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March 2024 by Laurie Waytovich
Jeff and Aaron (trainers) were truly amazing with my 3 yr old 125lb crazy loving Bermese Mtn dog, Sammy! I took him there like a bull in a china shop, literally, when we were tackling him to try and catch him. He wouldn’t listen and always wanted to play. After 4 weeks boarding and training he came back to us the most gentle & obedient dog ever. We can take him anywhere and he’s always welcomed. Thank you Ridgeside k-9 for your amazing work.Your groomer, Alesha, is awesome, kind and very informative on your pets grooming needs.Thanks Alesha!!!!
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March 2024 by Kelsey Grubb
The best money we ever spent was on board and train with Ridgeside. Came back twice! We love our dogs and would do anything for them but never anticipated the quality of life shift this would have not only for them but for us too. Communication is seamless. They are happier animals and we are happier owners. Yes they are capable of all the amazing things on the list, but it is the intangibles that are really game changers. Our two (once crazy labs) are more calm, more confident, more happy and as a result have more freedom.
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February 2024 by Zach Maldonado
Phenomenal experience all around. We’re extremely happy we found Ridgeside and did the 3 week board and train for our large 1 year old German Shepherd. Our trainer Iggy is absolutely top notch. He picked up Roxy from our house and spent time listening to our priorities and reviewing the program. We received an update every day of the training. When he brought Roxy back to our house, Iggy spent nearly three hours reviewing Roxy’s progress, teaching us how to use some new tools, and doing joint training until we were comfortable as owners. He reached out the following day just to make sure Roxy’s transition back home was going well.Roxy came back to us a much more confident, attentive dog. There’s zero leash pulling, her reactivity to other dogs is vastly improved, and her responsiveness to commands is night and day from a few weeks ago. Additionally, I’m confident I can reach out to Iggy at any time to follow up on any training issues or questions I have. Worth every penny spent, can’t recommend Ridgeside K9 enough.
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February 2024 by Carleigh Councell
Zach with Ridgeside K-9 was such a huge help to our family, he did an amazing job working to not only understand our dog and her needs, but to work through them and build her confidence. He and his fiancé made her comfortable at their home during the board and train and treated her like one of their own. Kept up daily communication on how she was doing and what they were doing with her training.When she came back home, he took the time to go over every detail with us, and give us the tools to help her continue to succeed.We can’t thank them enough
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February 2024 by Alana Leder
Iggy did an absolutely OUTSTANDING job training my dog, Jack. From the start he asked what previous training my dog was coming to the table with, what my goals were, and how he would achieve those goals as well as how I would continue to work on those skills once Jack came home. I also loved getting daily updates on progress as well as photos and videos of Jack. Iggy came recommended from someone who had their dog trained through him, and it’s easy to see why!
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February 2024 by Brooke April
We couldn’t be more satisfied with Johnnie and Ridgeside (Bluemont/Loudoun). We chose Ridgeside for our 5 month old GSP puppy based on recommendations from several people including his breeder. Jack was showing some typical high energy puppy behavior - jumping, food stealing from the kids, and sled dog leash walking to name a few. We knew we needed training in order to tame the chaos and learn better skills (all of us!). After the 3 week Board & Train with Johnnie, he has become the best version of himself - but is still himself! Johnnie addressed all of our concerns (the chaos has been tamed), gave Jack confidence and skills (like amazing off leash recall and solid stay in place during mealtimes), plus gave us a great session to start learning ourselves. And we all have the tools we need to continue to learn together and enjoy it. Thank you, Johnnie!
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February 2024 by john dewey
I wholeheartedly recommend Erin Henry in VA for dog and puppy training. She took my Coonhound puppy for training at her facility and did a wonderful job, both with my dog and with teaching me. My dog had improved a lot when he returned home, it was quite impressive to see the difference. She was very available for questions during the training and sent pictures and videos daily to show me how he was doing. 5 STARS!
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February 2024 by Andy Magnuson
Brandy and Perry are miracle workers. Very responsive, answered all our questions, and enabled us to be able to trust Luna around our baby and older family members. She now has great recall, is a pleasure to walk (no more pulling), and just has a better demeanor . Can't recommend enough
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February 2024 by Victoria R
My dog is a well known therapy dog in the Northern Virginia region. As a terrier, she can be reactive, so I entrusted her to Ridgeside for a 3 week board and train program with Aaron J. This was a big mistake.Shame on Aaron, the owner of this company and shame on them for allowing this mistreatment to occur.Upon return:- She lost 4 pounds in 3 weeks (documented). I would have appreciated Aaron J noticing and bringing this to my attention.- She was extremely stressed, shaking uncontrollably in my arms. I sensed that she could not wait to get away from Aaron. She did the commands in his presence but there was a cost to it -- the cost was her extreme distress. There was no bond with Aaron, even though the website says your dog will be well cared for with a bond. I would have appreciated Aaron bringing to my attention that this approach didnt seem to be a good fit for her. He did send me a photo or two where they looked happy together, but most photos she looked upset at this training approach.- She had a dead look in her eyes the first few days.- Prior to bringing her to Aaron, she was fully house trained. Upon returning, she had 7 accidents in the house in 1 day and we've had to begin house training her again. We woke up to a big poop in the house. Aaron admitted that there were times he did not bring her out enough, so my guess is she got used to having accidents again.- Upon returning, she is now more fearful around dogs and *more* reactive.- Upon returning, she is not able to do any of the skills (place, recall sometimes only, heel). The website says that your trainer will spend 3-4 hours with you training you upon return; the whole point is to train you on them so they can be generalized. Aaron spent 20 min with me, 10 of which were simply showing me the ecollar system without her.- When I called to complain, the company defended Aaron and said I must be mistaken. Then they said they would follow up with me to resolve the matter, but they have not fully done so. Additionally, the owner declined to speak with me.Collectively, these actions and outcomes speak for themselves. I feel very sad that my dog went through this, and most of all, I feel sad that I entrusted my dog to Ridgeside K9's care. I feel sad also that the company didn't seem to care when I raised these concerns regarding the mistreatment of my dog, they were more concerned about putting the blame back on me to defend themselves, rather than the concerns I was raising.Overall, I felt that Aaron really did try to train my dog, and that they had good moments together, but that within the process of training dogs, he has lost sight of the forest for the trees: The dogs you are training are sentient, conscious beings. They are not robots meant to be programmed by you, at the expense of their health. Perhaps training so many aggressive dogs has led him to detach over time or to lack empathy for the dogs at the end of the day, thus resulting in his inability to see my dog for what she really needed, or to develop a bond with her. If she was scared or fearful with this approach, Id rather be alerted to this and to not continue proceeding.Small things:- He did not remember her actual name and called her the wrong name.- When we spoke prior to training, we discussed concerns (reactivity around certain situations) that he later did not recall us speaking about. I would have appreciated him caring enough to remember things about my dog. I can only conclude they are overloading him with too many dogs at once to truly bond or remember or care for them properly.Feel free to reach out to me individually if youd like further information; Im happy to help. The good news is that my dog seems to be recovering well and is back to serving as a therapy dog; she now has firsthand experience with the things she is helping with, which I think can only further strengthen her bond with people in need.
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February 2024 by Maggie Speer
Words cannot express how thankful we are that Payton from Ridgeside K9 came into our lives!! After losing our first dog, to getting a new puppy and having a newborn a month later let’s just say training was very difficult and I knew we needed help. Thats when I found Ridgeside. Everything was super seamless.When Payton came to pick up Mango she gave us the run down of the next three weeks, and I knew he was in the best of hands. Along the way we were given updates on Mangos progress with pictures and videos. It was incredible seeing his growth each and everyday!After the three weeks were over we set up a time to bring Mango home and be educated on the last couple of weeks. We played games to understand the workings of the ecollar, discussed the misconceptions surrounding the tool, and learned the commands we were going to now use with our pup. Then we finally got to see our baby boy and practice everything he had learned for the last 3 weeks.Payton really took her time to train us on what we needed to do to stay consistent! Nothing felt rushed at all! Payton did not leave until we felt comfortable. Working with Ridgeside K9 was the best decision we have made! We cannot thank Payton enough and are so lucky to have her as part of our family!
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February 2024 by MJC
Our Mini-schnoodle puppy was reactive, barking at other dogs and lunging at passers-by for attention. Walks were miserable. After three weeks training/board with Britney, she more or less ignores other dogs on walks, responds to commands and is appropriate in off-leash play with other littles. She understands her place in our little pack. She is not perfect, but who is? Britney gave us the skills we needed to have a good relationship with our sweetie.
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February 2024 by Margaret Free
Shoutout to the amazing team at Ridgeside K9 for the outstanding training they provided for my German Shepherd, Tesla! I enrolled her in their 3-week boarding and training program, and it was worth every penny. From day one, I knew my pup was in good hands. The trainers, Perry and Brandi (the dynamic duo), were not only knowledgeable but also incredibly dedicated to their craft.Throughout Tesla’s stay, I received daily progress reports (with pics) that kept me in the loop on her training journey. It was so reassuring to see the consistent progress she was making. And let me tell you, the debriefing on graduation day was nothing short of comprehensive. Perry took the time to walk me through everything Tesla had learned, providing me with all the tools and advice I needed to continue her training at home.I can't express how excited I am to put into practice all the training and advice I learned from this fantastic duo. Tesla has come back a transformed dog, and I owe it all to Ridgeside K9. If you're looking for a dog trainer who goes above and beyond, look no further. Thank you, Ridgeside K9, for giving Tesla the training she needed to become the best version of herself.
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February 2024 by Nick Davalos
Nicole Johnson trained our 6 month old puppy and did an amazing job! We are so pleased out how our high energy puppy is now really well behaved. We are very grateful at the time spent to help him learn self control and will recommend this program to others.
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February 2024 by Presley Harris
I am so happy that I went through with Ridgeside K9 and it exceeded my expectations! I was a little nervous because I had a very nervous and timid dog around other people but her trainer, Zach definitely reassured me before during and after the process. During the turn over Zach was very patient and making sure I understood what she had learned over the four weeks. I can already see a huge difference by her manners, walking, and recall. I now know how to properly handle situations and to set my girl up only for success. I am so grateful for Ridgeside and Zach and just wish I would have done it sooner when she was a puppy!
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February 2024 by Michelle Pellatt
Gina at Ridgeside K9 is an absolute miracle worker. We rescued our pit mix Sadie earlier in the year from a pretty bad situation, and once she bonded with us she became dangerously protective of us. During her 3-week board and train, Gina gave her many tools to develop her confidence and build neutrality with strangers and other dogs. Sadie will never like people entering her territory, but we don't feel like we have a loose cannon on our hands anymore, and Sadie is clearly less stressed in general. So grateful to Gina and Ridegside!EDITED TO ADD: Gina is also a miracle worker with humans. She kept us informed every single day of training, and helped us address our own insecurities as owners. The training that WE received from Gina has empowered us as Sadie's parents, which is a great gift.
