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Wags, Wiggles, and Wows!

Find out what our students are saying about Wagging Willow!

The Burnett Family:

JT, Kelly, and Josie

The Modeen-Hyman Family:
Alicia, Seth, and Frankie
 

"We enrolled our German Pinscher, Josie, into the CC01 6-week training at Wagging Willow, in January 2015. There were, at the most five dogs, and on average three to four dogs per week, including Josie. It was a great group of dogs and handlers. Susan understood each dog’s temperament, placed us strategically and through the weeks, helped each dog improve on their social skills. Over time they were all getting along (even Josie and Rosie :0). Susan is an outstanding trainer. She makes the most of her time, is well organized, and very calm, which keeps the dogs and handlers calm. She has all the necessary tools and a very good setup at her very clean facility, which is located off of Howell Branch Road. During the six weeks, we mastered “sit,” “stay,” “down,” “leave it,” “come” and are currently using the techniques that Susan taught us to train Josie to go to her “place” and to “stay” when visitors come to the door. I love the fact that she posts videos and pictures on Facebook each week. It was fun to see the progress and share with friends. I highly recommend Susan Vergara and Wagging Willow training facility for your dog."

Kelly Burnett

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"I loved working with Susan from start to finish. She came highly recommended by a friend who had also recently rescued a pup. Susan is very in touch with the special issues facing pups and their parents in rescue situations, which was important to me when choosing a trainer.
Frankie was already 6 months old when we got her so training got started just a little bit late, but you would never know it. Susan was supportive and positive every week. She gave us helpful homework assignments that kept us motivated and honest about practicing, and she adapted weekly plans based on actual issues we were seeing with Frankie. 
We are first time dog parents, so this training was as much for us as it was for Frankie. We now have great communication with her and are able to build on what we learned. I look forward to advanced training with Susan!"

Alicia Modeen

The LilIemoen - Herrera family:  
Dan, Chandra, Laureli,
Starlet and Snowflake

" Susan has been SO helpful with our two puppies, Starlet and Snowflake. It has been "doubly" difficult with two puppies at the same time! Working with Wagging Willow learning to communicate effectively with our pups using consistent positive reinforcement has made the difference! We really appreciate Susan's support of our 7 year old daughter, Laureli, too. She is doing just great with her little Snowflake ...and has taught her Mom a thing or two no doubt :) Thank you, again, Wagging Willow!!"  

Chandra Lillemoen

The Vaughn - Shaw Family:
Elissa, Brandon and Artie

"I truly cannot say enough about Susan and how much she has helped me with my high maintenance pooch. She has helped our relationship with Artie improve and grow, based on a relationship of communication and guidance. I feel so confident that Artie will continue to learn and listen to us, with Susan's help. She is a great resource of an array of information on canine communication and ways to understand each other better, in a non-aggressive, positive environment. I would recommend Wagging Willow a thousand times over. Thank you Susan!"  Elissa Vaughn

 

"I would recommend Susan and Wagging Willow to anyone who is looking for positive reinforcement dog training. Susan has an extremely strong passion for dogs, and will do whatever it takes to cater her training specifically towards your pet. She uses creative ways to work with your dog in a comfortable training facility. Finding Susan was the best possible move we could have made for our french bulldog." Brandon Shaw

The Vega- Nieves Family:
Dan, Diana, Matt and Kahlua

"I wholeheartedly recommend Susan of Wagging Willow as a trainer of both dogs and owners!  I say owners because as a first time dog owner I knew next to nothing about proper training techniques.  In a very short time, I have learned a great deal and have seen fantastic results with my pup, Kahlua.  I started the training with a private lesson.  I highly recommend this for new dog owners.  Kahlua is now a student in the puppy program at the Wagging Willow facility.  The amount of positive progress in her behavior is truly amazing.  We both look forward to class each week and can't wait for graduation."  Dan Nieves 

 

"It takes an A+ instructor like Susan to produce a well trained dog. She is amazing at what she does. Susan truly loves what she does and it shows in her training methods.
Susan , you are a true dog whisperer. I am always amazed at each training class how you handle Kahlua and how responsive she is to your teaching methods.  Now that Kahlua has graduated puppy training we can't wait to see what else she will learn and we are looking forward to our next class with you." Diana Vega

The Bernier-Whittmann Family:

Jenna, David, and Ghost

"My dream dog has always been an American Eskimo. When we first saw Ghost, we knew we had to have him. We did a little bit of research on the breed before the purchase, but did not realize how energetic, high-strung, and stubborn they are. We thought Ghost would never calm down. When we first brought Ghost in to Wagging Willow, Susan got to witness just how “crazy” he was. He got distracted very easily and frustrated quickly. I was nervous we would never see a difference. At the end of our first session, Susan mentioned that she was going to do research on the breed to figure out a good strategy to train him, and that’s when I knew we found an incredible trainer; if we had gone to a group obedience class somewhere else, I doubt that the trainer would take the time to research the breed and learn on her own what to expect from an American Eskimo. It really showed how much she actually cares about her profession and cares about the dogs. In just 6 weeks, Ghost went from a "stubborn teenager" who would get bored with training and would give up to go find a toy or run around, to a puppy who listens and watches and waits. It turns out that he is an incredibly quick learner and would even outthink us sometimes. We alternated training with games to keep Ghost’s attention and gave him breaks when it seemed he needed one (we got a lot better at understanding and reading him, too!). From his energy level, we never would have thought that his favorite command would be “settle”! I wish I could give Wagging Willow a rating higher than 5. I cannot wait to continue our training with Susan!"

Jenna Bernier

The Doss Family:
Jon, Nicole and Jersey 

"I highly recommend Susan and Wagging Willow. It has been a lot of fun working with her. She has helped me and my husband a lot, with how to communicate with our 3 year old Yorkie, Jersey! She is very knowledgeable and knows what she is talking about. You can tell that this is what she loves doing. Watching the progress that Jersey is making is very exciting. It also makes me happy when I see Susan love on our dog as well. She really cares. She is really flexible with your schedule and will work with you. If you are having specific issues or just in general training issues with your dog, she will work with you and you will see progress after your very first training session. Jon and I have learned a lot and taken several tools away with us that we will use in years to come with our fur baby. Thank you Susan for everything!" Nicole Doss

 

 

The Stanco Family:
Ernie, Ceil, and Winnie

"Susan at Wagging Willow is the best!! She knows the best way to train my incorrigible Winnie!" Ernie Stanco

 

"Susan. You were warm, knowledgeable, and positive. We couldn't ask for anything else. Winnie enjoyed it soooo much. Love and peace Ceil."

The Stiles Family:
Breana, Dustin, Teagan, Nora, and Subtle

"Susan started working with my 10 year old retired show dog Subtle a Toy Manchester Terrier on a couple of visits to The Little Pet Inn. When we first adopted Subtle her handler never shared with us her fear of feet, or what the queues she had been trained with. I being a newbie to doggies thought well I can train her, and confused the poor girl by making up my own hand signals. My dog is very smart, loving, and loyal but our family has grown since we got her and she started acting out. 

I was so excited to hear Susan was starting her own training facility, I had thought about taking Subtle so many times over the years but never felt comfortable or understood. Plus how in the world can you train a 10 year old dog? Wow did Susan prove me wrong in the most guiding and patient way. Communication 101 has been wonderful and Susan has been amazing! I have learned so much on how to communicate with Subtle and Subtle improved so much over the past six weeks. I am looking forward to the next step of our education together.

If you are looking for a doggie trainer Wagging Willow is the place to go." Breana Skiles

Miki Harris, Owner 
A Little Pet Inn

"Working with Susan has been a joy! She has vast knowledge of dog behavior and positive reinforcement training, infinite patience, and excellent customer service. If you're looking to build a relationship with your furry kid, she is the expert to turn to. We are thrilled that she is also a valued staff member at A Little Pet Inn, giving one-on-one loving care to a whole bunch of spoiled pooches. Thanks, Susan!" Miki Harris

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