good girl pat pat, bad dog... ?

November 2, 2011 6:29 PM

Recommend a dog trainer/ behaviorist in Portland, OR?

My girlfriend has a large rottweiler/lab that needs serious re-training. She's seven years old, high energy, and anxious, disobedient and poorly socialized. I really dislike dogs-- this one in particular-- but I want to interact with her better. I need training too!

We'd prefer private lessons, especially someone who can come to our house and analyze our interactions as a trio. We've got a really weird "bad dog, dog-lover, dog-hater" vibe going, and I'd like to nip that in the bud. Thanks!

posted by fritillary to Pets & Animals (2 answers total)

Best answer: In the absence of personal knowledge, I always recommend checking out the Karen Pryor certified trainers. You can find the ones in OR here. Clicker training is based on positive reinforcement, which means it helps build a good relationship between the human and the dog. It is also highly effective.

Pryor's certified trainers, in general, are good at helping people into a more functional, happier relationship with their animals.

You might want to check out the book "Don't Shoot the Dog" by Karen Pryor while you are setting up an appointment with the trainer.

Good luck. :)
posted by driley at 10:24 PM on November 2, 2011

Best answer: My wife and I have worked with Joyce's dogs when she was still located in Seattle and recommend her highly. (DISCLAIMER: We paid her in trade so there might be some sort of conflict of interest or something. Maybe. YMMV) She's a positive reinforcement trainer and, when we worked with her, focused on establishing the relationship between the dog and the owner. Good stuff, effective. And yeah, she works on the owner too.

I/we really enjoyed working with her and found her to be very effective. In particular, she was sensitive to the different personalities of each of our dogs and adjusted the training as appropriate.
posted by stet at 9:55 PM on November 3, 2011