Who will be working with my dog?

Bethany is the head trainer at Ruff Beginnings Rehab and will be the primary person to work with your dog and put the program together for your dog. Besides Bethany three other trainers are on staff and will give your dog a more well rounded understanding and generalization of commands.  All is done under Bethany's advisement and is to further the dogs understanding and comfortability with the structure and routine and further proof good behavior.

Do you use food to train?

Using treats is counter productive to creating a calm state of mind where the dog develops a deep relationship with the trainer and owners, though it is great for teaching sports like agility.  What we often use is the dogs daily food.  This creates a very different mindset in the dog and each dog is different.  Some dogs will work for food right away, where others will learn through repetition first before introducing food into the sessions.  Their are some cases where we do not use food for any motivation or positive re-enforcement.  Instead we use affection or play.  We also use sometimes use higher value food (like chicken or beef) to build drive from dogs with severe fear/shutdown issues.  Each case is evaluated specifically to suit the needs of the dog and what will help that specific dog in each specific situation.  

Why do you use prong collars?

We use prongs on most dogs over 12/14 weeks old.  It is one of the safest and easiest tools to work with because of the strong communication you can achieve with your dog.  Prong collars look scary, but when used properly (and it is hard to use them incorrectly) they are the most humane tool you can use because they do not put any pressure on your dogs throat like most of the tools out there.  It creates a very different state of mind where you can quickly get through to the dog using very gentle techniques through the training phase.  

Why do you use Ecollars?

Modern, low-level, remote Ecollar training is the best and most reliable tool to use on a dog of any size.  With an Ecollar you can whisper or shout and is more humane then a leash.  Dogs trained on Ecollars have more freedom and a higher quality of life because of off leash training.  It is also the easiest way to communicate with a dog with severe fear or aggression issues that is so precise and clear that dogs transform in a matter of days and weeks.  It also provides us a transition back to the owner where the new behaviors will stick.  Please check out our videos to see how we use these tools to train the dogs YES and NO.

My dog doesn't need hardcore training, I just want him to listen.  How does this work for me?

We work with everything from 12 week old puppies to senior dogs.  The tools we use is based off of the issues the dog has as well as the owners life-style.  If someone wants an off leash trained dog, low level Ecollar training is perfect.  If your dog just needs a tune-up in walking next to you, then we would look at other options.  We also use socialization with other dogs, slip leashes, dogs daily food, verbal markers, etc. to train dogs and puppies. These programs are catered to fit the needs of the dogs and the owenrs.  MANY dogs we get just need to learn the basics and stay for a few days, then go home where they are easier to control and will respond to basic commands.  This is not just for severe cases, which is a common misconception.  

My dog is so scared and small.  How would an Ecollar help my dog?

Low level communication with Ecollars is the best tool for creating confident dogs (especially dogs scared of people).   Personally I am a huge advocate for these collars on small dogs because they are harder to train.  The Ecollar gives you seamless communication to motivate your fearful pup without putting any physical/spacial pressure and helps build confidence by working your dog through those fears rather then avoiding them.

My dog is aggressive on the walk and/or in the home.  How can this program help me?

Ruff Beginnings Rehab lays the ground work and transfers that style to you through daily schedules based on your life and through training sessions.  This allows us to see amazing results from dogs that have just a few issues to serious reactivity/aggression.  

Is there a guarantee, because I have used other programs before with little improvement?

The combination of our training and the owners consistency and follow through is what determines success with the dog.  Too many factors are involved for us to offer a 100% guarantee and any trainer who does is lying.  However, with the unique program we use combining tools, scheduling, patterning, etc., we target the dogs state of mind about life.  By creating a calmer dog ingeneral, rather then a dog that is waiting for his next cue, or putting a band-aid on the issue, we are able to create good habits that transfers to the owners for the dogs life.