Real dogs.
Real change.

I love Gonz's approach because it is built upon the foundation of motivating the dog from a rewarding perspective! In the past we previously trained in a tightly structured, more punitive/corrective approach which saw Shadow show up in training in a reserved and slow manner. I thought that was just his norm until we worked with Gonz. Shadow now has a spring in his step when he trains and is eager to work and interact with me. He offers engagement willingly and is keen to learn new behaviours! He gets so energised when we train, and thinks training and engaging with us is the best thing ever!

Sushi isn’t food or affection motivated so it was really difficult for us to teach her anything new prior to training with Okami Canine. Learning the basics really helped us understand why and when we should train (ex. Sushi is better at night). It really helped us change our perspective about training and to not feel defeated when training isn’t going how we think it should be. Prior to Okami Canine, we honestly felt helpless because we frequented several forums/Facebook pages that said Shiba Inus aren’t trainable and that we would have to wait until they were “12” to be better. We know now not to generalize dogs based on their breed and our relationship is improving every day. We still have days where we feel stuck, but the progress that we have made with her is a constant reminder of how our relationship has changed, how her engagement with us has increased, how much improvement she has made, how our guidance matters, how she rarely pulls on walks, and more.

The step-by-step breakdown of each drill and then doing the practicals were so helpful! It was great to have Gonz see us do the drill and give us advice on how to properly do it (ex. body position, where our hands should be, how to refill our treat hand, pauses/hesitations, timing). The Facebook group was also really helpful because we weren’t always able to record our training and get feedback so it was great when others uploaded their videos.

Incorporating clear structure of training, my dog is clear on any expectation during training and clear communication/command. This means less frustration and positive attitude towards training

With the structured training from the class, I am confident that my dog can and will learn with practice because each exercise yielded nearly immediate results. The exercises and sequence of training was logical, and I was encouraged each time my dog successfully achieved a target behaviour. I am less prone to frustration when training because I have seen that my dog learns well when the exercises are based in sound theory and the mechanics of how dogs move and how they are motivated. When I am less frustrated, I can correct my dog more accurately and show him clearly what desired behaviour is expected. My dog appears to enjoy the training and thrives with clear structure.

Not everything needs to be a correction, and with this we've been correcting less and directing more. If she starts to move too far ahead of us, I make a quick 180 and if she's engaged with us, there wouldn't be a tug from herself moving the opposite direction. I guess, what I mean is, we don't correct her? And she corrects herself? Or another method is we get her to sit (kinda like what you taught us with the slip). But definitely doing the 180 appears more affective as she understands she has to follow us and we are leading her. Even when she focuses on another dog, its either some leash pressure to go the opposite direction, or a heel call or recall call to get her coming back to us.

I noticed that they value us more in general.
Ex. They are more attentive on our walks.
Kylo initiating training sessions these days. (Very happy and pleased with this change!)
They both have become more affectionate with us.

I believe what makes this course stand out is of course the very knowledgeable trainer, but also the trainer that truly cares. I used to feel intimidated talking to dog trainers, asking questions, worried about being judged for something I'm doing wrong and I am a terrible dog owner. I never felt that from Gonz. He is very personable, and approachable with any questions I have. Sometimes it makes me feel like I'm just having a conversation with another dog owner who also loves his dogs, and genuinely wants to help out. His way of explaining and use of analogy make everything very easy to understand.

Theo is much more responsive to us. We have also noticed that when we are doing exercises learned through this program around his usual triggers (other dogs) he becomes much more relaxed and focused on us instead of the environment. This has helped our relationship greatly as we are able to go out in a much more calm and relaxed way, communicate with him much more clearly, and regain his attention much more easily than before. This has helped him overcome his overexcitedness and reactivity to other dogs in a positive way.