The Dog Training Clinic

My husband and I found Richard and The Dog Training Clinic via an internet search. We needed to train our 9 month old white German Shepherd -- 90 pounds of uncontrollable love. We had used two other trainers who were not able to get us where we needed to be. Before Richard would accept Bianca (and us), he insisted on coming to our house for an evaluation so he could observe Bianca at home and interacting with us. He discussed our goals for Bianca. Richard was caring and firm, and Bianca immediately knew who was in charge. Based on the assessment, Richard gave us a realistic evaluation of what to expect and how long it would take. Richard determined that he could train Bianca at our house, and he worked individually with my husband and Bianca and with me and Bianca. Each visit would last approximately an hour -- not because Richard had a time limit, but because he could tell when Bianca was getting exhausted. Richard would give us "homework" to do with Bianca between each lesson. He brought his own dog to some lessons to socialize Bianca and so she could learn by example. The results were dramatic. We now can have visitors without locking Bianca up and can go for walks through the neighborhood. Bianca loves Richard so much that we use him for boarding, as well. Our second dog, Angel, adores Richard's wife and stays by her side for the entire visit. Bianca loves to play at Richard's house with Richard and the other dogs. The kennels and training area are well-equipped, super-clean, and comfortable for our dogs. We have recommended Richard to others for training and his results have been miraculous -- dogs that were so scary even the owners were afraid are now companions.

They did a good job. They do have a lifetime guarantee for training.

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Tim is THE BEST-  She is really becoming so well trained with his expert help.

I called and spoke with Richard. He listened and provided excellent insight into the issues I had been having with my dogs. We set a time and he came out to do an assessment and bring the dogs in for training. We sat and spoke for about an hour and a half about the different issues, the pulling, jumping, and general issues. He asked about how I felt regarding electric collar training and I let him know I had some reservations with it after a bad experience with the invisible fence we had tried before. He said he could train them without them and it wasn't an issue, but that if I wanted him to try with the collars he would. I thought it over and agreed to try the collars but he made sure to promise me if they did not take to them well he wouldn't use them. We stayed in contact over the 2 weeks they were gone, he sent me video's during their training to show how they were doing. I must say I was amazed in the video of how well the listened and responded. Then they came home and I could tell the improvement instantly. We walked the dogs up and down the side walk and the pulling was gone, they listened to us and we finally switched from them walking us to us walking them. We then went inside the home and the trainer went over how to use the collars correctly and the commands to use. He also made sure to let us know that we could bring the dogs in to the monthly training session each month to further their training, and also let us know to call them with any questions or issues we had. On the return the trainer spent about 2 hours with us making sure we understood everything and answering any questions we have. We are so pleased with this service and highly recommend them to anyone needing assistance with their animals. I can't say enough good thing about them and look forward to working with them more in the future.

I can't express how impressed I was with the training.  I had puppy who ran around and would not respond to commands.  I was afraid he would get out of the house & run away.  Now he responds to commands and seems even happier because he knows he is pleasing me.  I would highly recommend The Dog Training Clinic it is well worth the time and money.  I was so happy with the first five lessens that I signed up for four more.

Giovani changed the aggression to almost acceptance.
Misha now walks,sits,comes and goes to his place.

This is the first time I have ever sent a dog away from home to be trained and I'm almost 60 and have owned dogs since I was 12.  Sammie (my lab) was sent away because he and my German Shepherd teamed up to attack my cat.  The cat is fine but the room was destroyed, the Shepherd received a bloody nose from the cat and I was beside myself because of my inability to control the dogs.  Also, Sammie was sent away because my brother was advocating that he be removed from the household because of his poor behavior. 

My brother (who actually suggested euthanizing Sammie at one time) was completed impressed with Sammie's change in behavior.  He felt the trainers deserved the highest of praise for the miracle they had accomplished.  I had been reticent because I wasn't comfortable with the prong collar or the shock collar.  Evidence indicates that I was wrong.

Sammie expresses delight when he sees the shock collar.  He shows no fear in wearing it but the opposite - he cooperates completely when I put it on his neck.  He wants to show what a good boy he can be and the vibrations help him understand what I want from him.

 Another wonderful thing Richard and Kathy did from The Dog Training Clinic is to discover that Sammie has a hearing problem.  That makes the shock collar even more important as a communication device.  Today I am home from work because I am sick.  I had forgotten that I had let a cat in the front of the house and went to make myself some tea allowing the dogs to follow me.  Again the stalking behavior and chase was on but with totally different results.  I put the collar on Sammie and had him contained in a moment.  The Shepherd knew it was useless without her sidekick and gave up easily. 

If I had had the money I would have sent both dogs to the clinic but I am very happy with the results.  Kudos to Richard and Kathy and all who work with them.

I could not be happier! My large, strong sweet dog is a keeper. She no longer pulls. I find the remote easy to use when she needs a correction. Corrections are balanced with treats and lots of appraise. We are not 100% but getting there. She is almost ready to take her CGC.

*Update: Within 6 weeks of training, my dog became hyper-reactive each time a shock was administered.  Instead of dissuading the negative behaviors, they became amplified.  I had to take her to a DVM who is a behavioral specialist as my dog was startling at being touched, especially near the site where the shocks were administered.  We are still working to counter-condition her startling and generalized fear.

While this method is very quick to alter behavior, I can attest that some dogs are harmed, not helped.

I don't recall the prices but they were fair, and they did a good job.  They did explain what they said they would do and they did it really well.

It is going great! My puppies are learning fast and I am learning proper technique and how to handle them. We train twice a week and Richard comes to the house. We have also traveled to him for protection work. Richard is a firm, no nonsense trainer but he is kind to the dogs and respectful of the fact that my dogs are raised with positive reinforcement. Although we use a prong collar- it is done kindly and the pups listen and do not seem to mind. Overall it has been a fun experience to have with my dogs. I will continue to advanced obedience when thus is over.

We are not there yet - he has at least another year to go. But They have him listening to commands, walking more consistently, and have 'trained' us as well. They offer lifetime training - and we plan on taking George (and ourselves) back for refreshers. Their facility is clean, well maintained, you can tell they love animals, and we felt comfortable leaving our baby with them. They also sent us videos 1/2 way through so we could see the progress they were making.

My experience with them was very good.  They had my dog for two weeks.  I don’t know if the price was that high because I don’t know what other trainers cost for that job.  Their quality of work was very good.

I just prefer positive training and he is not this sort of trainer.  He uses the shock collar .  I don't think he's a mean person but it's just not the sort of training I was looking to use on my dog.  I like the new methods using positive approach to training.  Granted there may be some dogs that need shock collars, but the dog I have right now doesn't require that so I went with another trainer.

We were very pleased with the outcome despite being very concerned at the beginning.  Our puppy was terrified when we left him, and it broke our hearts.  Luckily, he came back properly trained and in one piece.  We still spoil him.

We loved their service. She is doing what she needs to be doing now. Their price was very comparable to everybody else.

I rescued a lab from the pound.  Good disposition; but out of control with jumping and aggression towards other dogs.  Our first walk with her was an absolute disaster; thus we knew she needed training.  After working with her  myself for one month with the clicker method of training I could see that this was not a method for her as she did well in the house; but lost focus once outside.
Thus, I began my search.  After interviewing several dog trainers I knew immediately that Richard Bonilla would be the one to train our dog.  His place was spotless, he had a planned schedule, he interacted with the dog, the dogs were not kept outside; but were kept in air conditioning with music played at night.  It was very safe, clean and humane.  I felt safe leaving her with him.  I could see that he and Kathy were truly dog lovers and enjoyed what they did.
I left her with Richard for 2 weeks; he kept me updated with videos.  Well, today the two weeks were up and I have a new dog.  She is so obedient.  I took her for a walk and we encountered other dogs and there were NO issues.
I can't say enough good things about The Dog Training Clinic, Richard and his wife Kathy

We found them on Angie's List and they were really excellent. He keeps the dogs at his facility and boards and trains them for two weeks. After the two weeks he shows you what he has done; then trains us. I spoke on the phone with him and he sounded very professional and it sounded like he knew what he was talking about. I did not have the time to just get tips from a regular trainer and then train the dog myself so I needed someone like this. My dog is completely different after the training than before; I can now walk her through our neighborhood easily and she does all the obedience things now that she would not do before like sit, lay down and stay. It is amazing and really great. I will use him again in the future.

Cathy, the trainer, was wonderful! My 4 1/2 month old puppy has gone from unruly to (almost) a dream. Thanks to Cathy! Also, follow up to see if all is well.

Richard first responded immediately by email to a general question about aggression. I hadn't yet decided if I was going to get a trainer, but after thinking it over, phoned Richard and spoke with him further about the situation. He anticipated my questions, and provided knowledge to the situation. He agreed to work with us at our home. Upon arrival, he assessed our situation. The new dog was going after our kitten and had even bitten its tail (my fault, I was holding the cat and he couldn't get away). We started with general obedience commands and worked alot that first hour. He visited us every other day, and by the last session, we had the dog trained to our satisfaction. The dog's aggression is now controlled to where we can have both animals in the same room without any problems. We really thought we would have to get rid of 1 animal and am so happy that our pets are coexisting peacefully.