(Originally posted this review on google last month) I've been bringing my golden retriever puppy here for the last 2 months for puppy camp and doing the kindergarten classes on the weekends. I'm beyond satisfied! Coventry has a puppy-focused daycare program where they match the pups up with compatible ages, temperaments, etc. The groups are small and the pups have so much fun! We get daily report cards, see photos on the facebook page, the staff all get to know the pup's personalities and names, pickup and dropoff is super easy, and my puppy is so excited every time we get there. Highly recommended!!! read more

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I have called, emailed, and visited the school with zero luck reaching anyone to inquire about signing my dog up for training. Communication is key when providing care for a loved family member. read more

I initially found the Coventry school 8-ish years ago for an Ian Dunbar seminar and was quickly impressed with the knowledgeable staff. I've attended quite a few classes with many of my dogs and had a wonderful time during each class. Liz took me under her wing for a while and allowed me to shadow her and assist in many classes and I'm honored to now consider her a friend, along with some of the other instructors there. This place very much cares for their clientele and the dogs. I recommend it any chance I get. read more

Highly recommend Coventry! We've been taking Nosework classes with Vinny for several years and love it. He's a patient, flexible, and outstanding teacher. read more

The Coventry School - Happy Coventry student. - Pet Training Near Me - Columbia, Maryland

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The best dog trainers in Howard County! Highly and enthusiastically recommend!! Liz and her team are excellent.

We took Puppy Kindergarten at Your Dog's Friend but couldn't get into a Puppy 1st Grade class, so we decided to take Jumpstart at Coventry. JenB and Cliona were great teachers and it was clear they knew their curriculum backwards and forwards! Despite this being my third dog trained in basic manners, I learned new ways of teaching the same skills, which was really cool. We especially enjoyed the last class because my puppy won the contest for sending to her mat from furthest away. read more

The Coventry School - My three cocker spaniels - Pet Training Near Me - Columbia, Maryland

Called three times, not very helpful or welcoming. You know, your service is an OPTION, I don't have to actually go to you and guess what? I won't. read more

Absolutely love Coventry. Liz and her team are there for you even beyond just your standard dog care and training. She really understands dogs really well and the dogs always take to her. With our dog Titus we trained for about 18months with them from puppy and up. He's a great dog because of their guidance. Titus really loved nose work. I believe that was one of his favorite classes. He's also gone to grooming with them and they do a perfect job. He's also stayed with them in boarding. I love how accommodating they are to our natural raw diet and holistic approach to the care of our pet. Titus is now four years old. I can't wait to head back for more classes. read more

The Coventry School - Titus our German shepherd trained at Coventry. - Pet Training Near Me - Columbia, Maryland

I have been sending my puppy to the puppy club for several weeks now and she seems to love it. Unfortunately we haven't been able to see the facility and what goes on during the day due to Covid but she is super thrilled every time we get out of the car! I had been going back and forth about trying their Puppy prep school as there aren't really any comparable training schools in the area that don't rely on E collar use. It's an investment but so is raising and training a puppy. The owner does seem really invested and we got four half hour zoom private training sessions with her and she has been fantastically accommodating with issues we were having as new puppy owners. The puppy kindergarten has been fantastic and our teacher is wonderful and has given us many things to work on that have been helpful. Looking forward to doing jumpstart next. read more

yelp people....i wrote 2 they're not published.....Why? The Dog World Needs To Know on "This" Coventry Dog Business in Columbia Md. Not a place to put my Beagles...ones a service dog for me.under Disability..which we deserve more respect & manners than what I or my beagle pups received from Head Master. Liz & her staff. They had vaccum cleaners running as soon as entered the door in the front lobby...she didn't even have us sit down in a Quite office to talk & fill out a 3-4 pages for each dog. i asked her for quieter place...she couldn't even hear me...she didn't care.....thats where you could see the ATTITUDE as a Bully....she even came across as stuck-up. Not a kind experience for my Dogs or their ears. 1st & last interview.....they took them back in their chosen group ....without .... ALLOWING me with them to watch what they were doing...????? Beware....Be suspicious if alone with your dog in interview since Head Master Liz was quite rude with. aggressive ATTITUDE...she can do what she wants???!! Beagles are a friendly breed...they need the same returned. H.M. couldn't win over the hearts of my 2 beagles...OR myself owner. We left in What is called.... Intimidation... rating- 0 I CALLED The Howard County Animal. Control afterwards to report to Jessica....whom referred them..they stated they don't have GOOD customer service...I say no RESPECT. As a Beagle Owner for 58 years....Coventry has No Respect for owners or the customers-our dog children....their purpose of why their in a business. read more

The Coventry School for Dogs and Their People is just amazing. They offer great group training classes as well as day camp services that my pup just loves. They provide a "report card" of what play and training they worked on with your pup as well as pictures of all the dogs playing throughout the day. 10/10 would recommend. read more

I'm sharing with the Yelp community why I'm dropping my score and not returning. Settle in, folks, because I tend to ramble when I have a good story to tell. First, let's catch you up from my last review: Everything with our dog was going fine. I'd bring her in to Coventry 2-3 times a week, I'd pick her up, ask how she did, and I was always told "Oh, she's such a doll! We just love her!" The ONLY time I ever heard anything remotely close to criticism was one time when I was told that they had to force her to rest a little bit, because she loved to play and didn't know when to cool off. Yeah, that'd be an accurate description of our dog. She's a sweet pup, but definitely high-energy when she gets around other dogs. Keep this in the back of your mind: it's relevant later. So everything was going swell, until one day when we noticed a little bump on her lip. It looked like a wart, so being a responsible doggy daddy, we took her to her vet to get it looked at. Canine Pappiloma Virus Our vet said it would take a few months for her to get over it and be non-contagious and that she would have to minimize contact with other dogs until then. He told us we should notify Coventry that they might have an outbreak. So being a responsible client, I called Coventry to let them know. "Oh no!", they exclaimed. "She couldn't have gotten it here No other owner has reported anything like that besides you. We would let our clients know immediately if we had an outbreak" Ok... I'm not accusing Coventry of NOT notifying me. It's certainly possible that she could have picked it up in the handful of times we had taken her to an off-leash park before that, and it could have been lying dormant for months from when she was in a shelter before we adopted her. I certainly have no evidence to suggest it happened at Coventry. Still don't, and I'm not making any accusations. However, when you compare the number of times our dog had been to Coventry versus the number of times she'd been to the park, the odds don't appear to be in their favor. So we kept her out for 2-3 months until the virus was gone and we got a clean bill of health from our vet. We started easing her back into Coventry, 1-2 days a week. When we did that, we noticed she would come home and have loose stool for a day or so. After that, it would firm right back up and all was right with the world. Then she'd go back to Coventry for a visit... Loose stool again. We assume that she was probably more stressed than we realized at day camp, so we opted to give her a break. This was in January 2013. FAST FORWARD to September, and oh no! We're going out of town for the holidays, and all of our usual dog sitters are unavailable. What to do? Oh, I know. I'll call Coventry! She's been boarded with them before, so that should work out just fine. Besides, with our busy season starting up again, now might be a good time to see if she can handle going back 1-2 days a week again. So I call and schedule her boarding. The lady I spoke with noted that she hadn't been there in several months, and that she would need to get back into the day camp routine several times for at least a month leading up to the holidays. I completely understand that. It's good for her, it's good for Coventry, plus we were already planning on that! Everybody wins! Yay! ... and then today happens. I get a message from Coventry letting me know that since our dog hasn't been to day camp recently that there wouldn't be enough time (in September) to get her back into the routine in time to be boarded (in December). So they were canceling my reservation. Whaa?!? Totally weren't expecting that, were you? Oh, it gets better! So I call Coventry back and ask to speak with the woman who left me the message so I could get a little clarification and understanding. I got the schpiel again about how she hadn't been there recently for day camp, and I asked why 3-4 months wasn't enough time to get her back in the routine, particularly since she had been boarded there before. Then, the truth comes out. Paraphrasing here, "Well, my notes indicate that we've had a lot of difficulty finding the right play group for your dog. It looks like we've tried moving her around from group to group, but she's really only allowed to play with a few dogs, because she just wasn't fitting in with any one play group." "Why wasn't I told this before?", I asked. "Well, I wasn't there, but I'm just reading the notes, and they say [reiterates previous comments]" So, we went to them for months, regularly asked for updates, and we were apparently misled by Coventry about how our dog was doing at Day Camp. Rather than be forthright with us, they chose to tell us something different from their internal notes... on a regular basis. What else have they not been 100% forthright about? I don't know, but after today, I don't intend to find out. This is why I'm done with Coventry. read more

I enrolled my dog Charlie in a Kranky K9's training class for dog-reactive dogs, and I was very happy with the overall quality of the facility, class, and trainers. Liz and Vinny are incredibly knowledgeable in their field, using modern techniques that show great results without any sort of pain or intimidation. This was especially important to us, since our dog struggles with general anxiety and dog aggression, and negative training efforts can make his problems worse. The entire course was reward/association based, and the dogs showed amazing results, even just the first night. For our course, they provide each owner with a head collar and a muzzle to take home, and then an aromatherapy bandana (calming effect for dogs) and a covered crate for class. There are specific procedures that everyone follows each week to make sure all dogs and their people are safe. They take the extra precaution to keep every one happy, and our dogs less prone to react. This place really goes above and beyond! I recommend the Kranky K9's class to anyone whose dog suffers with dog-aggression. It's so worth it. read more

Absolutely wonderful experience today. I had a behavior consultation for my fearful dog that has recently begun biting and nipping when scared. Not only was Liz friendly and welcoming to us, her way of approaching my pup was refreshing and made me optimistic about the whole thing . Her gentle approach made my usually anxious dog completely comfortable with her in the first 40 minutes of our lengthy consult. I can't wait to see where the following training sessions take us! read more

Rating = 0/5 stars I walked in to Coventry to inquire about services for my dog and was rudely greeted and ignored! Shelly was short, curt, and extremely unprofessional! I have NEVER been treated as such before! I will NEVER patronize this establishment nor refer ANY of my friends, sorority sisters, civic club members, clients, or family members to Coventry. I highly suggest proper professional customer service training for this particular person. read more

I bring my two-year-old Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever here for day camp and boarding. I am extremely pleased with the service I have received from the staff here and, more importantly, the care they provide for my dog. Reservations can be made over the phone, via email, or in person and I always receive a response very quickly when I request a reservation (I always request them via email)--almost always within 24 hours. Recently, my dog had oral surgery before a boarding stay, and they accommodated my request for them to put warm water on his food ten minutes before feeding him as well as gave him his medications twice a day at no extra charge. Day camp is included with each night of boarding. Furthermore, I really like that their boarding operation is small (they have a capacity for 12 dogs) and there is someone on-site 24 hours a day, which is not the case for all boarding facilities. As far as day camp goes, the dogs are split into play groups based on temperament. My dog always seems to have a great time, and he comes home tired. Have you ever seen a tired two-year-old dog? It is a rare sight! Definitely try day camp at this place if you are looking for some social time and extra exercise for your dog. One thing to note is thay only current day campers are considered for boarding. read more

We can't say enough about Coventry. We use Coventry for day camp, boarding, and training. They take such great care of our pup! It's clear that the staff really love and care for their dogs. I would especially recommend any training offered by Vinny. He is a patient trainer that uses positive reinforcement techniques with both the dogs and owners. We really enjoy taking his classes and our pup is learning so much. If I could, I would give Coventry 6 stars! Thank you for taking such great care of Ripley! read more

I send my Shih Tzu puppy, Walter, to Day Camp at the Coventry School every day Monday through Friday, while my boyfriend and I are at work. He LOVES it!!! The second that I take him out of the car, he gets so excited to run to the door and greet the staff. Everyone who works here is friendly and Walter leaves very happy and sleepy from playing all day. They respond quickly to reserving days to Day Camp and answer the phone promptly. To people complaining about no one being at the front desk.... THEY'RE WORKING WITH THE DOGS AT CAMP. There's even a door bell on the door in case there's no one there. I've had nothing but positive experiences here and we've been using the Coventry School for almost 3 months now. read more

Update: in response to an unsatisfactory experience, The Coventry School has worked to achieve good customer satisfaction. I've given them another chance and they are replacing my puppy's class with a new one. I'm very pleased to give this another try after so many favorable recommendations from friends and neighbors. My new class starts in a few weeks. I'm excited to get started. read more

I'm really disappointed with my brief experiences with Coventry. I initially went a few months ago to start my blind dog in their basic training course. I called in advance to see if they could handle teaching a blind dog in the course, and they said yes, so we went. When I actually showed up at the course, the lady teaching it said this was the first blind dog she had worked with, and she'd have to rely on the school's owner, who had experience teaching deaf (not blind) dogs. So, needless to say, the "lessons" were a waste and we got little to no attention. We stopped going after, I think, four classes because they were such a waste of our time. I thought I'd give them a chance again for doggie day care for my other dog this week since they'd been so highly recommended to us by others. I sent in an email request through their site, and someone got back to me later the next day. The lady who wrote back to me said that they only provide assessments at 11:30 and noon on weekdays only (really?!? who does that and makes no concessions for a person who works normal business hours?). In the same email, she provided a number to call, which I did to see if they were flexible at all on their assessment hours---and when I called (twice) I was met with the message "This Howard County number is no longer in service." Her email also ended with telling me that I should check out their website for more "information about our BORING, grooming and training services." I haven't heard back from my email response to them yesterday, and I'm not wasting my time looking up another number on their site. My business has officially gone elsewhere. read more

We took our new puppy here for her first grooming. I was quoted one price on the phone and my wife was charged another price at pickup. This is inappropriate!!! It was then inferred that my wife hadn't communicated properly or perhaps there was a miscommunication that could have resulted in the $10 difference. My wife asked the groomer several questions when dropping off our puppy. I was later told that my puppy was wiggly and that the service took longer (justification for the up charge). Show me a puppy that isn't wiggly. Bottom line, be ready for up charges and additional fees for services when you pickup your dog from grooming. The price quote you receive is a STARTING price only. The grooming was good. read more

Well it looks like I had a similar experience to Matt H and what a shame. We LOVED everything about this place. We used them for training, boarding and day camp. We brought our dog for day camp once a week and after a period of time, the staff said that our dog was a little too hyper or playing a little rough for some of the other dogs. So they had her one on one with one of the owners dogs. Okay, no problem. However, it continued to happen and when we called to try and speak to the owner or an employee, our calls weren't returned. Eventually we received a short call back with very little explanation. It was so disappointing. We weren't going to pay all of this money for our dog to just play with one other dog. We have not been back. Reading Chris H's review reminded me so much of our situation. What a shame! read more

Enrolled my dog in classes, because this place was recommended. Not too bad, wish the dogs had the opportunity to socialize before or after, but one class always runs over, so we can't. Would otherwise be a great way to meet other dog parents. Day camp services utilized also. Love having my dog there, because he's always tired after a full day of play. Very structured. 3 stars BECAUSE they are inflexible. You run a DAY CAMP, and I pay for the services. This isn't life or death. I understand the strict drop-off time, but they are unwilling to let a dog be picked up early, because "it disrupts the behavior." Now I'm to Cesar Milan or animal psychologist, but I have enough experience with humans and have studied enough sciences with my two degrees. Animals have two choices - adapt to survive or die. My dog leaving a daycamp early will not harm anyone. The manager has a conniption when I informed her I couldn't pick up my dog later during their "rest" time due to work reasons; my line of work requires prompt timing for actual life or death reasons. How unreasonable! read more

Fantastic, effective, and kind at the same time. Lovely spaces, great teachers. Love them.

A trainer in DC recommended the Coventry School for nosework classes to increase my dog's confidence and give him some more mental stimulation. We just completed Nosework 2 with Vinny, and my dog absolutely LOVES it! His excitement when he realizes we're driving to class is really cute, and he wants to practice at home every day. I can see his confidence with other dogs increasing week by week, and after class he's tired and calm for the rest of the day, which is great for me. Another nice side benefit is that it has helped with his crate training, since the dogs stay in crates and are then rewarded with a fun activity. Vinny is a good teacher and very patient with both dogs and people. I'm pleased that Coventry offers multiple levels of the class so that we can continue! read more

Decided to walk in and check the place out. Nobody at the desk. Took information available and went back outside to read it. Went back in to see if anyone was available. My ultimate goal is to find boarding in a few months for my dog-can do Day care too. Once again no one at the desk. So I called. Shelly-the general manager answered. Did not readily give her name-only after I asked twice-and said I like to know who I am speaking with. She wanted to know if I had a problem first. Nope, just wanted some information about boarding. Well-per Shelly-I can't do that without daycare. Ok. And it's and EXTENSIVE process. Ok Shelly. So you want new customers or not? I was down the street and saw your business. I'm not going out of town anytime soon so I could be interested-SHE didn't seem very welcoming for new customers. Wow. Im not impressed with the general manager here. I have no issue with no receptionist-but the lack of customer service on the phone to potential customers? I'll stick with the nice day I had at Camp BowWow next door-very welcoming . read more

We got our puppy, an American Pit Bull Terrier, almost 2 years ago and I almost immediately started researching nearby Dog Day Cares, Training, and Boarding facilities. Within a month, we had started in Coventry's Beginner class. Throughout all of the training classes, their staff has been knowledgeable and helpful, and wonderful about catering to what our dog needed from each class. I have been through all the obedience classes with her, as well as a few Rally classes, and my husband is now repeating obedience classes with her. I love that I have seen their staff at the training classes as well with their own dogs; its a great reminder that the Coventry staff is there because they love animals. I was hopeful about Day Care, though I'd never done it previously with dogs we had when I was growing up, and we started there as soon as our puppy was of age. Knowing that APBT's can have a tendency toward dog aggression, and understanding the bad reputation that the breed unfairly has, it was important to me that a group of professionals could vouch for our dog's behavioral tendencies. Coventry has at every turn been amazing in this regard. Our dog, while loving, intelligent, great with people and overall (in my biased opinion) wonderful - can be very difficult with other dogs; as far as I can tell she comes off as really obnoxious to about 90% of other animals. Despite this, Coventry has continually worked with her, found ways to curtail her enthusiasm, and found her doggie buddies that are willing to tolerate her play style. Coventry is responsive through their website, email, and their Facebook; which in addition to being very helpful in general, is wonderful when boarding our dog. It is great to post a message about hoping she is having fun to shortly after get a reply that someone just stopped in to get doggie kisses and that your dog is happy. While they have limited boarding availability, I know this is because of the one on one attention they are devoting to our animals. Liz and Vinny have always been incredibly helpful and willing to share advice, resources, and helpful tips. I'm so glad that I found Coventry and so grateful to them for all of the help they've given us over the last 2 years. read more

I can not express how much I love Coventry. Our fur baby Newy has been enrolled in two training courses (as a puppy) and continues to go to day camp (1-2/week). Liz and her staff are incredible! They truly love dogs and after researching training programs in the area, it was clear that Coventry was the best choice. My husband and I are both in the healthcare industry with psych backgrounds- Liz uses evidence based programs that focus around positive reinforcement. We have met many dog owners that use old school, non-science based training methods and it was really important to us to have the right trainer. As for day camp, Newy is always excited to get in the door and great the staff (she pays no attention to the fact I am leaving). Doggy day care allows her to get rid of any extra energy and keeps her socialized. Dogs are split up by age and size, which put us at ease since she was a very small puppy. The staff always gives us feedback with specific examples when we ask. The staff knows her and lets us know if something is "off." I never thought I would be a pet parent that dropped her pup off at day care... but it is well worth it! My single complaint is that doggy day care does book up quickly so last minute changes (to add an extra day) are very difficult. read more

I used to train at CTA...until I found Coventry. The instructors at Coventry are top notch, well trained, their practices are sound and based on positive reinforcement, class size is limited so you get adequate one-on-one attention. read more

Coventry was a poor experience. We were told by the owner that 1 day a week was acceptable. After about 2-3 weeks of our dog going to day camp the owner began to ride us about our 1 day a week schedule and how it was hard on her when it came to book keeping and offered for us to pre-pay for 5 weeks in advance. When my husband did this the owner publicly berated him in front of other customers saying he could not pre-pay for 5 individual days, the pre-paid days had to be consecutive. Not only does the owner not seem to have a clue when it comes to running a business she seems clueless in dealing with customers. Too bad, they were highly recommended... read more

Do not trust your reservation with this company. I had an appointment for an eval and boarding. Subsequently I received a call saying my appointments would be cancelled bc contrary to their website and the first person I spoke to several days of doggy day camp on top of the eval must be completed prior to boarding. What a way to rip off customers and force people into buying something they don't want or need. I was willing to endure the three night minimum but after seeing that the company just forces add ons I realized there is something seriously wrong with their business plan and services. I now have a reservation w a different company rated much higher on yelp and so far much more pleasant to deal with. If you have any type of plans where you need reliability stay far, far away. read more

I really feel bad for posting this review since the other reviews below are so good, but honestly, I've been pretty disappointed with the training class with them. I leave frustrated every week. I was very excited for the class at the beginning and was hoping to get my dog involved into some of the other classes offered as well. However, the class is very big and the trainer has made little attempt in trying to get to know my dog or other dogs in the class or focusing on their individual needs so they're comfortable in class. People have tried to ask questions and they're either ignored or told to just practice as homework without even hearing the question they may have. Communication outside of class is weak. Because of that, I've had to consult other people and services/resources for their help with the homework. read more

I just wanted to say that we are a big fan of The Coventry School for dogs!!! We have been taking our puppies/dogs for many years. The staff is wonderful ! We have taken our puppies/dogs for consultations and classes with both Liz and Vinny and found them to be personable,professional and knowledgable. Our mastiff Auggie has some fear issues and we have seen much improvement from him going to day camp and nose work classes (which he really loves both of). I highly recommend the coventry school for you and your puppy/dog. Thank You Coventry for all you do!!! read more

I would never recommend this place to anyone! I was enrolled in a puppy class and found it to be an awful experience. The basis of their training is to shovel treats down your dogs throat in order for it to learn something. I understand positive reinforcement but they take it to a whole new level. The trainers seemed very uneducated and rough around the edges. Just because you own a dog does not mean that you should train other peoples dogs. read more

I have been taking my pup for a variety of services offered and can't say enough nice things about the staff or the level of professional development that's obviously put into each employee. My pup comes home happy and better for each activity we've attended read more

My dog knows the basics. I wanted her to brush up her skills in a group setting. We took Jen's Headstart class. Jen was sensitive to my dog needing space from other dogs. She advocated for everyone's dogs in the class. My dog was able to focus on me and practice the basics. I highly recommend taking classes here! read more

Fabulous place! The even taught my friend how to do eye drops to save his eye sight! And didn't charge. . . Great people. . .

Coventry is an absolute amazing place. Training classes, daycamp, grooming, and boarding all under one roof! I've taken training classes and private lessons with each of my dogs and have had nothing but great results. Liz and Vinny are both wonderful instructors( and people!) that really put their souls into what they do. For what it's worth, my son has worked there for a couple of years now and every time we catch up he always talks about his wonderful co-workers and how much they care for each dog. read more