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 I don't know if you remember Cooper and me or not, but we trained with you in puppy class two summers ago. I am writing for two reasons. First, I wanted to tell you that everywhere I go I get nothing but praise for the manners that you helped me instill in my dog. Everyone we meet thinks that Coop is the nicest dog that they have ever met because of the guidance you gave us! We are living in Fairbanks, AK now where I am stationed with the United States Air Force (which leads to the second reason for my writing). I recently found a friend for Coop. Cassie is a 4 month old black lab pup with loads of energy. She is much different from Coop however in that rather than try to pull me around on the leash, she gets a little overwhelmed and wont walk at all. I don't want to intimidate her, and I'm not sure if the "with me" turn with a slight tug is helping. How do I go about getting her to trust and follow me in the first place? I understand you run a business, and I would totally be a client if I were in ND but I haven't found a good instructor up here in the tundra so I thought I would ask. Thanks for any help you can give me, I really appreciate it. - Tim Aanerud
 We first met Carlene and Jo when we and our dog, Captain, took the 6-week basic training class. It was great for all of us. We knew that Captain was an active dog; what we learned is that he is also very eager to please. We just needed to train ourselves to be consistent enough and clear enough and firm enough so he knew what in the world we were expecting from him! He responded immediately once we learned to stop confusing him! Captain has also stayed at Wag-N-Train when we've been on vacation. Especially now with the new indoor playground, I can't imagine a better place for him or a better value. What we like most of all, I think, is that Carlene and Jo and their staff clearly love our dog and all the animals they work with. Captain is always happy to go there, and always happy and healthy and clean when we see him again. - Roger and Kathi Dykstra
 I travel a lot for my job, and I needed to find somewhere I was comfortable with to leave my dogs. They have been going to Wag-N-Train for the last 2 1/2 years. You can tell by the way they act in the car that they are really excited to go to "camp". I have one very old dog with a lot of health problems and she receives lots of extra care. The others really enjoy the new indoor play room to burn off steam and meet other dogs. I miss them to pieces when I am gone, but I never worry about them being cared for. We love Wag-N-Train! - Barbara Hassler
  In the summer of 2005, we brought home a cute little Yorkie-poo puppy named Riley. Although a smart dog, he was stubborn, naughty and wanted to do things his way. Our training efforts were not working at all. I was extremely frustrated and basically ready to give up. Then my husband found Wag-N-Train. Riley spent a good month training with Carlene, and he came back to us a changed dog. She also spent time showing me what to do to keep him that way. Thanks to Wag-N-Train Riley is still with us. We've come to accept his unique personality and we love him. Now, Riley is a regular at Wag-N-Train. Besides his monthly grooming, we board him often. Carlene, Jo and their staff are so loving and professional as well. I know Riley always gets the best of care. - Beth Fanfulik
 Hi, my name is Tess. I?m a 3-year old Pembroke Welsh Corgi and I?d like to tell you about my wonderful Day Care experience at Wag?N?Train. I started my adventures at Day Care when I was just 14 weeks old as my humans lived in rural Thompson and worked in Grand Forks. They didn?t want me to sit home alone all day bored and cooped up in my kennel. Instead, I got to go for a ride with my humans to Wag?N?Train five days a week. There I was able to interact and socialize with all my pals ? canine and humans alike - while being supervised in a very safe and secure environment. An added plus was my humans were able to go about their day knowing I was being well cared for. Even though my humans moved to Grand Forks I still enjoy my time at Wag?N?Train. During my day I play as much as I want to, take naps on a comfy bed with my pals when I?m so inclined and get all kinds of loves from the staff there ? not to mention the yummy treats. I?m so glad that we have such a wonderful state-of-the-art facility in our community. Note from Tess? humans: We are so appreciative of Carlene and Jo, who have become like family over the past three years, and their friendly staff at Wag?N?Train - their professionalism and expertise are a wonderful asset to our community. We highly recommend Wag?N?Train to anyone who loves their family member and appreciates ?Lovin? care when you can?t be there!? - - Tess H. (assisted by my human Lynn H.)
 After adopting Hanna, a 9 year old miniature schnauzer that was rescued from a puppy mill, she needed some TLC in the grooming department. Carlene was willing to take on this challenge and the first grooming was difficult, needing two people when working with Hanna's face; but they managed to work through it and she came home looking like the Schnauzer she really was underneath all that fur. The amazing thing, on the second groom, Carlene didn't have any troubles with working on Hanna's face, and to me, that says it all about this groomer. To take a scared, difficult dog and have built enough trust after one groom to have her relaxed and calm enough to groom without that second person, shows me that this is the person to trust with my dog. Thank you Wag-N-Train for your dedication and commitment to our pets. - Tomi Carroll
This testimonial has to begin with a short history. I first met Carlene King in the spring of 2005 when I introduced her to Koda, a purebred Alsatian German Shepherd. My wife, Polly, had earlier found Koda in a Minneapolis rescue shelter and immediately fell in love with his looks. I was used to large dogs having previously owned a few Great Danes so I thought I could easily handle and train a German Shepherd. Koda had been owned by an elderly lady with a history of osteoporosis. The lady?s daughter was very concerned Koda might knock her down because he was very strong, big, and prone to excitement. He was pining away when we went to meet him. At the rescue shelter, all of the dogs had their own small fenced enclosure with a dog house. When Polly and I arrived at the shelter all of the other dogs were barking to get out attention. Not Koda, he came out of his house looked to see who we were and when he found we were not his previous lady, he went right back into his dog house. The shelter people warned us that he had the pulling power of a Budweiser Clydesdale. They were right. Koda had two strong straits?he could pull on any lease and?he was stubborn. That is where Carlene King and Wag-N-Train came into the picture. Koda was a good dog and in the house very manageable. He was polite and he quickly learned to go outside to a select spot to relieve himself. However, outside he was a different dog. He would struggle to pull on a leash until he choked. In addition, if he got loose he would attempt to follow any passing vehicle. We had no idea of his early history but a trainer from Fargo who was very familiar with German Sheppards told us to be patient because it would take at least two years to gain the dog?s trust. Well the two years when by fast and he still was a handful. We found the dog to be very intelligent and as I said earlier, he had a stubborn mind of his own. That mind of his was soon going to meet up with Carlene King. We decided to leave Koda with Carlene for an extended period. There is no way I can adequately relate how well she trained Koda. He has become a model pet. He responds immediately to the command ?place? where he is commanded to jump on a 4 posted Pet Cot Dog bed and not let his feet his the ground or floor while he is on it. He knows and obeys what he is commanded to do until he hears the word ?free?. He know all the basic commands, and most of all he can heal without the leash, and when he is on the leash he doesn?t pull. He is quick to know who his human friends are and he loves to go to Wag-N-Train daycare. Carlene taught him to wear safety goggles so he can hand his head out the door when riding in the car. Carlene also trained him to be responsible to a collar that delivers a mild shock if the dog is about to get into an unsafe or undesirable situation. I take Koda out to remote areas next to the Red Lake River in Minnesota. I won?t tell you my secret location but I will say in the winter there are plenty of big jack rabbits always hanging around. Of course, Koda had gotten to the point where he knows when we are going there and he whines excitedly to get there because he knows there might be a rabbit to chase. I let him chase the rabbits provided there are not other vehicles or people in the vicinity. One day, I let him chase a rabbit but I failed to realize he was chasing a rabbit were a vehicle was approaching. I was able to stop Koda on a dime and recall him to me. That is training and I have to give credit to Carlene for not only shaping the dogs training but also shaping my training. I have learned that she can train but Polly and I have to reinforce it or else he will revert to some of his bad habits. Now I have to relate a humorous true story. I was enamored with the Budweiser commercial where the dog gets a beer out of the refrigerator and brings it to his master while the master is watching the football game. I wanted Koda to learn the same trick. I figured it would be cool to impress my friends by giving Koda a command to get me a beer. I discussed this with Carlene and she began to train him. Now everyone had to realize Carlene is a professional trainer and that is how she makes her living. I am a professional lawyer and my time is my money. I have to charge my clients for my time or I cannot be a professional. Carlene?s training rates are very moderate for her skills but nevertheless, it was going to take several hours of training to get Koda to go to a refrigerator and get me a cold beer. It wasn?t long before Carlene had the dog doing the first steps to get to the refrigerator. My wife thought my idea to have Koda get me a beer out the refrigerator was over the top. I can?t say enough about the caliber of Carlene?s training skills. She could easily be one of those professionals that train dogs for movies. Fortunately, for the Grand Forks area, she is here and she can train your dog to be a model part of your family. I would highly recommend Carlene King to assist you in helping your dog to be a welcome member of your family. ? Lee & Polly Finstad All site content is copyright 2009 WAG-N-TRAIN, all rights reserved. |