Testimonials
"Sometimes I think that Barb saved Luchi’s life; I know without question, that she has made his life and our lives as dog owners much better. Luchi is a yellow Lab-Pit bull rescue. He is a big strong dog and we are 1st time dog owners. He was impossible to walk and yanked on his pull-chain collar. We broke multiple leashes as he dragged me behind him. One of the clerks at Pet Smart recently asked if I remembered when Luchi would pull me into the store and bark and cry at all the other dogs. He jumped at everyone he met and scared people, including me. Today he walks into the store at my side and quietly walks by other dogs without a problem. Over the 4th of July while we were on vacation at art motel in WI, a man sitting in a truck asked me if Luchi was a service dog, because of his quiet, calm manner exiting our motel room. And the owner of the motel also commented on the change in Luchi’s behavior and he’s known Luchi since he was 4 months old. My husband’s family are not dog people and I have had to kennel Luchi in our basement whenever they visited for a holiday. Now, he joins us easily and they are at ease. It wasn’t easy and it didn’t happen overnight. We actually started his training at another facility and failed miserably through 2 sets of classes there. We stopped taking classes for a while. But we knew we wanted a dog that could socialize with people and other dogs. So we decided to try Barb. When we first met Barb, she was calm, confident and focused on us. With Barb as our trainer, Luchi has now taken puppy, beginning, intermediate and advanced classes. She has changed Luchi’s behavior and ours as well. As you can imagine, Luchi adores Barb as we do and we can never thank her enough."
Ann Sorteberg
"Someone recommended me to Barb for dog training almost 4 years ago. It was one of the best recommendations I have ever received. She has helped me train 2 dogs using positive training methods. I love how she can think “outside” the box for positive solutions to unwanted dog behavior. Barb sees the owner and the dog as a team. There have been a couple of times, when one of my dogs did not understand what I wanted them to do. She looked at me and showed me how I was sending mixed messages with my body posture or emotions. A change in me made all the difference.. Recently I moved into a different home and the dogs started some unwanted behavior. Barb came over and helped develop a plan of action to eliminate the behavior. When one of the plans wasn’t working she had me go back to the basics and break the plan down into smaller pieces to avoid the situation before it happens. Barb is always reading on the latest trends and toys to stay up to date. She is amazing. She understands the dogs. My dogs just adore her and frankly, so do I."
Julie Gannon
Julie Gannon
Barb, "Thank you for guiding us into the mind of our dog Lexi. We have learned a lot from you and we're sure Lexi appreciates it." Julius, Peggy and Lexi 3-31-16 "Barb is excellent! she not only understands what dogs need but what people need too! love her!" Kathryn Dufek “Thank you for teaching my hooman how to handle my reactivity! She’s so much more confident now and I actually ENJOY my walks now! I’m still a little reactive when I see a car of dog, but now I know that whenever that happens, she will give me some cheese. So it’s not so scary anymore. I used to pant and whine a lot because I was so anxious outside the house, but now I’m having so much fun. Thank you for helping my hooman so she could help me!” Danielle Gray and Ayla the cow dog "I’ve worked with Barb for years and she was always a very knowledgeable, professional, and fun trainer! She has a great understanding of dogs and really knows her stuff! Every dog has a different story, with different obstacles and strengths and weaknesses. And Barb is always able to get to know the dog and is able to find the best approach to work with when it comes to their specific learning style! I definitely recommend her!" Rachel Dow "Barb is wonderful both as relating to the people who put their dogs in training with her, but also an excellent trainer. My first dog Angel, I trained with her, growled every time Barb would make eye contact. Barb new just what to do and by the end of the training they were buds. I would definitely recommend taking a class or many with her. She continues to keep up her knowledge of dog behaviors and shares that with all her clients." Betsy Bagniewski "Barb is so caring and compassionate to all animals! I was lucky to have her guide me through training my dog. I would highly recommend her!!!!" Jennifer Mayfield Swanson "Barb is one of the best trainers I've worked with. so patient, knowledgeable, and kind!" Christina Macht "Thank you for the great puppy class. Abby and I have learned so much! We appreciate your expertise, time, patience and professionalism." Cindy and Abby |
"Barb has been instrumental in training both of our rescue pups. She sets herself apart from the rest with her "reward the good, ignore the bad" positive training methods. Barb has helped us overcome many obstacles and will continue to be our (and our pups) favorite dog trainer! "
Tim Swenson "Barb is an exemplary trainer. She trained me, which was amazing, and has a wonderful way with dogs too! I'm lucky to have met her. She is patient, kind and honest. I give Dog Talk Training 5 stars and highly recommend this organization for help with any dog's (and owner's) needs! Vicky Stanton "Barb helped me with my shy and submissive Cookie. She’s very knowledgeable, considerate and passionate about working with animals. She even met with me after the training cause she cares so much. I would highly recommend her!" Brenda Baranska "Barb has an uncanny understanding of our canine companions, and is a sweetheart to boot."😊 Andrea McInnis "Thank you so much. You are an Awesome and patient dog trainer. We were not sure what it would be like, but it was very much worth the investment. Thanks also for the special attention you gave us." Kathy and Marco Harroun "Just wanted to thank you again for the insight into Sloane's behavior. It has been a wonderful experience and has helped to dispel my misgivings about adopting a puppy at our age."
Kathy Monicotti "Both of my rescue dogs Fender and Scout have trained with Barb, one as a puppy and one as an older and shy rescue. We LOVE Barb! She trains in a way that makes so much sense for the dog and owner, with love and positive reinforcement. She is so knowledgeable and caring, and knows how to handle any situation you may be having. I have two very happy and well adjusted dogs thanks to Barb!" Myra Jensen "Barb is an amazing trainer. We were so excited to start training our Corgi when she was 4 months old. The original trainer we went with used shamming techniques and being that I had no experience with training a dog I went along with it. We continued for many months and our girl was not responding of the training. I had a conversation with Barb and I shared what was going on with our Corgi’s training. After I spoke with Barb I quickly learned that rewarding a dog during training was much better approach. What a HUGE difference Barb made in our girls life! Barb turned our Corgi’s bad training around within a month!! So grateful to have found her!! Highly recommend her!!!" Jen Woodfill Berg |
Barb is an amazing trainer! Helped get my overly excited mini schnauzer started in agility and she's doing quite well. Not to mention the fact that she trained my dog when she was a puppy and helped her learn good manners and appropriate dog behaviors. Whenever I've had a question or problem that I've emailed her about she's been very prompt at replying. I would do it all over again with Barb when I get another puppy! Anne Godlewski-Zierden
Barb is an incredible dog trainer and a wonderful person. She has helped us figure out how to welcome our new puppy into our lives when we found ourselves struggling. She understands how dogs think and how they relate to their humans. She teaches how to best respond to the dogs behavior to reinforce the positive and eliminate the unwanted behaviors. She teaches with genuine kindness and patience, and with no judgements. We are so thankful for Barb’s help!