dog for a son Mathew. Unfortunately he was not trained. In addition a lot of things appeared to spook him. He also was a very disengaged dog that preferred to sit in 1 spot by himself. We were at a point of giving up on him. We then decided to give it one more shot and chose the 2 week board and training package in Dec. Our goal was to have a dog which followed basic commands and hopefully might be able to go off leash. Lenny picked him up just prior to Christmas. During the 2 week period he provided us with frequent updates on Oscar,s progress. It was amazing to see a dog that did not follow any commands follow them. Lenny then dropped him back and provided us follow through tips. Even though the training program called for a couple of follow up visits, Lenny has come back almost every week to continue to work on Oscar's training. He has worked with everyone in our family to teach us how to manage Oscar. From a dog that could not be trusted to be offleash, Oscar is now offleash and follows basic commands. Besides more importantly he is a very happy dog that now wants to spend time with the family and walks up to us frequently wagging his tail. This is a huge change from a dog that was totally disengaged and fearful Besides the follow up visits, Lenny has been available via text and phone. I would strongly recommend K9 and Lenny to anyone considering training their dog. Thank you K9 suburban for making Oscar a happy dog. read more

Working with MJ and Suburban K9 on training our 2 year old dog has been a great experience. Our dog had gone through basic obedience with another trainer but learned to only listen to us if we were offering him a treat. To make things worse he displayed resource aggression towards items like his food or even socks, not giving them up until he was well rewarded in return for dropping it. We found Suburban K9 online, and while hesitant gave the two week board and train a shot. From the first visit with MJ to review our dog's issues, you could tell he was passionate about training dogs and helping them be the best dog they can be. During the 2 weeks our dog was away we got regular updates and pictures, helping to put us at ease. When he brought our dog back the transformation was night and day. MJ was able to not only teach him basic obedience but also to control the resource aggression. The follow up visits and ability to contact MJ with questions after we got our dog back were especially helpful. He has been able to guide us through any issues that have come up and we have seen a lot of progress in the 4 weeks since we got him back from his boarding. We are so glad we found Suburban K9 and look forward to continuing to work with our dog, knowing they are there to help. read more

These guys are the best! I was going to give my dog to a shelter due to his aggression. Everyone told me to put him to sleep but I just could not do it. One of the shelters I called told me to call Matt and have him evaluate my dog. Matt told me that he wanted to see my dog and I in our home where the issues usually occur. When he walked in the door I was terrified that George was going to attack him but Matt walked in and within ten seconds told me that my dog was scared, not aggressive. He took him for a ten minute walk by himself and by the end they were best buddies. Matt was the first person that was able to touch George without a muzzle on in almost a year. By the time he left George had met two of my neighbors and I now have the confidence to start taking him for walks to meet new people. Needless to say George will not be going to a shelter, he is staying right here with me where he belongs. read more

I recently wanted to adopt a 4.5 yr. old dog that had fear of leaving her home. The owner informed me that the dog would not leave the yard, go for walks & has never been on a car ride. Before I adopted this dog, I called Matt and told him of the situation. He encouraged me that the dog could overcome these fears if I was willing to work & train our new dog. Needless to say my wife & I experienced first hand the dogs fears when we took her home. Matt came over to our home ASAP and he taught us how to calm her fears & encourage good behavior. That very day we took our new dog for a walk....all the way around the block! We dealt with traffic & train noise along with other distractions. Now our dog LOVES to go for walks & car rides!!! Matt was great at explaining a dogs behavior and how we should respond properly. Matt followed up several times on our dogs progress, very professional. read more

We frequently referred to our 2 golden retrievers as the Hinsdale Hooligans due to their ridiculous behavior. Despite numerous training classes, our boys were just plain unruly, jumping on people, trying to lick their faces, charging folks entering our home, etc. At the end of our rope, afraid of walking them near neighbors, the local schools, etc for fear of what they might do, we found Suburban K9. Thanks to the team, and especially Holly, they are now soooooo much better and are capable of behaving like perfect gentlemen in public. They are now a pleasure to walk, not pulling, bolting toward whatever distraction passes by, or trying to get in the face of approaching dogs, people, etc. It has been a truly amazing transformation. Holly was able to teach these 2 old dogs (they are 3 and 6) a lot of good new tricks and we will forever be grateful. read more

I wanted to just write a HUGE thank you to Suburban K-9 and especially Matt Covey. About 6 months ago we had Matt come do a house call because we had an aggressive female corgi/pit mix and were trying to socialize her with our new puppy. Only 2 weeks after Matt's visit and working with her following the tips Matt taught us, her and the puppy became best friends. This is a dog who would lunge/growl at any other dogs, is now inserperable from her new playmate. The past six months they have not only come to love each but share the same dog bed, tackle and play together in their backyard, and must be physcially touching/next to each other on the couch when relaxing. From the moment I called to schedule the appointment everyone was so helpful and extremely friendly! Thank you so, so much to Matt and Suburban K-9 for everything! read more

I have trained a few dogs with Suburban K9, and they have been able to help me with two very different dogs. My first dog was a timid lab mix that we rescued. After working with 3 different trainers, we settled on Suburban K9. They helped us get Anika to the point where she was happy in public and thoroughly enjoyed our outings. My current pup is a Rottweiler that is as bull headed as it gets. At five months old he was causing so much trouble that we were unable to take him with us in public. We like to travel with our dogs and we need them to be well mannered in public. We have done a couple of private sessions and Oneo is now walking well on leash and is no longer jumping on everyone and barking his head off if they ignore him. If you need professional and experienced trainers, this is the way to go. read more

Great results from their training! I took my 1 year old Boxer mix to Suburban K-9 for their 2 week board and train program. The dog had major issues on leash, (I could barely walk him due to the pulling) mainly with marking and seeing other dogs. The trainer, Matt, said that this would easily be corrected during a board and train. I was amazed at the results and now have a dog that heels at my side on a loose leash. The dog also does very well with the other obedience commands and I was able to keep up the training by attending the advanced training classes (you get 5 with the board and train, but I bought an additional package and kept going for a couple more months). Matt and the rest of the staff are very helpful and informative. I had a great experience with them. read more

Katelyn Anhalt is a dog whisperer! Our English Cream Golden Retriever, Bodhi, would sit like a statue and stubbornly refuse to jump into the back of our SUV. High value treats, including warm rotisserie chicken, did nothing to budge Bodhi. After our first session with Katelyn we were amazed when Bodhi not only jumped into the SUV, but actually wagged his tail and enjoyed the process. We are completely pleased with the training Katelyn provided. She brings such warmth, caring, and enthusiasm into each session. Her love of dogs and her enjoyment of her work are evident. We accomplished everything and more we set out to do in training and are 110% satisfied with our experience. We have gladly passed her name along to all our friends seeking training. Katelyn rocks! read more

After reading a number of favorable reviews online, I contacted Suburban K-9 to schedule an at home appointment for my 6 year old rescue dog, Duke. Duke had a major dog aggression problem. MJ came to our home and after his first visit Duke was listening to basic commands and heeling on his walks. During the second visit MJ worked with us on Duke's aggression and now we have the tools in which to continue working with Duke and have every confidence that in a short time this problem will be gone. I can't say enough about how professional and knowledgeable MJ is. So happy I took a chance and called Suburban and was lucky enough to get MJ. Best money I have ever spent and won't hesitate to call MJ if I need further guidance in the future. Thank you so much MJ! read more

~*~*~*~*~* I LOVE Suburban K9 ~*~*~*~*~*~* I have been taking my pit bull Prince that does therapy work to Matt, their staff trainer, for obedience training, and he is by far the best trainer I have ever had. (I have worked in pit bull rescue for over 10 years and have had many, many dog trainers work with my foster dogs, and no doubt Matt is the very best at what he does!) He has an amazing ability to control dogs with his firm and yet gentle nature. He also worked wonders with our very challenging and dog aggressive mix breed Mosley. I can't say enough good things about Matt, my husband and I completely love him and what he has done for our dogs! I LOVE LOVE LOVE Matt and the Bark Ave staff and highly recommend them!!!!!!!!!! =) read more

I have had the wonderful experience of working with Matt Covey and his Suburban K9 Trainers for at least the past 5/6 years. I am a Volunteer at West Suburban Humane Society in Downers Grove and with Matt's guidance the Star Program was developed for dogs that many people might be deemed unadoptable. Matt came in with his knowledge and love for dogs and helped us Volunteers work with these dogs and help them on their way to their furever homes. He gave us his time , his energy, and his knowledge so that we could work with these animals and also the security that if we had any questions all we had to do was call him and he would be there, and he was. Thank you so much and my Sasha also thanks you, you gave her life read more

WELL BEYOND BASIC TRAINING!! The talent and patience displayed by the staff at Suburban K9, and in particular Mike Simmons, is nothing short of amazing. I would strongly recommend that anyone who has a dog contact them. They work wonders with even the most difficult of pets. They not only address the dog, but they teach the owners how to anticipate and correct any issues that may occur. Suburban K9 is concerned, caring and consistent in their training. I had my German Shepherd in their 'board and train' program for two weeks and now continue to attend group classes at least twice a week. The transformation in my 2 year old rescue dog is nothing short of a miracle. read more

To say that I have been satisfied is an understatement. Mike not only helped me to correct undesirable behavior displayed by my dogs, he showed me what I needed to do to fix the issues and why it was happening. Within one session, I saw a significant difference. We have a pack~four dogs. Mike scrutinized the behavior and interactions of our companions, as well as my family. I was about to give up having had two previous trainers come with no success. I feel more confident, my companions are more obedient, and our house is settling down, once more. Thank you, Mkie! Thank you, Suburban K-9! read more

We have a dog with bad leash aggression. Lenny came to our home and brought a couple dogs too. He demonstrated how to handle our dog on walks and we practiced many times. Nelson assisted (staging a passerby dog walk to test our dog several times). Lenny also reviewed what to do when the doorbell rings! Lenny and Nelson were both great, very friendly and very knowledgeable. They did not waste any time at all and we learned a lot in just 1 session so far. Lenny reached out following the session and is available for any questions/help. I would recommend Suburban K9 to anyone!! read more

Suburban K9 has been wonderful helping us train our terrier/heeler mix. We have 5 dogs (terrier mix, 1 doxie, and 3 cavies). I needed guidance on how to teach Lucy extra tricks as well as get along with our other dogs. Matt is a lot of fun and has an incredible amount of patience. Lucy is still a young dog but has learned so much. Suburban K9 helped me transform a potentially unruly (and very smart) dog into a really neat obedient companion. They have even helped with her carsickness! read more