A Kid's Best Friend Dog Training

A Kid's Best Friend Dog Training A Kid's Best Friend Dog Training helps strengthen the bond between kids and best friend--dogs!

11/02/2023

Hi everyone,
I am no longer working as a dog trainer or am open to the public. I do offer boarding services to CURRENT CLIENTS ONLY, not to the public, so please do not recommend me to people who haven't worked with me. We enjoy having the current dogs we've worked and that we've gotten to know well. These dogs blend in with our family and are no trouble to board. We are happy to continue to board your dogs but would like to get some family time back. Also, due to my health, I can no longer "wrestle" with dogs on dog walks or try to get them into kennels.

I do ask that if you continue to board with us, to please keep your dog familiar with the training rules I worked hard to instill in your dog. We don't expect perfection (no dog is perfect), but they need to be crate trained or at least familiar with their crate and housetrained.

Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity and chance to work with your dog. We've built so many good memories that we love to share with others.

03/29/2023

Use the Turn Ariund to stop excitement. Notice how Joey is very abrupt?

This family lives down the street from me and lost their home to a house fire, along with their dog, Coda. Coda was one ...
03/20/2023

This family lives down the street from me and lost their home to a house fire, along with their dog, Coda. Coda was one of the first dogs I've trained, and she often came for boarding, so this hits hard for me. They were so proud of their dog, she truly was one of the best dogs I've ever had the privilege to work with. Please consider giving something to this family, as they have lost everything. (Their cat is missing as well.)
https://gofund.me/1471e42d

Thank you for the kind messages sent my way! I'm still recovering from everything but am home from the hospital. I had s...
11/24/2022

Thank you for the kind messages sent my way! I'm still recovering from everything but am home from the hospital. I had some strange "heartburn" on Tuesday that quickly accelerated as an unbearable pain in my chest. My social worker (who helps my autistic son) was here thankfully and she called 911. What we thought was simply heartburn with a panic attack (EKG initially looked fine) was an aortic dissection that resulted in a heart attack (the pain was the dissection, the heart attack happened in the ambulance on the way to the hospital.) I ended up losing consciousness and went into full cardiac arrest which they were able to bring me back with CPR and a few shocks from the defibulator.

Which brings me to the point of writing all of this--I am no longer going to be doing Train and Board, where I keep dogs with me for two weeks for training. I had been struggling for a while now, and was trying to figure out a way to train but not so intensively. Many of the dogs that come have jumping habits, too rough, and could be difficult to put in their kennels. My heart hasn't been able to handle this sort of exertion for a long time. The heart attack is what finally made me accept this.

I would now like to offer one-on-one training classes in my own home, as I still am offering boarding to my clients, and can't be away from the dogs who are boarding here (otherwise they would never get out of their kennels!) This is ideal, as I would have you work with your own dog and you will be able to work on this at home as well.

I'm also going to offer simply one-time consultations which can be done either remotely or in my home. I will have a calendar for sign up either here or on my website (haven't figured that out yet.)

I'm excited about this idea as I don't want to give up dog training completely and yet, I still can keep my heart safe without worrying about over-exertion.

I will continue to update these changes as I work on them. I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

11/18/2022

Hello all,
Some changes coming up in my services!
This past Tuesday, I suffered a heart attack (an arterial dissection) which stopped my heart and had to be restarted with a CPR and shocks. This actually is not my first heart attack or cardiac arrest, as I had one before in my 30s. I'm still in the hosptial and will be receiving an internal artifical defibillator if my heart stops again., which is both comforting and terrifying, haha.

I've been thinking about cutting back on my dog training for a while, as I've been getting more and more fatigued while working with dogs, but this last event has helped me to make that difficult decision. I do enjoy dog training and working with people. and although my body sometimes tells me different, I don't feel ready to retire yet.

So for that reason, starting in December, I will not be offering in-person dog training anymore, to try to keep things a little bit safer for myself. However, I will be offering remote training over Zoom and perhaps even basic obedience classes.

I will also continue to offer boarding to clients I have worked with already. I know these dogs, they know me, and I usually don't have to struggle with them to listen. Dogs that I have not worked with, can be untrusting and resistant, and so for this reason, I won't be able to board anyone's dog outside my "dog training family"

Thank you for letting me train your dog and continue to improve my skills. I have a lot to learn from each and every day.

I'll be in touch soon about remote classes or one on one training sessions as soon as things settle down and I figure out a plan.

Thank you!

08/29/2022

A reminder to everyone: Dog trainers and behaviorists do not train your dog--you do.
Trainers get you on the right path, we help you see why your dog behaves as they do, where the behavior started and how to stop it.
Your dog will CONTINUE practicing those behaviors until you decided to step up and practice leadership
Leadership is not intimidation, it is leading.
Dogs need order. Without it, you get very disordered behaviors.
Do not blame the trainer for your mistakes. It isn't right or fair.

08/03/2022

To everyone who is new or checking out my page for the first time--welcome! I am a one person business within my own home and have five children. If you do not hear from me, I apologize. I do my best to respond to every email and phone call but I do not have the luxury of time in long phone calls. Email work best for me. Thank you for understanding this! If you cannot wait for me, I totally understand that you must move on with looking for a trainer that can respond promptly.

Thank you!

05/04/2022

I know it sounds like a broken record, but it's true: if you want to teach your dog new habits, you have to be super consistent about what you want.
If you don't want your dog to jump, find a way to let him/her know that is effective (not abusive.) Those who have worked with me know I use the Pet Corrector a lot. Be consistent. Spray every time your dog jumps so he knows that *this is what happens whenever I jump."
Consistency is the key. You will see a change in your dog's manners in literally 1-2 days if you are consistent.

04/26/2022

Just a reminder to everyone that I only do boarding for dogs that I have trained--I do not board dogs that I don't know.
thanks!

04/13/2022

A fun tidbit about service dogs: you are not allowed to pet them OR talk to them as you are walking by ("Hi, doggie!") While this seems unnecessarily strict, it's because you are teaching the dog distraction. If you see handlers get a little annoyed when this happens, that's why. It takes a lot of work to get the dog to keep focus only on you.

Another tidbit fact: dogs are just fine with reduced affection and attention (meaning from others) as long as they are getting it from their handlers. In fact, this is really all they need to be happy. We have gotten in a very bad habit of over-treating our dogs in basically everything: food, treats, comfort, affection--which is why they are usually badly behaved. Dogs are pack animals; they are happy as long as they're within a pack.

04/11/2022

We've had some big changes to our household lately. One being that we lost a pack member--Ace. And another being that my son Max, received his medical alert dog over the weekend. While we very much miss Ace, Alexai is not in any way a replacement to fill Ace's spot. It was a year ago that we put our application in to the Diabetic Alert Dogs of America and Ace was not sick back then.

So meet Alexai! A wonderful add on to our pack, however, he is running solo as he is only Max's dog. So you may see glimpses of Alexai here and there, but he will not be playing or mixing in with any other dogs that are here as he is always a service dog, not a pet. We are so excited to have Alexai here and that Max has a friend to help him with his blood sugars! I made a short video of Max's greeting with Alexai. Forgive the dramatics of it; I feel very emotional about it. I am so happy Max has Aleaxai.

03/17/2022

Lately I've been getting a lot of people who have adopted or thinking of adopting a dog that are either too high spirited for their energy, or too large to handle. Many of these dogs have been rehomed.

Friends, please don't feel the need to rescue every dog that tugs at your heart. Adopting is not the time to think with your heart, but with your head. Think ahead:

Can I meet this dog's exercise needs? (If not, you will pay for it by excessive chewing, barking, jumping and other unwanted behaviors.) How big is this dog going to get? Is my home environment going to meet his needs? Do I have medical conditions that might make it hard to care for the dog? Am I at the right age to handle this particular (breed/size/exercise requirements)?

Before adopting, request a temperament test. Don't just go off of a volunteer's say so of "he/she is a good dog". You are about to bring in a stranger with teeth into your home; do you know how he will handle your children? Other dogs? Noise and environment?

Ask yourself why you want to get *this* particular dog, and be honest with yourself. Having a cute face or a funny personality is not enough. Always go by the dog's temperament and ask a professional trainer to do the test, not a volunteer. I have nothing against volunteers (I was one myself) but most of them are not trained to do temperament testing.

Last, don't be afraid to pass up the dog that doesn't suit your environment and lifestyle. You are not abandoning the dog. You are just not the right family. It does more harm to the dog to bring him to your home, get him settled, just to return him and disrupt his life once again.

So if you are thinking of adopting, follow this guideline:

1. Am I thinking with my head or my heart?
2. I am not the dog's only rescuer. There are other rescuers out there too!
3. It is ok to say no and find a dog that I can fully commit to.

Address

210 Casper Street
Norwood Young America, MN
55368

Opening Hours

Monday 7am - 4pm
Tuesday 7am - 5pm
Wednesday 8am - 6pm
Thursday 7am - 4pm
Saturday 7am - 2pm

Telephone

+19522003349

Website

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