Ugh, I really had high hopes for Total Recall, but was let down in pretty much every regard. We did puppy kindergarten for our now 2 yo golden in Seattle, where we lived at the time, and had such a fantastic experience. So when we recently got a Newfie puppy, we knew we wanted to enroll her in a kindergarten class. A lot of people in the area (we're in White Bear Lake) recommended Total Recall, and since it was a super easy drive up 61, we picked them. My biggest gripe with them is that there's no puppy playtime. In a PUPPY KINDERGARTEN class. It makes no sense! Every other person I've talked to about this level class were all also taken aback that Total Recall doesn't incorporate this into their class. Plus, the instructor we had was very standoffish and cold, to both humans and puppies. Very off-putting. Here's what a "puppy kindergarten" class consists of: 15 minutes of the instructor telling horror stories of past puppies and answering people's questions that have little to nothing to do with anyone else in the class, while puppies bark and squirm. Doing the same pointless exercise 3 times in a row - my favorite was when they set up a tiny "agility" course without any reason, only to plug another class they sell. Then dismissing early. We ended up skipping the last 2 of our 6 classes because it just felt like such a waste of time. TL;DR: find a different trainer. read more

Total Recall is a fantastic place to train your dog. Sue Mills-Kothe is an expert dog trainer and applies training based on motivation & leadership principles - a very kind approach. Our 1 year old Shih Tzu would not go for walks with me. I took him to the beginner obedience class and he was walking with me after 1 lesson. Now he gets excited to go to training & we're in the intermediate obedience class. We highly recommend Total Recall School for Dogs! read more

I have been going to Total Recall School for Dogs since 2005 when I got my very first dog. He was a rescue. Obedience class levels 1 and 2 (only classes I have taken) are very structured. The 2 instructors I was in class with were very knowledgeable and understanding of BOTH ends of the leash. The years of experience they have enable them to address many issues in a positive manner. I was very grateful that they didn't allow "playtime" as my dog had been bitten by another dog shortly I adopted him. It took several sessions for him to be more comfortable around other dogs. Their prices are reasonable, class times are convenient, and the couple that owns/runs it are genuinely kind people. I wouldn't go anywhere else! read more

We've finished puppy class, puppy agility, beginner obedience. We had Gretta for the 1st 2 classes and Sue for the obedience class. Luna(our pup) loves going there and gets really excited when she sees where she is. They taught our family how to lead our puppy (we need as much or more training than the pup) with all her energy. Now that we have learned how to lead our pup I would never go back to my old stlye of training. How nice it is to have a dog that listens to its leaders and heels on walks. I have confidence when I meet another dog on a walk with a word Luna will switch sides. We plan on going here for years to come. I almost walked out on first class because it was different then process I learned years ago. What a mistake that would have been. read more

I've been to over thirty classes here so far and my dog and I thoroughly enjoy them. My dog is an Australian Shepherd and really over the top in drive and excitability. I rescued her at about 1 1/2 years of age with virtually no training in her at all. I've actually got quite a lot of experience training this level of dog but I approach this with the attitude that I can always learn something new or the may be a better way of achieving results. Socializing my dog with other dogs as far as just being around each other is very important. We get this here. All of the trainers have been really knowledgeable and have helped me with dealing with my dog. They also let me progress at my own rate to achieve class goals and my goals. I'm not training for competition but " street wise". I want my dog to be able to handle things in day to day situations as she goes nearly everywhere I go. Classes are fast moving and there is very little "stand around time". And so it is an enjoyable time for us. We give 5 stars. read more

I love this school! Grete is awesome and does a great job training people and their dogs!

Customer service is awful and Glen is absolutely rude. I was trying to obtain information about a class and my desire to register for it. I started by sending an email and received a response that did not even pertain to the class I was asking about. Sent another email and received a partial answer to my question. So then I started calling and finally got someone on the phone. Glen told me he sent me an email with all of the detail I needed to register for a class. I said, I'm sorry, but I did not receive that email. Could you please resend it. He refused to do this. He said that he had already sent out about 60 emails that day and wasn't going to send another one. Glen I'm sorry that you're so busy. If you keep treating your customers this way, maybe you won't have to worry about customer emails in your future. read more

As an update, one of the employees of Total Recall called me after I posted this and he told me that he did try calling back. The guy was obviously hot under the coller and told me it was my fault not his that we never made contact. I felt like I was arguing with a 5 year old. Stick with the dogs, buddy. Your people skills blow. Furthermore, he told me that he was going to Yelp me! I won't accept anything less than 4 stars. read more