For some background, Mamba was my first ever dog I got, who was a puppy. He was originally a rescue before being fostered before I adopted him. He had very fearful characteristics at first, "grring" and barking at new comers in the home, aggressively barking and lunging at people on walks. I had taken him to Petco for individual sessions only for my pup to get kicked out and get recommended to a "behaviorist" for his behavior. I was looking around and found Keri, and right after the consultation session I knew she was the right fit for Mamba. Mamba has gotten much better around dogs and and other people, and not only that, now I understand his behaviors and what to do in specific situations, She not only trains the dogs, but also emphasizes training the handler (me). After the 6 sessions (I am actually only 5 sessions in) -- I can confidently take Mamba around other people in crowded areas knowing in advance how he will react. Keri is not a trainer, she is a coach and I swear also a dog whisperer. She is very flexible when scheduling and even brought me homemade cookies when my dad passed away. I would 100% recommend Unleashed Abilities and Keri for anyone who genuinely wants to train their dog. read more

Unleashed Abilities - picture of Mamba - Pet Training Near Me

I highly recommend Unleashed Abilities for dog training. My husband and I have always had pets but never sought expert training advice. We decided to go for it with our rescue dog Mabel and we are so happy we did! From the minute we met Keri, we knew it was going to be an excellent experience. Mabel loved her instantly and we started learning immediately, no exaggeration. Keri is fantastic at providing clear, achievable goals and things to work on between lessons. I am confident that Unleashed Abilities can make a world of difference for dogs with any training needs, big or small. Life is so fun with a happy, well-balanced dog! read more

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I highly recommend Kerry and Mark from Unleashed Abilities. We are one of those overwhelmed new owners who got a pandemic puppy--a high-energy golden retriever, named Willow. We worked with Kerry for puppy school to socialize Willow and introduce her to basic commands. Kerry was so helpful, answering all of our questions from potty training basics, to crate training, to how to get her to stop being so mouthy and eating our shoes. She created a great foundation to work from. When Willow was about 8 months old we worked with Mark on polite leash walking (Willow liked to pull us all around the neighborhood) and tightening up her basic obedience and recall (she is very independent minded). She now has a great drop and leave it and sit/down. She also comes when called! With Kerry and Mark's help, Willow is growing up to be such a great dog! We feel grateful to Unleashed Abilities for coaching us through our first year and for helping us welcome Willow into our family. read more

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October 3, 2023 STEPHANIE is truly our dog whisperer!!! When she began working with us, we had a two-month old puppy and were in the middle of moving permanently from MI to VA. Havah loves Stephanie, but more importantly has internalized the commands, skills and techniques she has been introduced to and is working on. The 4 two-hour excursions Havah went on alone with Stephanie in Falls Church and the DC area were amazing. She was exposed to various noises, new situations, adults, children, stores, playgrounds, parks, ponds, and so much more. Stephanie sent pictures and descriptions of each two-hour field trip they spent together, and then we had one-hour follow up coaching sessions later in the week, so we could learn what they had worked on. Stephanie worked with us and Havah in areas we needed support. In addition, she continually asked if there was anything we wanted to focus on. Having a puppy at our age is a challenge. If anything comes up in the future we need support with, we will not hesitate to contact Stephanie. We highly recommend Unleashed Abilities!!! -Cindy Stegman read more

Keri and her team are dog whisperers! When we initially got our Goldendoodle puppy Winnie, we went through positive enforcement based Puppy Manners and Basic Manners classes. Unfortunately, it didn't help when responding to certain behaviors such as such as jumping, counter surfing, and recall. After our initial consultation with Keri where she learned about our pup as well as our behaviors around her, we decided to enroll Winnie in the 8 day dog dayschool program. Keri's method is a balance between positive enforcement and K9 training. Emily was her trainer and Winnie would cry from excitement every time she saw her! After 2-3 classes, I already felt like she was a new dog! She just needed some correction and she definitely learned so much more! We constantly receive compliments on how well behaved and calm she is. Communication was very open and we would receive updates throughout the day while Winnie was in class. I would highly recommend Unleashed Abilities to any new or current dog owner! read more

If you just adopted a puppy, then we would highly recommend scheduling Unleased Abilities very soon after. We have been working with them for the last month and the "puppy stage" has been so much easier on all of us because of Stephanie! She has helped our family of four all get on the same page about training, which has turned the craziness of training into something we could actually manage. Plus, Keri (founder) is such a pleasure to communicate and work with and helps pull all the magic together. The entire team is a joy. Highly recommend! read more

Winston arrived in our home in late June of 2019, he was roughly 20 lbs of Bernedoodle. As he grew we knew we needed help. As he kept growing we were positive. Keri from Unleashed Abilities helped us with initial training. She taught us the basics and worked with us for a month or so. Winston kept growing. He is fairly smart and really responds well to training. However.... he is now over 105 lbs and we needed more help. We are both older and he's really strong. Keri next assigned Mark to help us. Mark worked with Winston for 8 two hour sessions including time with us (to train us). We can now walk by other dogs (admittedly one poodle in heat captured his total attention to my dismay) with just the simple heel and an occasional "leave it" command if he shows too much attention. Not only is Winston trained but we are trained and doing well. He's even more enjoyable if that's possible. Thank you Keri and Mark. 5 Stars! read more

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We did a "Puppy 101" session and I would recommend it for anyone with their first dog! It was mainly a lesson for us new dog owners than a lesson for our pup, and it was exactly what we needed to start off on the right foot with training/ taking care of our new dog. Before the lesson we were all over the place with our training and Keri was able to set us on the right track and we saw an improvement almost immediately with what she had us implement. read more

So, we have this adorable Schnoodle (Oscar) who was rescued from Homeward Trails. Oscar is cuddly, sweet, very sensitive....and also suuuppper excited, barky, and jumpy in new situations. Keri (the owner) knew exactly what Oscar needed (yes, bootcamp) and did an amazing job of training both Oscar (important) and his owners (more important). She's no nonsense, up front and direct about what she can/can't do, and in our case an absolute lifesaver. Train your dogs, peeps. read more

We brought our 11 month old Bernese Mountain Dog to Keri in October of 2018. Keri immediately assessed his strengths and weaknesses through individual sessions and was able to clearly articulate to us exactly what we needed to do to improve Boone's behavior. Keri's communication throughout the process was timely and easy to understand, which is exactly what we needed. She provided us with the tools and techniques that we are now using on a daily basis. We have seen tremendous improvement and are completely satisfied with Keri and Unleashed Abilities. We are recommending them to all of our friends. read more

I'm updating my previous review of Unleashed Abilities and the Puppy Kindergarten class. The puppy class can now be found at Krisers. This is the same exact physical location it was previously being held out. It switched owners but the puppy classes are continuing. Thanks to the puppy class, I get comments that my dog is "so sweet" and really socialized. Because of the variety of puppies she encountered in her class, she doesn't get nervous around bigger dogs. I've had some questions about training my dog, so I've had Keri from Unleashed Abilities out to my house for private sessions and they all went great. I love her style of teaching and her approach to dog training. It doesn't feel like a chore to train Moxie and we're both having fun during it! read more

I reached out to Keri when I needed help with our rescued pit mix, a former stray with fear issues and basically no leash training at 5 years old. There are a lot of dog trainers in the Northern Virginia area who believe in positive reinforcement only. However, as an adult dog who had never been taught appropriate boundaries as a puppy, our dog simply was not responding to positive-only methods. Keri uses a combination of consequences and rewards at key moments, teaching owners to be extremely effective at showing dogs what is expected. This means less time wasted on uncertainty on your dog's part, and more time to enjoy the dog/human relationship! Keri's method is balanced and tailored to individual needs. Since we only had room in our budget for the smallest package, Keri jumped right in to make the most efficient use of our time. Yes, we were the ones doing all the grunt work in between sessions, but Keri was always there for an encouraging text message or the mental boost when needed. Under Keri's guidance, we felt like we had a clear path toward improvement. Keri was able to show us how to use what would be problematic situations to "set the dog up for success." The more we trained in those situations, the more positive results we saw. With consistent practice, we slowly felt more confident in our dog, and our dog in turn became more confident in us. Keri helped bring some balance into our canine-human relationship that we didn't realize we were missing. We went from having a dog that would growl at babies or lunge at the pizza man to a dog that walks calmly beside us and waits for our cue. If you often find yourself trying and failing to communicate what you want from your dog, and especially if your dog has problem behaviors, hire Keri! She is a puppy mind-reader and has a wealth of knowledge to share. read more

Our German Shepherd was five months old when we enrolled Ember at Unleashed Abilities. She not only took Ember to teach her the basics but also had sessions with us to show us the proper techniques. Keri's passion for dogs is obvious. We now have the skills and tools to help us with teaching Ember. This was an amazing experience. read more

Unleashed Abilities - Pet Training Near Me

Looking for a fabulous trainer for your four legged buddy? I cannot say enough good things about Keri, owner of "Unleashed Abilities." Keri is no nonsense yet very tender. She had the challenge of our new chocolate lab who is full of himself as well as our 7 yr. old yellow lab who had some habits that were annoying. She got our boys on target with helpful demonstrations and suggestions. You can teach an old dog new tricks. Keri exudes love for what she does, a former elementary school teacher like me so we really connected! Marge T of Fairfax read more

In two short sessions Keri worked with my two rescue dogs to stop pulling and barking on walks. Cupcake and Pumpkin are adorable but these behaviors were spoiling walks for all of us. The dogs trusted her and responded. And she taught me how to be in control of the dogs--not the other way around! I highly recommend Keri. read more

After just 4 consecutive 1.5-2hr training sessions with Keri and lots of practice at home, my 4yr old easily distracted labrador retriever finally started performing basic commands on "My Terms" for a change! We worked in the park with lots of great distractions as Keri suggested. Teaching Max to obey commands by introducing him to the educator (E) collar was a very positive experience for us both. Thank you Keri for always packing with biscuits and water! Your calm and convincing demeanor during our training helped yield a calm, happy well rounded pooch. read more

This review is for the puppy class at Wylie Wagg only, and not the in-home training. While Keri is certainly good with the dogs, she was not good at planning a program. In fact, it seemed like she had no plan at all. She could never keep track of what we had done or had not done, and there were entire days when we learned nothing new at all. Not ok considering we had all paid for teaching. The socialization aspect was fine, but you don't need to pay $200 to let your puppy play with others. Overall not worth the time or money. read more

A true dog whisperer and people trainer! Keri approaches dog training with the perspective that training a dog is also about training the owners to communicate effectively with their dogs. My husband and I (and our lab, Lucy) first worked with Keri in her puppy kindergarten class at Wylie Wagg. We immediately all loved Keri's natural dogmanship approach - Lucy quickly learned to self calm, give eye contact on request, come, walk on a leash, sit, down, stay, go to her designated place, and play nicely with other dogs. Keri also introduced us to certain toys and tools to help Lucy in her development. After puppy kindergarten completed, we signed up for the basic obedience course with Keri through Fairfax. This class focused more on obedience, coming when called off leash, heeling, greeting other dogs, focusing and listening to the handler even with other distractions, longer stays in a designated place, etc. It was a the perfect continuation of our training and we all enjoyed it thoroughly. Keri gave each owner and person specific attention and specialized direction in a group setting. We left promising to return for another session. Recently, Lucy had developed a fear of stairs (resulting from a fall) and we called in Keri for a private session in our home. When she arrived, Lucy was thrilled and Keri spent a few moments playing with her, thereby setting the tone for a good session. Keri listened to us and asked many questions. She then worked with Lucy directly on the stairs for a bit, all the while talking us through the psychology of what was happening and the philosophy of her approach. Lucy successfully went down the stairs severall times! Keri then worked with us and taught us how to do the same. She gave us homework and told us to keep practcing with Lucy. She also encouraged us to text her with updates. Just 3 days after the session, Lucy trotted down the basement stairs on her own with no coaxing from us - success!! Keri is an amazing trainer with a true desire to help build relationships between people and their dogs. At this point, we have recommended her to at least 4 other families and are constantly singing her praises when people compliment us on the disposition and obedience of our Lucy. She's as good as it gets. read more

We are so pleased with Keri's approach to training our golden doodle puppy, and for matching us with Mark to provide the day school training. Our 6 month puppy is more calm and happier now that he knows the rules and limits, and is even more adorable as Mark's wise and gentle approach transfers to us as we continue in enforcing what our puppy has learned. Dog whisperer applies as a term, but Mark was careful to explain that it is the type of training and approach, that carries the day, nothing magical about it! read more

Keri did an amazing job teaching me and my stubborn terrier how to use the ecollar. The results were virtually miraculous. He was a rescue who wouldn't follow most commands and after the work that Keri did to patiently train me and Pierre he is literally a different dog. You CAN teach an old dog new tricks! Pierre is now an off leash dog thanks to Keri and he actually follows all of the commands now! read more

Keri is a true dog whisperer right here in Falls Church! She gets dogs and as a result dogs love her. She brings out the best in dogs and their humans in her training sessions. I highly recommend her! read more

I want to thank Keri for all of the encouragement and help she gave us with our rescue Shayna. She was an extremely fearful and timid pup. Keri's extensive knowledge of dog and owner behavior helped us to help our puppy to overcome many of her issues. Wylie Wagg classes helped all of our dogs to interact in a safe a fun environment. Keri's teaching is fun ,but most importantly It Works!!!!!!! Thanks a Million, Linda Siegel read more

We loved working with Keri! She is passionate about what she does and is truly an expert. We rescued a 4 year old lab/shepherd who needed leash training. With Keri's help, we were able to get a better collar/leash combo and learn better walking habits with our dog. She is prompt, responsive, and our dog really loved her :) We are so happy we went with Keri and highly recommend her. read more

I highly recommend new puppy owner's take advantage of Keri's incredible knowledge and sign up for puppy kindergarten. Not only was it great for socializing my puppy, she helped teach me so many useful tips. I have used her training techniques and my dog has thrived with them. Keri is truly a dog whisperer! read more

UPDATE: In her response to my review below, Keri is simply not being honest. She says she offered to reschedule or meet in another location. This is not true. She wrote me "So sorry but I'm going to have to pass. I have to stay healthy or my business stops." That's it. Period. Full stop. INITIAL REVIEW: Do not hire her. After much back and forth, we decided to hire Keri Putonen to help us with a puppy biting our children. My first message to her conveyed that my wife has cancer and we told her we were desperate for some help in a limited time frame. After much back and forth, she accepted the opportunity and we made arrangements. I let the other trainers know we had chosen someone else and thanked them. Two hours before arriving, she emailed asking if anyone in the house was contagious with anything as she was a "one woman operation." (Note her website says she has assistant trainers, which is now clearly a fabrication) I told her that our three kids (ages 7, 5 and 2) whom I had already obviously told her about all had some sort of sniffle or cough as it is January, but all is fine and given my wife's ailment, we were very health/germ conscious. An hour before arriving she canceled on us - simply stating she was "taking a pass." This is a former teacher, supposedly, that does not remember that little kids get runny noses in the winter. What a waste of time, especially given what my family is going through. I'm so disappointed. I was already suspicious of her use of e-collars which is a shortcut most trainers don't recommend, but her unprofessional conduct was terrible. I guess we dodged a bullet here. If you have kids...or a runny nose...find someone else who knows how to run a business and help families. read more

Kari came to our house and helped us get started with our new rescue dog, giving us tips on very basic things. However, when it became clear that our dog had separation anxiety, Kari had no advice or help to offer whatsoever. I found wonderful trainers with true expertise elsewhere. read more

I was referred to Keri by a friend and coworker who really did call her a dog whisperer. While this is accurate, I would say she is even more of a people whisperer. We have a new rescue who was a bit unruly on a leash and while he obviously needed some structure, I think we as owners needed a bit more. We opted for the private training sessions to give our new dog a little more time to really adapt to our neighborhood and likely scenarios. She focused on our leash handling abilities and just overall our relationship to our dog while walking. We even had the opportunity to have Tucker interact with her own dogs, which was a perfect practice session. It has been a view weeks since we have last seen Keri and both we and our dog have come so far. Keri is not just a good trainer during sessions, but she sets you up for success long after she is gone and her guidance will have a lasting effect. I would totally recommend if you are serious about training your dog. read more

When I adopted my rescue darling pup Sadie I knew it was me who needed training as well as Sadie. Keri was recommended by a neighbor. Such a blessing. The kindergarten class had a variety of purebred and mixes and Keri emphasized socialization. Each class was so much fun. Keri is so excellent and gives the classes a very personal experience for each dog family. She has a young niece who helps and welcomes children to the classes. As a result my Sadie is great with kids. Knew her sits stay down before six months and is well socialed to get along with other dogs. I highly recommend Keri and her puppy kindergarten class. read more

We have only worked with Keri once, and she was very friendly and a wealth of information! She has given us a great place to start, and we are looking forward to working with her again soon! read more

We used Unleashed Abilities recently to help with our fearful rescue dog. Keri is like the Dog Whisperer. She has a great way with our dog and was very tuned in to the dog's immediate needs. I highly recommend Keri. read more

I have an Australian Shepherd who is very enthusiastic about everything. Keri showed me how to calm my puppy down so we could begin to learn manners. I highly recommend Unleashed Abilities. I was referred by a friend, who could not say enough good things about her experience. read more

I'm not sure the details of the previous review, but I found Keri to be a joy to work with. I chose to work with Keri for individual training sessions, and it was absolutely worth the investment. I have a very high energy dog (Lana) who is unfortunately allergic to most types of proteins. This means that the PetsMart positive training classes went out the window when she couldn't have all the treats she loved as an incentive. I contacted Keri after months of struggling with Lana on walks and hikes and I am sad I didn't reach out to Keri sooner! Keri came out and did a comprehensive consultation where she really listened to what the needs and challenges that I was facing with my dog. She went out of her way to devise ideas for training Lana (and even came up with a treat recipe that my super allergic dog could have), and explained training techniques to me in a very helpful but not in the least condescending manner (which I imagine can happen with trainers sometimes). Keri helped me learn the best ways to redirect and teach my dog everything from proper greetings for people to not reacting to other dogs or squirrels (the bane of Lana's existence) and loose leash walking. Never did I think that I would be able to walk Lana with one finger looped in the leash when previously I had a death grip, but I can now! All I can say is, outside of the decision to adopt my dog, choosing to work with Keri is one of the best decisions I have made in the pet parent arena. I don't just love my dog now, but really enjoy spending time with her doing things that previously would have been stressful and draining, like walking or hiking. read more

We reached out to Keri for help with our two-year-old Spanish Water Dog's anxiety around other dogs. Keri is a pleasure to work with and instantly made a strong connection with our dog. We selected Keri's week-long day school classes, and Beau went to class each day very willingly. She would pick him up at our house and drop him off a few hours later. At a local park, they would work through their exercises where other dogs and children provided welcomed distractions. We had our first group class after a handful of private sessions, as Beau learned quickly and it became clear to us that "our" training was the key to his continued good and confident behavior around other dogs. Keri was so skilled at picking up on our inconsistent signals to Beau and helping us understand how he was hearing us. She also introduced us to a number of collar and leash options to fit varying circumstances. Perhaps what we appreciate the most about Keri's training philosophy is that our training with her is an ongoing relationship. While we have completed our formal training sessions, we are welcome to call Kerri at any time for assistance in working though new situations or simply to ask for a refresher class. We all are more confident in our walks with Beau thanks to Kerri. read more