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March 2024 by Keith Cox
The team at Five Star Dog Resort always delivers just like their name. We have been using them for over seven years. Love how they have weekend hours available for drop off and pick up. Highly recommend them for your dog boarding needs.
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November 2023 by Reade Simonds
Darren is amazing.. great person and awesome trainer!! My Fur-partner Huck is a far better pup because of his talent and masterful skills.And Sadie is an incredible Master at her trade. Huck loves her and he sure does look fabulous and smells yummy… These guys are top notch!!!!
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November 2023 by Jason Phipps
Both puppies were timid/frightened and became aggressive after nearly a month of training. They went in happy and energetic for obedience training and they came out deathly scared of strangers. Have had 9 dogs (all rescues). First time getting two pups at one time and we thought training would be great idea…didn’t work out.
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July 2023 by Linda Stanley
When we got our golden doodle I was very skeptical that someone would help us train our new puppy. Darren and his team not only exceeded our expectation but gave us more than we could ever think. Our puppy is such a well behaved 7 month old pup. We owe it all to Darren and his techniques. I would recommend him to all dog owners.
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May 2023 by Carolyn Lee
I've been taking my dog to the Five Star Dog Resort for years and my dog loves it! He hates going to the vet or the groomer's but he pulls to get inside the building when I pull up to the resort. They have private rooms for all the dogs so they don't see each other and get stressed out or bark. The staff is wonderful and the owner, very hands-on. I give them 5 stars!!
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October 2022 by Paul V.
Over my 20 years of dog ownership, we've kenneled our dogs at plenty of places. Of them, 5 Star is amongst the best when it comes to caring about your pet. They have a strong focus on this, even going so far as to call me during our last vacation and asking if they can order something for my dog to help him be more comfortable. No kennel has ever done that before!The only thing that I don't care for at this kennel is you can't bring their dog beds, which is because they clean the kennels daily, but they do provide mats for the dogs to lay on. Otherwise, love this place. The owner is very involved on a daily basis and also does dog training, a service we haven't taken advantage of yet.
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September 2022 by Kathleen Versteeg
We just completed on and off leash training with Daren and I could not be happier with the results. Daren was extremely flexible with the way we approached on leash training. Both my papillon and I have made great strides and we work in harmony with each other now. Life around the house is so much easier I wish I had gone through this training much earlier. Daren is always available for questions or additional insight which makes our continued training much easier. Thank Daren for everything!
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May 2022 by Lyle Lawson
TIME OUT FOR DOGS ? Yes it works !!! We went to Darren with a huge problem for us, we thought we would have to rehome one of our beloved dogs. Our 15 year year old Highland Westie and 14 month old Great Pyrenees had decided that they did not like each other and started to fight, with the Westie on the loosing side even though he started the fights. Darren explained in detail the psychology of their behavior and a plan for time out when they started to fight. IT WORKED !!!! THANK YOU DARREN.
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April 2022 by David Butler
We are so thankful we found this company. This was our first puppy and we’re clueless of what we we’re in store for. After about 2 weeks of trying to train our dog on our own, we brought him in. We decided to do on leash and off leash training. It was worth every penny. Our dog listens to directions and respects us. We learned that dogs want to be trained and it makes them have a better personality. We also board our dog here because we know he’s in great hands and our dog enjoys going back. Everyone on their staff is great. I Highly recommend 5 Star Dog resort
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March 2022 by Eric Abercrombie
We added a rescue pup to the family late last year….but having no real experience with dogs we needed help. Daren was recommended to us by the people we adopted Apollo from so we signed up for training as soon as we could. To his credit, Daren does his best to set expectations and, as many have posted in their reviews, it’s not just about training the dog - but rather about training people. Apollo is still a puppy (8mos as of this post), but with Daren’s help we’ve been able to settle him down and get him to walk on leash and are currently working to walk off leash. Still in the throws of that, but we’ve had great success. It’s a process and not as easy as flipping a switch, but Daren knows dogs and they love him - it’s apparent when we come back to see him for check ins. If you are looking for a trainer, I’d definitely give Daren & Five Star Dog Resort a call.
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March 2022 by JG
Daren worked closely with us to develop the right on-leash training program for our 5yr old rescue. We are extremely happy with the results and will be moving on to off-leash training.We’ve also used Five Star for boarding and feel very comfortable with the staff and accommodations.We highly recommend Daren and the pack at Five Star.
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January 2022 by Sarah Tendler
To say that Daren has changed our lives would be an understatement. We have one German Shepherd that has been a breeze to train (she’s almost 8 now) but when we got our male German Shepherd puppy in July of 2020 it didn’t take us long to realize we were in over our heads. We tried a previous trainer without much luck (and actually some bad side effects). As he got bigger, we realized that we’d have to try again with a different trainer or soon he’d be too strong for me to handle.That’s when we met Daren. From our first phone conversation we knew we were in good hands. We set up a consultation immediately and after meeting him we knew he was the right man for the job. Daren has a deep knowledge of dog psychology (and human psychology) and within the first few sessions we saw remarkable results. Daren is incredibly perceptive and will pick up on things you never realized you were doing that cause your dog to react in a certain way.He doesn’t talk about it much, but Daren is a person who has trained police dogs, search and rescue dogs, and even dogs who jump out of helicopters. He’s seen it all, trained it all, and no issue is too big (or dog too crazy) for him.Now when we go out of town, you can already guess where we leave Huey. Daren cares for these animals as if they are his own (and I’ve seen how much he loves his own two dogs). If you are boarding with him, just know this – he has intentionally designed and built his facility with dog psychology in mind, so that they are as happy, safe, clean, and comfortable as they can be.We are life-long fans for sure. Take it from a dog mom that is super protective of her fur babies, this is where you want to go.
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January 2022 by Christy Hulsey
I recommend Five Star Pet Resort for bathing and for training. We have a Mastiff-mix. He can be timid and challenging we think because of his life before the animal shelter we found him in. Darin and the staff trained us so that we can provide this poor pup with a second chance at life. And, that’s amazing!!
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January 2022 by Kevin Isenberg
I’m honestly not sure where to start. We have a one year old Bernadoodle named Peyton. He hasn’t ever been mean, but he pulled on his leash a LOT and often barked at other dogs. We tried using a dog trainer before Darren and the results were marginal at best. I actually met Darren when we boarded our dog. He got Peyton to calm down immediately and suggested that we find a trainer. Never did I feel hard sold or that Peyton would be some kind of business transaction. We decided to try Darren, despite not having a great experience with the other trainer. I can’t emphasize enough how much Peyton improved.Since we’ve had Peyton back from Darren, he’s much less anxious, heels on the leash and will lay down and stay for 10+ minutes at a time. He’s a completely different dog. Sometimes dogs don’t like trainers or going to stay overnight. Make no mistake, Peyton LOVES Darren and we do too.I highly recommend Darren as a dog trainer (and whisperer) or for boarding your dog.
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December 2021 by Diane Hummer
When Daren, told me it was easy to train the dogs, not as easy to train the humans, I thought I understood. But nothing could have prepared me for the change I saw when I brought my 5LB Chihuahua/Corgi mix "Star" home. She was a different dog. Only 5months old she is just developing her own personality and that is in part because of our neighborhood "dog whisperer," Daren.I had a Chihuahua/Terrier mix "Jersey," for 16yrs and was never able to really get her to respond to commands or pay attention unless I was screaming. Something, I really did not like. So, when 'Jersey Girls' time was up and I found Star, I was determined to have a different experience of dog ownership.When I saw how Star responded to Daren after her two weeks of in-boarding, I was so impressed I knew I had found the right place. The Five Star Dog Resort has an incredible team led by Daren. Star just came home and boy are we on a journey together. :) I am being trained by her each day. Star is testing me which he prepared me for. But I stay committed to our journey together. I understand things I never could have without this companies support and look forward to more words of wisdom as this human is being trained!!!Thanks to all of you at Five Star!!!
