If your dog patrols the property line at every car on the street, pulls you through the village, barks at the door and comes in from the yard when he feels like it, you have a Newton dog. Big houses, busy households, a dog walker, two commuters, and a dog who behaves differently for every one of them.
He is not confused. He has worked out who means it, and the person he listens to least is usually the one asking the most. A household with four handlers and no leader gives a dog four sets of rules and therefore none, and the only cure is one set, given by people he trusts and respects. Shawn Hines has spent more than thirty years training dogs and more than fifteen running Best Buddy Dog Training, and he teaches the whole Newton household, dog walker included, how to give it.
Dog Training Problems We See in Newton
Four handlers
The dog walker at noon, the nanny at three, the two of you at night. A dog handled four different ways follows nobody. When everyone who holds the leash works from the same plan, he has one set of rules, and he keeps them.
The village and the T
A dog who pulls through the village or on the walk to the train is leading. Walked by someone he respects, he passes the other dog and the stroller at your side.
The delivery truck
The first time a truck backs into the driveway, you find out which dog you have. The dog you want holds his spot while the door opens and the truck backs in, with or without a wire in the ground.
The Dogs in the Pictures
The dogs in the photographs and videos on this site are Shawn's own students. All of them are Shawn's work, photographed and filmed as it happened, with no treat and no e-collar in sight. Look at the videos and read the success stories first if you like; the results are there.
In-Home Dog Training in Newton, MA
The program in Newton is four private in-home sessions at your home and in the places you take your dog, and they exist to teach you to train your dog, not to train him for you. Shawn stays available by phone and video for the dog's lifetime, at no additional charge; one price covers up to five dogs under the same roof, and nothing is tacked on later. More sessions are included if you have followed the plan and need them. Shawn writes the plan for your dog and your household specifically. $2,250 is the Massachusetts price.
Board-and-Train
Some dogs have gone past what a weekly session can fix. For board-and-train, the dog moves in with Shawn and his pack for four to six weeks and trains daily in parks, stores, and traffic. The dogs it is for: aggressive, guarding, severely reactive, chronically anxious, or already failed elsewhere. The pickup and the delivery are Shawn's own, then he runs three reintegration sessions at your house so the obedience transfers to you, with lifetime follow-up. The range is $2,500 to $5,000 depending on the dog, decided on the phone first.
Newton Owners Ask
The dog walker, the nanny, and the two of us all handle him. Who needs to be there?
Everyone who holds the leash. That way the dog lives by one set of rules.
He is good with me and terrible with my spouse.
He has worked out who means it. Both of you work from one plan and he gets one set of rules.
We did a group class, and it did not hold.
A dog who performs in one quiet room has learned the room, not you.
Call Shawn
Everything starts at (401) 536-7982. It costs nothing, and you will be talking to Shawn. Tell him what you are dealing with, and he will say plainly what he would do and the cost. The phone is covered weekdays 8am to 6pm and Saturdays 9am to 5pm; leave a message any other time.
Who you are to your dog is EVERYTHING
Shawn Hines
Dog Trainer, Best Buddy Dog Training
No charge, no obligation.