Some people have a calling in life and Vera is one of these people that has answered that call. She is truly a dog lover and I cannot say enough great things about her & our experience with her. I found Vera through a 6 week puppy training class being held at a local doggie daycare facility. Having had a bad experience with a 'stern' trainer with my first bulldog, I was admittedly a little leery, but that feeling was immediately put at ease as soon as I met her. Though there were 5 other dogs in the class Vera not only taught us as a group, but spent time with everyone individually working on whatever specific needs our dog had. She really tuned into each owner and their interaction with their dog. I also liked that she gave the dogs time to socialize with one another, which was great for my dog as she didn't have much exposure to other dogs at the time. After the course was over, Stella had a great grasp of the basics, but we were having a few issues unrelated to basic obedience at home. We contacted Vera and she immediately worked with us to find a time that accommodated our hectic schedules. We did 3 in home training sessions, and saw a difference after the very first one. She makes you see stuff through their eyes and points out things that you would normally overlook that really help the dog to learn. She gives you all these little pointers and tricks that make all the difference. Every aspect of her training is completely positivity based, which is huge to me as I consider my dog a member of our family. I would highly recommend Vera to anyone who is looking for a trainer. She truly cares about the well being of your dog and it's very important position in your family. read more

RED FLAG The owner double booked me, postponed my consultation for potential business, and did not call me on the time we agreed upon because she was upset that I corrected her when she spelled my name wrong. How do you run a business like that. Unorganized, inattentive to detail, and rude. read more

It's unfortunate because I really wanted to work with Vera but she was unreliable and never came through for us. First she missed a scheduled call without notice. I had to reach out to her to reschedule. How do you run a business like that? Strike one. Second, when she did call, she criticized the way I am with my puppy, who we just discovered is deaf. She pointed out all of our faults. But, isn't that why I wanted training? Arrogant. Strike two, Third, she said she would email me with information to set up a schedule, etc. Never received it. Again, unreliable. Strike three. As I stated, I would have loved to work with her but she has proven that she is not interested, without any indication. Her business should be called, "The Uncooperative Dog." read more

I contacted Vera when I moved to Boston with my then 6-y.o. large rescue dog in 2018, as she was still grappling with some of her demons. I'd worked with other positive behaviorists before, so I knew what we needed, and wanted to have a reliable support in our new home. We scheduled an in-person assessment to introduce my partner to my dog's behavior and to problem-solve some logistical challenges that came with our new living situation (building and neighborhood). Vera was patient, direct, and appropriately cautious with my dog, who has fear-based reactivity that can manifest as aggression. She helped us develop a meet and greet protocol so we could have guests over to our house (a major issue before!) and accompanied us on a walk to assess our leash walking skills, giving us lots of helpful tips on the go. I highly recommend an in-person assessment - you get a lot out of it. After that, we attended her reactive dog class, which gathered 6 dogs max outside in a park every weekend to engage in low-risk training, leash handling, and communication. As the only form of socialization (distanced, at that!) with other dogs that my dog had, this class was invaluable, and I appreciated the opportunity to practice reactivity management in a controlled environment (this is almost impossible to find otherwise). When we moved indoors during colder weather, it provided a novel setting for the same skills. If you are feeling plateaued or stuck with your reactive dog, or want a safe and proactive maintenance class to keep your communication up, OR if you are bringing a partner into your dog's life who isn't as familiar with their issues, I can't recommend this class enough. In summary, if you have a challenging relationship with your dog, practice is the only way to make progress, and Vera is a great coach to have on your side. read more

The Cooperative Dog - Pet Training Near Me - Brookline, Massachusetts

Vera is great! I brought Rufus, a 2 year old rescue Coonhound in this Summer and I was very concerned about leash pulling and off-leash recall, and within 2-3 weeks, Vera had provided me with the guidance and training needed to get Rufus to where he is now...a sheer pleasure on or off-leash. Thank you Vera! read more

The Cooperative Dog - Rufus G Trouble - Pet Training Near Me - Brookline, Massachusetts

As previously mentioned, I was sent a refund form the Cooperative Dog. The refund came in an envelope that had a signature requirement, it also had my full name on it. Inside the envelope was a second evelope with my full name on it, and inside that was a check with my first name. Now anyone who knows, banks don't allow you to deposit checks with only your first name...but I got lucky. I explained the story to the counter manager, and showed the two envelops the check came in and he couldn't believe someone would a) take a Yelp review so seriously and b) go through all the effort to issue a refund and not put my full name on the check---almost like she was making the attempt to give me refund, but didn't expect me to be able to actually get it. It was a lot of hassle. read more

Vera is an amazing dog trainer and has been so helpful to us with our rescue dog. It's our first dog and Vera has been with us every step of the way to support us and help us understand what is normal dog behavior and how to use positive training to help us see results. She truly understands dogs and has a way with them that is so impressive to watch. Her knowledge of dogs is unparalleled. You would be very lucky to have Very work with you and your pup! Highly recommended! read more

Truly fantastic. I called to ask about a Boston Terrier with a chewing issue, and got a ton of really helpful information and advice. She took the time to get the whole picture about the dog's environment, past, social history, lots of details -- things that I wouldn't have thought were important, but once presented back to me with her perspective, turned out to be really important factors that I'd have never considered. And not to say this so that others may abuse it, but she educated me on and gave advice about things that other professionals would have easily pulled out a fee schedule for. Bottom line is that she's friendly, generous with her knowledge, and genuinely cares about dogs. read more

While Vera's programs sound wonderful, I was never given the opportunity to find out for myself. She promptly responded to my initial email and filled me in on her programs and seminars. She then failed to respond to my attempted follow up email (and the three subsequent emails prompting a response). I drove to the seminar she told me was happening, figuring I could get it straightened out there. Low and behold, there was nobody at the site stated on her web site (since I had to rely on the web site for location as she is obviously too busy to reply to prospective clients). I finally called and left a message, which was ignored. She may be a great dog trainer, but she is obviously too busy to respond to inquiries and therefore must be too busy to train dogs. Very disappointed. read more

Vera was extremely helpful and patient with our rescue dog Loki (1 year old). He started the intermediate class being fearful of almost everything and everyone new and we ended the 6 week program with him investigating new things on his own and even using some agility equipment. With her guidance we have helped him overcome many of his fears and have learned a ton about how dogs communicate with other dogs and people. She was always available for questions through email or text, which was quite useful , and even took time out of a Saturday to walk with us to see how he behaved in new situations - offering guidance and suggestions the whole time. Many of her suggested trained behaviors have helped him come out of his shell and be more comfortable in new situations. I don't know what we would have done without her. read more

Terrible puppy class experience. It was chaos every week. There were a new set of dogs every week which required instruction to the new comers every week. This is because she takes dogs on a rotating schedule. Vera was disorganized and did not do a good job of working with the whole group. She then suggested doing private lessons with us, which was just a money making ploy that we did not fall for. Went to Especially For Pets (now Loyal Companion) after Vera's useless sessions and what a difference!! Don't waste your time here. read more

What a fantastic experience! My dog Palmer is deaf and blind in one eye he is six years young and has had not training for the most part. In one session I saw my dog of five years change from a dog who I thought couldn't be trained to a dog who is so smart and willing to learn anything Vera had him do. I work in the animal industry Back in Boulder Colorado and have been searching for a trainer who can do both deaf and blind. So glad I found her! read more

Nice lady, seems to understand dogs to some degree, but was not able to make much progress with my wife and our aggressive dog in the package we paid for last year. Maybe good for basic obedience, but if your dog is actually aggressive look elsewhere for some one who specializes in this. read more

We were referred to Vera by a colleague of hers for a puppy training class. All-in-all, we had mixed feelings about the class. Luckily our class was quite small, so we didn't have the same issue as a couple other reviewers here, and Vera actually got to know our pup much better than she would have if there were more than 4 dogs in the class. Vera gave us an extensive "Manual" at the beginning of class, which was helpful to have, but there were a couple occasions where I asked about how to address a particular behavior, and her irritated response was "Did you not read 'The Manual'?" To which my reply was "Yes, in fact I did" because I did read the manual, but clearly my request for clarification is an indicator that I would like some! If I wanted to train my puppy by reading a book and self-training--which is totally fine, just not something I felt comfortable undertaking--then I wouldn't have paid $200 for a class, in which I would expect to get demonstrable training techniques and interventions and face-to-face access to someone with expertise. While it is undeniable that Vera has a wealth of knowledge about dogs, that knowledge didn't always feel accessible to us. Vera talked for 99% of the class, and if I had a question, I would almost have to interrupt her because she would not pause or ask if we had questions. A couple times I tried to ask a question, and she ignored me, continued to talk for 15 minutes and never came back to me. When I emailed her once outside of class asking for advice/input about something, she replied that it sounded like we needed 1-on-1 attention and she was available on X-day to come see us for a private session and would charge $90/hour. I declined and said we would figure it out. Vera is perfectly nice and knows a lot about dogs, and some sessions we would walk away feeling that we had learned new things to work on, but these were outnumbered by the sessions when we would walk away feeling like we had many unanswered questions, and wondering why we spent the money in the first place. read more

Vera had stood me up about 2 years ago when she had booked an appt and was supposed to visit my home and help me with my dog. I forgot about it because people make mistakes and I am a forgiving person, and so I hired another trainer. A few months ago, I adopted a second dog and I thought I'd try her again. I emailed Vera and never heard from her. So, this time I will definitely move on ! She shouldn't advertise if she doesn't want new clients. read more

To be honest I was surprised reading all the positive reviews here. We took our dog to puppy class with Vera last year and I was really pretty disappointed with the entire experience. Vera is nice enough and does seem to really love dogs, but the class itself was useless. For starters, there were way too many puppies enrolled (about a dozen- and that was AFTER she split the initial class, which was ridiculously huge, into two). The problem was that Vera never got to know us or our dogs and there were too many people to get any individual feedback on anything we did. Half the time we couldn't even see/hear what Vera was demonstrating because there were just too many people crammed into a tiny space. I've talked to other trainers since and most limit their classes to between 4 and 8 pups because anything more is unmanageable. The second thing that bothered me is that Vera told us several times that she would be sending emails regarding homework assignments and other things (once she videotaped us all walking our dogs so she could send us the footage with suggestions on how to improve).... but after the initial email promising all this I never heard from her again. And worse, I tried contacting her several times by email and phone and she never got back to me. This was a bigger problem when a class was canceled due to weather and she never gave us any information about making it up (which she had promised we could do)- after the last class ended and we still hadn't heard anything I repeatedly tried contacting her and never received a reply (so really, she still owes us a session or a refund a year later!). It is possible that one-on-one training with Vera would be beneficial, but I would be careful about the larger classes- at least check to make sure they aren't overcrowded. In the end, my poor puppy got nothing out of the class except a few minutes of playtime, which we could have gotten for free at the park. Our new puppy is now taking classes at Boston Red Dog, and we are really very happy with the trainer there and the class- I can honestly say that we learned more in the first class there than in the entire 6 weeks with Vera. read more

Awful! Awful! Awful! I was referred to her by my dog walking service I've been using for over 2 years and I was extremely excited to work with her but she blew me off 3 times. She acknowledged by email that she received the questionnaire I filled out and that she would contact me shortly. It wasn't a standard auto response email either. Two and a-half weeks went by, never heard from her so I decided to reach out again. She responded back in 2 hours and apologized for not getting back to me the first time, she's been on the road and quite busy with current clients, etc. However, she did ask if I was interested in coming by her facility that weekend (2 days from this email) in Waltham and I immediately responded back yes, whatever time works best for you as I live 5 minutes away and my schedule is quite flexible. I never ever heard back again! I waited 10 days then I responded and told her I decided to work with a different dog behavioral consultant/certified dog trainer because I never heard back from her. I still never heard back from her, not even apologizing for her unprofessional behavior. Extremely disappointing; especially where the dog walking service I use "Active Paws", the Pet Source's in Lexington and Concord we go to rave about her. SAD! read more

I adopted my dog as a 4 month old puppy and being a first time owner I don't think I fully understood what I had gotten myself in to with a corgi/shepherd mix! I contacted Vera for a private consultation because my dog was reacting to other dogs on leash. After just one session Vera gave us the skills to help with her reactivity. Since then we have attended Rowdy Rover classes where we get to practice these skills in a group with Vera's guidance and also out in the real world. It has been so helpful to learn how to handle real life situations. Something I really appreciate is that Vera will tailor the class to your needs. During one class my dog became really sensitive to some noises coming from nearby trains and she taught me how to handle my dog's noise sensitivity. Vera will not let you get 'left behind' if your dog is struggling with something in class, she will give you the steps to work through these problems. I am very happy we found her! read more

We have a puppy that is perfect except that is very fearful of loud noises and cars. We started doing training with Vera and it has helped us tremendously. She seems to genuinely care about our dog and our training sessions have helped us so much. read more

Vera was able to give me answers to every puppy training question I had...and they always worked! Besides being extremely knowledgeable and well-versed in training methods, Vera is positive, gentle, and gives great respect to the dogs and owners she trains. I would recommend her to anyone who has a desire to learn how to train their dog! read more

I scheduled an appointment with Vera for a dog training at my home. She confirmed the appointment via email. She did not show up for the appointment. I called her 10 minutes after the start time wondering what happened and left her a message with my phone number. She never responded by email, phone or text. Totally unprofessional. I'm only giving her 1 star because Yelp requires it. read more

I'm very glad that I found Vera. I have a 'rowdy rover' who has benefited very much from being in Vera's outdoor classes. I think that outdoor classes are essential if you are interested in 'real world' training because a dog might be fine in 'dog school' but then you get out in the park or on the sidewalk and whatever s/he's learned immediately leaves their head. The outdoor classes were a great way to help my dog learn that she does *not* need to worry about dogs in her vicinity. Vera really cares about dogs and is very knowledgeable and does a great job sharing what she knows with her clients. In one of my first classes with her, she suggested that I read the book 'If Bones Would Rain from the Sky,' and reading that book literally changed my life. Vera's positive training techniques are sensible and in touch with modern thinking about dog training. Vera's focus is making sure that both dogs and people live safe, happy, and fulfilling lives and she does a great job! I'd recommend her to anyone with a 'problem dog.' read more

I enrolled my 8-month-old rescued puppy in her adolescent classes for 6 weeks (I had only had my puppy for 2 weeks prior to the first day of training). One of my own issues was that my dog barked at the vacuum, hair dryer, and iron, which did not please my neighbors. I asked Vera for some strategies and 2 weeks after trying the positive tools in introducing the noisemakers my puppy does not bark at any of them! My anxiety is now gone whenever I have to use one of these especially at 5:30 AM when I blow my hair dry. Kudos to Vera!! read more

I would highly recommend Vera to anyone who is looking for basic obedience work or have some type of behavior problem with their dog. I can't comment on her classes because we did a one on one consultation, and I'm so glad we did. It was well worth every penny. My 2 yr. old dog had an extreme fear of strange men and was starting to act out against them. We had been trying different techniques with not the best results. I was blown away by the positive and immediate change in her behavior after implementing the suggestions that Vera made. For the consultation Vera had my whole family come in to meet with her. This included my wife and my two daughters (9 and 7). She was able to help get the kids involved and excited about the training. One of the things that impressed me the most was how she took her time to listen to us and observe my dog. She didn't try to force advice down our throats. She watched our dog for a bit and watched how we interacted with her. She let us talk and tell her about any info we thought might be helpful. She then made some simple suggestions on our routine when introducing our dog to strange men. They have worked like magic. The very first time we put her suggestions to practice my dog ended up sleeping on the lap of a (new to her) man in our home. Before our meeting with Vera this would have been a very different seen. After we met, she emailed us everything that was discussed in the meeting along with a plan to help modify the behavior along with some other reading material. Bottom line is, her techniques work and I'm so happy we met with her and so will you. read more

I'm sure Vera is a great trainer as she has great reviews, but perhaps you have to get lucky or perhaps she's overextended. The first time we tried was when our pup was just a few months old - we wanted to get a jump start and sent her an email - she never responded. After seeing another private trainer our pup's bad behavior started to worsen and he became very reactive and he aggressively barked at dogs while on leash. We were a bit weary with dog trainers after that and wanted to find someone who would really care and not just tell us to buy prong collars/e-collars. We decided to try Vera again as she trains at the doggy daycare we take our pup to. We did a lot of research on her website and decided that our pup would benefit from the Rowdy Rovers program. We sent a detailed email about his problems and asked if this was the way to go before placing a payment on Paypal via her website. She said he would be best suited in a more basic type of obedience program and to bring him on by to the facility (conducted at No Bones About It) for a quick consult. We came on by and there was another dog there she was training. In our email we explicitly said he was very good at "place" and listening to commands while INDOORS with minimal distractions so we weren't sure how useful this session would be. His main issues took place outside...barking at dogs on leash. Basically we spent an hour with our dog while Vera had him stay in "place" and do various basic activities that he was already well trained in. We didn't pay for this session/consult, so I think perhaps she didn't prioritize us and was focusing on the other dog/paying customer. That's fine, but we were disappointed that she didn't seem to remember our email/dog's issues and didn't at least attempt to suss out our dog's behavioral problems during this 1 hour session. It felt like we were just butting into someone else's training session. Needless to say we decided not to enroll as it didn't seem like she wanted our business. read more

I have taken both outdoor group training classes and indoor agility classes with Vera. I really like her outdoor classes because they allow me to get feedback about situations/encounters that happen in my day-to-day life. I appreciate advice that Vera has given about preventing potential problems, rather than dealing with the consequences. I also REALLY like that Vera focuses on positive reinforcement instead of punishment. The indoor agility classes are, I hope, just as much fun for my 1.5 year old Boston Terrier Jim as they are for me! We are able to move at our own pace and after trying a few different approaches, Jim can now do most of the obstacles. read more

Since we adopted our 6 month old, 50 lb. pit bull rescue pup, Vera has been literally our lifeline for the last few months. With a burly, enthusiastic and mostly untrained puppy, we were completely overwhelmed. She was recommended to us by the rescue, and answered our calls and emails from day 1 - and we needed help with everything! In home visits, Vera put in extra time to show us walk, sit, down and other basics while just modeling how to interact. In class, Vera was patient with some anti-social behavior. In between, Vera spent time talking us through all kinds of issues (overreacting to other dogs, chewing, cat chasing, etc. etc.) - as well as reassuring us that we weren't losing our minds. She gave us basic information about doggie development and helped us come up with some good strategies that have let us learn how to live with a puppy. She went above and beyond the call of duty to help a rescue pup find a home - while always reassuring us that we needed to take care of our e never would've been able read more

I emphatically recommend Vera's dog training to all dog parents. We have a mixed Doberman, Shepherd and Huskie puppy under the age of one, two geriatric cats and a newborn. To help tame our zoo, dog training was essential when we felt our puppy, Bella, was mature enough to respond to it. From both classes and a home visit, Vera was able to customize her training around our situation, teaching us lessons that were easy to work with and that effectively made Bella more civil at home in a short amount of time. Bella was already a great puppy but through Vera's direction she went from an 8-month-old hyper dog who didn't know what to do with her energy to a little lady at home. Vera uses the clicker approach and lots of treats while teaching commands that dogs respond to in real-life scenarios such as managing a dog and a baby at home, keeping dogs from jumping on people to getting your dog to respond to you when distracted outside. Vera goes above and beyond to share her expertise and help her clients - 'parents' and dogs, be better balanced together. Dog training with Vera and The Cooperative Dog is worth the investment. The Cooperative Dog also offers classes around dog behavior outside that we're considering taking when we have more time. read more

I signed up for her reactive dog seminar, but had to cancel due to a changed meeting at work. I let her know days in advance, and asked that she let me know when her next seminar was, so i could go to that. She never got in touch and I had to keep emailing her (her website is not updated regularly, so couldn't rely on that). She was spotty about emailing back and for 2-3 months it was like pulling teeth trying to find out when the next seminar was. Each time, I found out at the last minute and was not able to go. I finally got tired of this and asked for a refund. That took a month going back and forth. She agreed to refund me weeks ago, but still no refund in sight. I emailed her again last week, but have not heard. She might be a good trainer, but is obviously a lousy businesswoman. Unfortunately, my $50 seems to be a lost cause, and I am very soured on the thought of dealing with her at all. It is interesting to read about another person's attempt at getting a refund here. Beware. read more

Vera is a fantastic trainer. Her passion for dogs and teaching is immediately apparent. She explains dog behavior and training techniques very clearly. Vera really takes the time to make sure everyone is on the same page. She is not only positive with the dogs but positive with the humans as well - quite refreshing as most of the trainers I've encountered have a "my way or the highway" approach when dealing with clients. I would absolutely recommend The Cooperative Dog to anyone! read more

Over the past 2 years, I have taken adolescent dog, good dog, agility and nosework classes with Vera Wilkinson. Her approach is humane and compassionate for both the human and dog. Unlike other trainers I have experienced, Vera does not make you feel stupid for not being born knowing how to speak dog. Instead, Vera builds her classes around the needs of both her canine and human students. Her class size is limited so that each human/dog team can recieve the individual attention they need. Vera's curriculum combines handling/training skills with dog psychology that focus on real world, everyday situations. I can't thank Vera enough for helping me to understand the world through my dog's eyes. With the help of Vera, my dog and I have become eachother's best friend. read more

Vera has helped us in a variety of ways with our last three dogs. She has always been there for us and is now helping us to choose the right rescue dog. As she said, we need to not let our hearts make a 15 year decision. She spent a very long time on the phone sharing how to be as sure as we can that he is a good match. While I knew that Vera is an exceptional dog trainer - our dogs always went off leash with her and rarely with us - I had no idea of the depth of her knowledge. She is a tremendous resource and I just can't wait to learn more from her! We plan to take advantage of all of the services she offers very soon: private lessons in our home and neighborhood, group classes both indoors and out as well as agility and nose work at her new facility. read more