I am the owner of a 3 year old petite golden-doodle. After doing a lot of research on the type of dog we wanted and found the breeder that was highly recommended to us, we decided on Charlotte. We purchased her before she was born and picked her up at 8 weeks old. On the first day, Charlotte bit both of my children. We attributed it to all the activity. But on the second day she bit other children that came to meet her. I enrolled her in puppy training classes, she was very good while in the class, but displayed aggressive behaviors at home. When I mentioned this to the dog trainers, they suggested that I have a trainer come to our house to train with us in our own environment. We did. This trainer suggested Charlotte had anxiety issues and that we should not discipline her, but rather use positive reinforcement and try to keep her away from the triggers that upset her, leading her to the aggressive behavior. We tried. By the age of 5 months, and after talking to our vet, puppy class trainers and our own in-home dog trainer I was advised to seek out a Behavior Therapist. We did. Charlotte was diagnosed with general anxiety, conflict related aggression, possessive aggression, fear/territorial aggression and irritable aggression. All in all, I was told that it was likely that Charlotte's parents were over-bred, causing her genetic problems that wouldn't be solved and definitely needed to be treated with medication- Prozac, in fact every vet, trainer and the behavior therapist confirmed this! Against my better judgment I put her on Prozac. In the following 2 1/2 years her behaviors got worse, she started guarding me, corners of the house, barking and guarding when anyone would enter the house, a room or an area. She bit my kids weekly, terrorized their friends, my friends, and other adult family members. While 90 percent of the time she seemed very loving, gentile, even docile.... we never knew when she would snap. About 4 months ago she bit me, drew blood and it was done viscously. While I could withstand the bite I thought that Charlotte had really crossed even her own line!!!!!! With that I truly started to believe that I had no option but to consider euthanizing her- how could I keep her when she has now terrorized our whole family, crossed the line with me.... I couldn't give her to another family or send her out for adoption. That's when I got a referral to Monica!!! I guess in short, Monica saved Charlotte's life- literally! Charlotte went to an extended boot camp with Monica-and was taught that she had to earn her privileges, that she did not rule the household and had to be reminded that cute little Charlotte was a DOG! When Charlotte returned home she had changed... she stayed in her crate at night- and she loves her crate now! When the doorbell rings, when people come in our house, when kids are running around in our house, when the mail is delivered Charlotte has been taught that she has to stay on her bed, quietly! No barking, no charging, no guarding! And she is successful with doing that!!!! I continue to monitor the stress levels in our home and when necessary I will put Charlotte in her crate and away from the excessive stimuli, but she has learned that she MUST listen or there are consequences!!!! And I have learned, that although it is still likely that she has genetic imperfections I have the tools and power to be her boss, alpha and loving parent! So please, if you have a puppy that needs to learn a few good manners or a pet that is ruling your household contact Monica, she is very gifted and dedicated to what she does!! read more

I was desperate to find someone to help us reform our 14 week old puppy. She was terribly jealous, bossy, and defiant. She would constantly nip at our hands and clothes which eventually led to her biting us, especially my young daughter. She would jump up on my daughter and bite her back, ripping her clothes, and making her bleed. I wasn't too confident that we would be able to keep her and that maybe she would respond better to a household without children. After reading all of Monica's glowing reviews, I called to enroll Weimaraner in her 10 day boot camp. Monica gave me hope, and calmed me down, but I was still skeptical that our dog could really change. I tell people that Monica isn't really a dog trainer, she's a magician!! It's either that or she switched out my dog for a sweet, docile, obedient doppelgänger! She truly came back transformed. She doesn't bite or even nip, she comes when called, sits and stays until released (even when a MUCH loved piece of ham is thrown next to her or someone comes to the door), knows tricks...Before when she would do something naughty and I would reprimand her, she would bark at me and nip. Now she hangs her head down and is so remorseful and will go lie in her bed immediately. I just wanted her to be a nicer dog! I never expected to get her back so well trained and at such a young age! My kids are no longer scared of her and we can trust her with them. The kids love running through all of her tricks and are finally able to enjoy having her around! When Monica brought her back after the boot camp, she spent so much time with everyone in our family, showing each one of us how to handle her. The funny thing is that a lot of what Monica told us to do with our dog, we had already been doing. I've had dogs my whole life and have never had the problems we were having. Even still, I read SO many training books before we even brought our pup home just to ensure that we were well prepared. I don't know how Monica was able to turn on her learning switch but that is why she's the expert!! Monica is personable, patient, and super responsive any time I've had a question. Our family is SO very grateful for all of Monica's work with our dog. I know our pup wouldn't be curled up next to my son right now if it weren't for her training. Her level of care and expertise is truly exceptional. I will definitely continue training with Monica. I'm excited to see what more our pup can learn! I cannot recommend her enough! You will not be disappointed!! read more

Monica helped out my Border Collie so much through his 10-day boarding training! I got my Border Collie, Louie, from a breeder when he was 6 weeks young. He has been a very energetic and sweet pup from day one. However, my girlfriend and I had some behavioral issues with Louie that we couldn't correct, and I knew that Louie needed some professional training. He had typical puppy issues like biting furniture and people's hands/feet. It got to a point where Louie was acting dominant towards myself and my girlfriend, he never listened, and he would rather bite me than play with a toy. Also, Louie hated being in the car and his crate. He would cry and bark VERY loudly if we ever drove him somewhere or making him sleep in his crate at night. We received a noise complaint through our apartment complex because of Louie's barking in his crate. My girlfriend and I were worried that Louie would never get better. Monica picked Louie up (she offers pickup and drop-off service which is very convenient) when he was 14 weeks, and when she dropped him off after 10-days we were very surprised! She returned the same sweet and energetic boy that we knew before he left, but Louie was very well behaved. I'm writing this review 2 weeks after we got him back, and we're so glad that we sent him away. He no longer bites furniture or humans, he doesn't act dominate towards us anymore, and he listens/trusts us. Also, Louie never cries or barks in the car or in his crate anymore! Monica spent 2 hours with us to teach us all of the commands and how to correct Louie's actions if he doesn't listen. Monica truly cares about the success of the dogs that she trains, and she makes herself available for help even after the boarding school is finished. Louie went to his first Agility class yesterday, and some of the commands that he learned during his training with Monica came in hand. We take Louie all over town now to breweries, stores, and restaurants and we don't have to worry about him acting up. Oh, and she helped Louie land a spot in a commercial! We definitely recommend Monica for any obedience training! read more

I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical on sending my Shih Tzu (1.5 years old) to a trainer. Even though I was given very good positive reviews on Monica, it was very hard to hand your dog (your baby) over to someone you did not personally know. I did text her a few days into her having Braxton and she answered me each and every time I contacted her. She was very honest and took the time to explain the good outcomes and bad outcomes to that point. She decided to keep him a few days longed then originally agreed on. She felt he needed a bit more time. Upon his return, I was amazed at the difference in my baby. She took the time to explain each and every command he was taught. I honestly was not sure he was trainable! She honestly did wonders with him! When she came into the house with him and commanded him to sit on the rug and not move. He sat there even though he was very excited to see us. He sat then under her command for about 30 minutes while she discussed with us what he had learned and how she went about his training. After about 30 minutes she told him free and he responded on command. She taught him sit, stay, down, come, and to potty outside. It was amazing how much he learned in his time with her! She stayed with us for about 1.5 hours and went over everything he was taught and told us how to work with him. I have called her numerous times since he has been home with questions and she was very helpful with all questions and even offered to take him back for more training if we thought he needed it. I would highly recommend Monica. She was absolutely amazing with Braxton! She came to visit a week later to our house and he was very excited to see her, he ran to her and was wagging his tail. So that action from him tells you how amazing she is! I am going out of town in a few weeks and I asked her if she dog watched and she said she did... I feel so comfortable sending both of my Shih Tzu's to her. I trust her more than anyone with my two dogs! Thank you Monica....on a scale of 1 to 10, you are so above a 10.... read more

The Fine Canine Dog Training and Boarding School is an absolute must whenever welcoming a new dog into your family. For my experience, my 14 week old German Shepherd Puppy was a great dog, but had trouble listening to me when I called him, going to the bathroom only outside, and crying whenever put into the cage. When I called The Fine Canine, Monica answered and gave me the options for my puppy. She strongly recommended her 10 Day Boarding School, where she takes your dog for 10 days and puts them through a boot camp. By her having the dog, she is able to dedicate large amounts of focus and time on working with your puppy and fixing all the problems that you have encountered. At first, I was concerned that would be too long to stay away from my dog. Monica assured me that it would be totally fine and it would not have an impact on the dog's mental health. In fact, my dog was so busy learning with her, he didn't have time to whine. She made it easy, by picking up my puppy from my house. She provided me updates throughout the 10 days on his progress, and even videos doing tricks. While it was hard, I made an effort to not ask for too many updates, because I knew this would distract from her training time with my puppy. At the end of the 10 days, she brought my puppy home. My puppy was like a new dog! She spent over an hour teaching us the new tricks and commands that he had learned. It was almost overwhelmingly how much she was able to teach our puppy. He knew so many commands and would go to his bed whenever we asked him to. He never cries in the crate anymore, (a stark contrast to before). He lets me know if he has to use the bathroom. Walking him is so much easier. He pays attention to me, even if there's 5 other dogs around him. In my experience, this is very rare for a 17 week old puppy! After the Boarding School, I feel like it is imperative to put your puppy through dog training with Monica. I can confidently say it was the best choice I made for my puppy. read more

Our hound mix puppy was 4 months old and we were desperate for help. We have always rescued adult dogs in the past and this was our first time with a rescued puppy. We are pretty dog savvy and we have never had issues training a dog before but having a puppy was a new experience for us. My husband and I both work full-time and we have a one-year-old son. We quickly realized that we were in over our head & didn't have enough time to properly train him. We needed a jumpstart to get him and us going in the right direction in puppy obedience. We were referred to The Fine Canine/Monica by my husband's coworker. We read all the great reviews and thought it was too good to be true. We thought that it was great other people had successes with their puppies but thought our puppy was going to be a different story. Well, I'm happy to say after two weeks with Monica he came back a changed puppy. He is so much calmer now and took to the training like a champ. We are utilizing the same techniques Monica used and his training at our home has been awesome. I'm in awe that this is the same puppy we brought home at 8 weeks old. Best money we have spent in a long time. Your dog is an investment in your life. Forking out money for this training was worrysome at first but then we quickly realized it was worth every penny. When we take him out, people have already complimented on how well behaved he is for being a puppy. My friends laughed at me for spending money to have our puppy trained but now I'm the one laughing when they see how well behaved our puppy is in comparison to their adult dog. If you are reading this and contemplating whether or not you should hire The Fine Canine to train your puppy, just do it. You will not be sorry. But keep in mind you must continue the training on your own. A well behaved & obedient dog needs training repetitions, structure, & consistency. We cannot thank Monica enough! read more

True passion and amazing experience is what I discovered when I went to The Fine Canine. I brought my 8 week old Brittany "Charlie" there and was blown away by the level of experience and results I received. Monica was our first instructor I had the pleasure of working with and I really didn't know what to expect. Charlie is a competition dog and will spend many hours in the field and show ring. One thing that really impressed me was her knowledge and focus she gave towards what I was looking to get accomplished. At 8 weeks old socialization was my top priority, but I had much more on the agenda for this soon to be champion! I went in confident yet humble. I personally learned so much for myself that no Google search, YouTube video, or book could have provided me. Class sizes were great because I felt we all received our fair share. Our next Instructor was Aimee and she was just as awesome! I wasn't sure which class to put Charlie in next so I asked her opinion and she invited me to check them both out to see where I felt most comfortable. That's service you don't see in most industries any more. We received valuable resources and tips to help us on our Journey! I'm writing this review now with Charlie being 7 months old. You can officially enter AKC registered events at 6 months old and that we did! I'm excited to announce Charlie achieved his Junior Hunter Title and a placement in his first field trial prior to him being 7 months old. I say this not to brag about how quickly we did it, but because I feel we would've never done it without the impression Monica and Aimee left on Charlie and I. This journey has just begun and we are going to enjoy running the fields for birds and looking handsome in the show ring this winter. We will definitely be back to The Fine Canine to keep our skills sharp and hang with some awesome people!!! read more

I have an English Labrador Retriever puppy who before Monica was a severe play biter, was chewing on my wooden furniture, was constantly leg mounting, and had little socialization with other dogs since I brought him home. I opted to have my puppy go through Monica's four week board & train program and while I was a little apprehensive about being away from my puppy for four weeks I knew that my puppy needed both the safe socialization and heavy duty training that my puppy needed at the time. What was the result? When Monica brought my puppy home he was almost a new dog he is so well trained, I mean it is utterly amazing with what she did with my puppy. No more play biting, no more chewing on my wooden furniture, and a whole slew of new commands that my puppy now obeys. Monica's service doesn't just end with the training at her house but when she brought my puppy back she took the time to train me in how to now work with my puppy and answer any and all questions that I had and even after that she has been very responsive to any new questions or problems that has arisen since my puppy came home. In all honesty there was a time when I would have said that I would never board & train but now I wouldn't do it any other way, but you have to have the right trainer and Monica is definitely a trainer that I highly recommend in the strongest way after the amazing job she did with my Labrador Retriever. There is a reason she gets such high reviews and this is because she is an amazing and highly effective dog trainer. So do the best thing for your dog and get Monica as your dog trainer because you will not regret your decision!!!! read more

Brought my 8 month old Siberian Husky to Fine Canine in May, 2008. We had trained with another organization for over 2 months; our training was at a stand still. Both Karma and I were frustrated. During our first one hour Canine Good Citizen class, the trainer spent 2 hours with Karma and myself. We had 2 major problems (that I knew of at the time). Karma would not stay and would not walk nicely on a leash - 2 bad traits common to huskys. The first day of training we had Karma in a down stay for 20 minutes! Over the next couple of classes, Karma was doing things without a leash that I never dreamed of. We received our CGC in July. We then proceeded to take Monica's (owner) therapy and drill team classes. Unbelievable what my little guy is doing with the right stimulation. Karma got his Delta Therapy Registration in January at 15 months. We are now trying agility with another trainer at Fine Canine - Aimee. I can't believe the caliber of all of the trainers that Monica works with - they're great. I love the Siberian Husky breed - Karma is my third. Their "spunkyness" draws me in. Monica and Aimee are helping me work Karma in a way that is enjoyable to him and does not hamper his wonderful husky personality. I would highly recommend all the trainers at Fine Canine. They personalize their service to both the dog, and more importantly, the owner. read more

Monica and her team worked with our 2-year old, twin sister, shepherd mix. There were many things we were very happy with! Monica was straightforward with what we should and should not expect from the training without overpromising (though she over-delivered at the end). Our girls came back less reactive, more focused, and much calmer around other dogs and people, as one of them, especially, was born with a high level of anxiety. It was apparent in her behavior that she became more confident and reactive. Both dogs learned to be more patient (sitting in their spot for much longer period of time without needing to feel like they have to protect everyone around them) and more responsive (looking at us when called, even with distractions). While communications and updates were sparse, the way that she and her staff interacted with and cared for our pups was evident in the way they were very patient with our dogs, and the way they spent extra several days than promised with the dogs to "make up" for the time they'd patiently spent letting the pups get to know and trust them. Most of all, it's great to know that we now have someone we can fully trust to board our dogs when we travel or have family needs. We are very grateful to Monica and her team, and we've already recommended them to our friends and will continue to do so! read more

I am now training my 4th dog with Monica and the Fine Canine. We got our first pure bred Weimaraner 13 years ago. If you know Weimaraners, you know that they are very smart, but need to be disciplined. He started with Puppy training and ended up getting the Canine Good Citizen distinction. He was the most wonderful dog his whole life. When he was two we got our Gracie...a must more high maintenance dog but her training here kept her on track. Having had such high maintenance dogs behave so well their whole lives so when it was time to get a new puppy 12 years later, I sought out Monica and found her at the new location. Thanks to her, our puppy, who is just over a year was a Puppy Star and is already a Canine Good Citizen and finished Therapy dog training....Monica spotted his potential and we are not in Obedience Rally training...he really loves it and keeps him busy and disciplined. Recently, we adopted a rescue Weim. Not knowing his history we weren't sure what we were in for, for sure, but after only 3 weeks in training, we already see a change in obedience and have high hopes for the future. Maybe I should know this all myself by now, but having the other dogs and their owners helps keep you focused, on track and practicing. I would suggest her for any dog as I see her little doggie miracles all the time!! read more

Monica returned our goldendoodle today after completing the 4 week training program and the results were spectacular! He left us as a completely untrained 11 week old puppy, mouthing everything he could get his teeth on. In just four weeks, he knows all his basic commands, several advanced commands, and even a fun party trick....plus, he no longer puts his mouth on anything but his toys, and doesn't jump up on any of us. Myself, my wife and all our kids were blown away by how much Monica was able to accomplish. She kept us informed throughout each week she had him by sending us updates, pictures and videos which all of us looked forward to and eased the time our puppy was away. She spent close to 3 hours with us today answering all our questions, making sure each of us knew how to issue and reinforce the commands, and making sure we could continue the reinforcement of his behaviors. We spoke to several trainers in the area prior to choosing Monica, who we were referred to by close friends, and she instantly won us over and we're so glad she did! I wouldn't hesitate for one second offering our highest recommendation for Monica for your training or boarding needs. In addition to the training we just finished, we will certainly use her for all our boarding needs in the future. read more

We used Monica to board train our 10 week old puppy. My sister-in-law used Monica to train their puppy several years ago, and they have the most well behaved labradoodle. What better recommendation that a well trained dog! We were sad to send our puppy away for 10 days, but knew she was in the best hands. In the 10 days we were gone, Monica sent several text messages with updates on our puppy; including pictures and videos. The last day of the training, the puppy went to a public event and behaved beautifully (even being swarmed by toddlers). When the 10 days were over, Monica spend close to 2 hours with our family reviewing everything the puppy learned. To our amazement, our puppy sat, went down, stayed, went to bed (her doggy pillow), and came when called. We were thrilled!! Monica made sure everyone in the family knew the commands, how to reward the dog, and what to do if the puppy didn't listen. She gave each one of us the tools to continue on with our puppy, as well as the confidence to discipline. Another service Monica offers is to board dogs. We look forward to boarding our puppy with Monica when we are on vacation. I would highly recommend Monica. She is very knowledgable about dog's behavior, training, and is very personable and easy to work with. read more

It is amazing how far my dog (Kohl) has come following the sessions he had with Monica and Aimee. He started off with basic commands/recalls and was doing great until we had a little bit of a mishap with a husky at an off-leash dog park. Ever since, Kohl was in defense mode and showed signs of stress around other dogs. Walking him with dogs around was nightmare!! I signed him up for classes at "elmhurst animal care center" but he literally was kicked out of the first class because the trainer claimed that he was a "threat" to the other dogs (there were only 2 other dogs and all Kohl did was bark!!!). Wasn't that the reason that I took him there in the first place? and wasn't it her job to give me tips on how to calm him down and train him to better behave? It was aggravating!! That same night I came across The Fine Canine School of Dog Training. Monica was very responsive and super friendly over the phone. I brought Kohl in the next day for her to meet him and to sign him up for the "STAYS, RECALLS, AND DISTRACTIONS" classes. Kohl is super sharp and responsive, and she was able to build on that and get us to a point where he can (almost always) be in the presence of other dogs at parks/restaurants/streets and act like the Fine Canine that he is :) read more