Wow! Dog’s Downtown is easily the best training and boarding facility in the DMV area! Sophia has been just incredible in what she has been able to accomplish with Millie (our German Shepherd). Not only does she treat/train Millie amazingly, she takes the time to make sure we will be successful as owners. I will bring every single one of our future dogs here no matter the distance!

This is the best place for my dog! I take my dog there every time I go on vacation and she comes home happy, clean, and missing her friends at Dogs Downtown! Great place with kind people.

My dog was not only not trained, he was mistreated and is now on anxiety medication. There are a host of other serious issues and my poor baby is absolutely not the same. Without getting into the absolutely deplorable other facts, if you have ever had an issue with this facility, please contact Fairfax County Animal Control. To add to your nasty response, I have been advised not to contact you. You are not only failing to tell the whole and correct facts, but I know nothing about an eye infection after numerous communication. Freedom of speech- I haven’t broken any laws. You know what is against the law, animal neglect. I’m not going to go point by point but I have all of my ducks in a row and additionally I didn’t accept money due to my concern for the other dogs safety. That speaks volumes and I won’t be responding to you further on here or via text, email or phone due to legal reasons..

Great for boarding and training!! I love this place!

We used Dogs Downtown for individual training and now weekday drop off training. So far we are happy with Dogs Downtown. Javiela is a great trainer and is very patient with our energetic and lovable lab puppy. Would highly recommend.

Best best best dog training in the dmv. If you can I would highly recommend private lessons with Sophia. 1-2 lessons in with her has gotten me so far with my dog and has taught me how to teach him better. Highly recommend this place

We have been working with Dogs Downtown in Chantilly, VA for 2 years. My daughter was matched with the perfect Service Dog for her needs. Sophia and Alexa are knowledgeable and wonderful Trainers. They care about the dog and the human client. They have gone above and beyond to accommodate and be flexible when we’ve had to take breaks from training or increase training appointments. My daughter is able to be independent because of her Service Dog. Their bond is amazing and it’s beautiful to watch them together. Whenever we are close to Dog’s Downtown, my daughter’s dog gets so excited because she loves going there to see the Trainers, work, play, and she knows she’s loved. All the other Trainers are so helpful and encouraging too. The facilities are clean and the dogs have a blast in their large indoor play areas. I’m so glad we chose this place!

Great for boarding! My dog always comes home happy!

I have been working with Javiela from Dogs Downtown for about a year to train my Golden Retriever as a service dog. Javiela has been an absolute godsend. I brought a stubborn, rambunctious puppy to her, and through her constant, unwavering patience and skill, my dog has become a gentleman. She is so knowledgeable and has a great intuition for how to work with animals. Working with Javiela over the past year, I have learned so very much about how to communicate with my dog and get him to achieve training goals.I cannot adequately describe the positive changes and improvements that my dog has made, thanks to Javiela. My dog is now calm, eager to please, loyal, and so sweet. He wants to succeed. He wants to help me. I know this wouldnt have been possible without the skill Javiela has shown in working with my dog. She assisted me in finding tasks that would help me, and because of his training Im now feeling a sense of freedom and confidence that I havent felt in many years.

If you are looking for reliable professional trainers this is the place. Dogs downtown has reasonable prices and have done an excellent job training my service dog and obedience. They also provide doggy day care and my pooch always comes home happy and tired. Staff is friendly and helpful.Highly recommend, 10/10.

Alexa is a FANTASTIC trainer and my crazy little pitbull is learning from her so quickly. I recommend this place to anyone who thinks there their dog is out of control or just needs to brush up on the basics. Dogs Downtown also does advanced training for service dogs. I am totally impressed.

My dog always comes home smelling like urine, dehydrated, gaurding everything, sick and lethargic for at least 2 days. They price gouge on weekends now also.

We are getting a dog that we have doing extensive training with from here. We are super excited. The staff is super knowledgeable and are great!

I am extremely satisfied with the training Javiela provided. My mini golden doodle was a anxious puppy before starting the training and after a week of drop off training and a couple private lessons he has become a confident puppy. Javier a was always responsive with my emails and works very hard to understand the needs of the puppy and gave us some very good recommendations to help us train it at home.

Trainer provided information packet during first consultation for boarding and training while discussing the problems we wanted to be part of the goal. I asked about the price of training and he pointed at the page. I scheduled the appointment over the phone and the gentleman spoke about price for training with the trainer who did our consultation. When I called back to make the payment I was given a different price but they would not honor or accommodate in any matter although two employees stated the same price. I would NOT recommend this business who cannot see their errors.

Cliff did an amazing job with our dog reactive lab mix. He knows dogs, knows what they need, and knows how to help us help the dog. Couldn’t be more pleased.

Alexa is a great trainer always helpful. Would recommend

Over the past year and a half Sophia has really improved my quality of life by helping train my dog to be my Service Dog. She has been kind and supportive every step of the way. She took the time to understand what I needed and worked with me to task train what would most beneficial rather than picking common SD tasks. Shes calmly answered my panicked emails when my PTSD got the better of me without ever being dismissive or making me feel less than.I am so incredibly grateful for her help as its truly given me my life back. I am only stopping being a client because Im able to move on to the next chapter in my life in another state. My dog Faye absolutely loves her and we will both miss her.

Javiela has been so helpful with training us to train our dog. She has a great understanding of how to train dogs with caring and gentle techniques. Thanks for helping us Javiela!

Léon, our 3 year old Goldendoodle, needed to build up more confidence, some refreshers and additional skill sets. Our trainer, Javiela, has been doing a fabulous job, working one on one as well in group settings with us. She has adapted to the needs we have, our learning style, worked in different locations,... we have been satisfied with the training we have gotten and highly recommend her services.

Not very professional , expensive and very basic.

We did a two week board & train program so this review is detailed with all the great support our baby got!We adopted a 2 y.o mixed breed rescue officially in mid-feb after fostering for about a month. We knew we wanted to do training and actually had signed on with another training facility closer to our home in Falls Church but needed to change plans due to a last minute trip out of town. If we were going to board for a full week, we really wanted our pup to get some enrichment (and bonus that we were going to get her training anyways) instead of being cooped up for a week somewhere.I found Dogs Downtown online when googling local Board & Trains. We had a great initial consultation, felt comfortable with them & our dog, and we were fortunate they had space to take her on while we were going to be out of town. We still werent sure if our dog would need 1 week or 2 week B&T so we agreed to go in on the 2 week program and call it at 1 week if she needed a break, was getting stressed out, or any other reason. Our dog Joey is a really good dog -- unlike other fosters weve card for, she has no serious obedience issues, no issues with aggression or leash reactivity, etc -- so our goal was mastery of basic obedience training. Our trainer, Alexa, really wanted to emphasize we cant guarantee if our dog will learn or catch on, and our dog it a slow learner, so our expectations werent high, but for the B&T rates I was going to be happy with basic obedience skills.We received updates usually every other day -- pictures, videos, and emails from the staff. They were responsive to any emails or calls we made to them. We had a check-in call with the trainer at the one week mark and we received the good news that our dog was catching on to the training and that she would benefit from another week of training to reinforce/master. The second weeks is when Joey really made progress in her training so while we really missed having her at home, it was totally worth it.We picked her up at the two week mark and had a 90 min session with our trainer to learn the commands Joey had learned. I was nervous about reinforcing her training as well as she had learned it from Alexa, but we caught on easily with Alexas help. Despite our slow learning pup and metered expectations, she mastered all the basic obedience and then some (sit, stay, down, come, leave it, place/mat, loose leash walking, wait, touch, etc). Joeys training met and exceeded all of our expectations.We were very pleased with her obedience training at the session, but since weve been home with her for 2 weeks weve gotten to see how well she took to the training and how engrained it is for her now. I was glad to see that she hasnt regressed or gotten complacent since she left the facility. We are very glad we chose Dogs Downtown and had Alexa as our trainer. You could tell Alexa and staff cared for our pup as a sweet family member and not just a job. We had a great connection with Alexa and think she was the perfect trainer to maximize the potential of our sweet Joey pup.We would love to come join the group sessions or their day care but our dog gets really car sick and the drive to Chantilly from Falls Church is too much for her. We will use Dogs Downtown for future boarding needs and maybe throw in some mini trainings!

We love Satu so much! She’s grown into a beautiful, fun girl, and she’s an ambassador for the breed! Thank you.

I can’t say enough great things about this place. The staff is not only friendly but extremely knowledgeable. They are also very accommodating when any special needs arise. I have used them for day care, training and boarding and all have been wonderful experiences. They are so attentive to my dog that he always leaves better behaved then when he arrives. They have earned a customer for life and would recommend them to anyone.

My golden-doodle puppy is a bit of a handful and a little stubborn but since we have started working with Alexa she has shown tremendous progress. Alexa listens to our concerns and immediately starts to think about workable solutions that fit our family’s environment. Our pup came back from a week of excellent boarding and training a better version of herself. Highly recommend!

I received a service dog from Dogs Downtown a year ago. He was exceptionally trained before we were matched, then after he was trained to my specific needs. Sophia has always listened to any questions or concerns I may have and addressed them appropriately. It has been a wonderful experience and I highly recommend this business.

They won’t board your dog until they do an evaluation, which is basically a meet and greet with you and your pet. They have space to board but not time to do the evaluation so they wouldn’t let me book anything.

Great service and highly recommend. We took our three month old puppy here for socialization, crate and leash training and to curb the puppy nipping. He absolutely loves Sophia and even our vet said he could tell a huge difference and we got our money’s worth! Will continue to refer other dogs here.

Scott did a wonderful job training our 1-yr-old chocolate lab Ollie. When we dropped him off, he was a very sweet but crazy dog with zero impulse control. He was pulling on the leash, jumping on people, etc. After one week with Scott, we had a totally different dog. Ollie is now a dream to walk; he heels perfectly by my side and wont even go on the grass without permission. He is also a much better listener overall. Scott was also nice enough to send us videos and photos during the week so we could see his progress. Highly recommend!

It is amazing!!! I did private training with my German Shepherd x Black Mouth Cur for once a week. And I for sure saw a change! Cliff is an amazing trainer!! And bonds amazingly with your dog! They are also very honest about things! Will not really sugar code things. Will definitely be returning to them whenever I need training with my boy! And are very lenient about paying. (When I did the bundle. I paid every week instead of all at once.) totally recommend them!

Amazing experience. I attended a consultation to determine if my foster dog of two weeks had potential to become my service dog. Master Trainer Cliff was honest, straightforward, and compassionate.The visit was not a sales pitch, nor did I leave feeling disappointed. Whether I choose to adopt this dog and expect a rocky road, or go another route, I plan to return to work with Cliff.

Sophia and crew are the best. Our Saint Bernard puppy has such good manners. Now its up to us to keep it going!

Ive been taking my GSD since she was a puppy for training and socialization. The trainers are very knowledgeable. They take the time to do a consultation and make recommendations based on your dogs needs. Highly recommend. Great results with leash pulling and heel training.

In 16 lessons, Cliff helped me prepare my (pretty much untrained) 4-year-old golden retriever to pass her therapy dog evaluation. The change in her demeanor and behavior is remarkable and I regret not starting on this training journey sooner. We are getting a new puppy soon and will be back at Dogs Downtown to begin our obedience training!

I love this place! Been in the veterinary profession for over 30 years and have seen many different training styles. These folks are the best! Have been taking our new puppy there for training sessions and I am very satisfied with the results. Highly recommend Cliff, he knows what he is doing and is very good at what he does. Thanks Dogs Downtown.

David is awesome! I highly recommend using him. We started doing in home obedience training sessions with him when our Bernese Mountain dog was 6 months old and have continued with board and train sessions. From day one he has had a way with her that was just remarkable. We had results instantly. Leia is excited every time she gets to go with him. It is very comforting knowing every time we leave her with him that she couldn’t be in better hands.

My service dog, Paddington, is from Dogs Downtowns service dog training program and we continue to work with his wonderful trainer, Sophia, on a weekly basis. I love Dogs Downtown, and have since the first day meeting with Leah, all the way through the process of matching with my dog, board training him, and then going home with him and having the professional and responsive support. The trainers here are both knowledgeable about training, and LOVE their dogs. Often, working with the dogs is more about training people than training the dog (so many of their dogs are already amazing), but they are patient with the people too. Paddington is an incredible dog, loving, relaxed, and so quick to learn. He has changed my life, and is the best friend I could ask for, and Dogs Downtown was a huge part of that.

They were great but my dog is now sick for the first time and I have to take him to the vet today. 6yrs never sick until I boarded him

Brought in our 2 GSDs for training on Heeling. Cliff was thoroughly knowledgeable, was able to get some results within ten minutes. He easily transitioned between helping me, my son, and my wife understanding the drives and solutions to two very different personalities in our dogs. Great stuff!

I am so grateful to all the staff at Dogs Downtown but especially to Sophia. I came with the goal of training my dog to be better walking on the leash and to increase her manners. Sophia listened to my goals and helped me to better articulate how to measure our progress. She has been a fantastic trainer for Meadow and guide for me and my children. She is patient with me and shows me how to better communicate with Meadow. She is efficient in her work and I have seen incredible improvement in Meadow’s leash walking ability as well as her manners. I am so grateful to have found an institution that is committed to helping me reach my dog training goals.In addition I want to say that I have been impressed with the board and train program. I was nervous to leave Meadow but the staff texted me pictures of her while we were gone to help. She was very happy when we picked her up and she made SO much progress towards our goals. She was also very relaxed and I could tell that she was well taken care of while we were traveling.Dogs Downtown is a special place where they take special care of dogs.

We adopted “Storm” our German Shepard from the Shiraz Farm near the end of February 2017. She has been the greatest since then. She is naturally smart, athletic and loves to couch snuggle. She has taken to my daughter the most (8-Year-old). She always has a watchful eye on her, we went through a couple months of training at Dogs Downtown and they have proven priceless.The instructors, along with Leah, and Rodger have been more than helpful on any questions we have had on Storm as well as Hershey our Fox Red Labrador. These guys are great, thank You!!

My dogs are a very important part of my life. I purchased my beautiful German Shepherd Paris from Leah at Shiraz Farm. These puppies need training , exercise and socialization so I have been at Dogs Downtown for playtime as well as training and boarding. I cannot say enough good things about this place and the staff. I am older and these pups are strong, active and smart. Caitlyn and Sophia especially have helped us along. One day I walked in in tears over handling issues. They both stopped everything to listen to me and immediately helped us with some valuable changes. What a great environment it is for success. Paris and I are well on our way as the team I hoped we would be. She loves her time at Dogs Downtown and so do I. I know that if I have any questions or issues, the staff will give me solid advice. Paris wags her tail every time we go there!

We are extremely pleased with Everyone at this facility! The facility is clean and well laid out. The staff is informative and very patient when explaining things. The price is more than competitive and you definitely get more for your money than you would some where else. Sophia is currently working with our daughter who is very soft spoken and quiet. She has been patient with her and very helpful in explaining to my daughter what they need to practice at home! I highly recommend this facility to anyone training a service animal or even a personal pet.

The trainers and staff at Dogs Downtown are great. Theyre very knowledgeable and its clear that they want you and your dog to succeed. Cliff had a big positive impact on my Austrailian shepherd. I would absolutely bring my dogs here again!

They treat our puppy well and are accommodating during the COVID-19 outbreak. We go for puppy socialization and work with Cliff for basic obedience training.

I first came here to experience the wonder that is puppy yoga and was not disappointed as they had 10 or so adorable puppies running around while we tried to focus on yoga. We them started boarding our anxious puppy here to help her be socialized and they did wonders with her!

This place is an amazing center!Dog training and the boarding facility.The owner is very knowledgeable and will answer all questions .Highly recommendations 😊We got both of our amazing German Shepherds from Leigh .We are so blessed they both are the most amazing fur babies and we love them so much.I am German and have become to know Leigh very well and consider her a very good friend who I can trust and depend on .I am so glad I was able to get my amazing fur babies from a reputable breeder .

I am very impressed with the Dogs Downtown facility and staff. I did training sessions with my German Shepherd puppy, Ernie, with Sophia. Initially, it was to work on better leash manners. Then, I continued training with her because I wanted Ernie to be a therapy dog. Sophias goals were to teach him skills that would him a good therapy dog, not just pass a test. We solidifed his obedience, worked on controlling prey drive and also ways for Ernie to greet people in a hospital type setting. The training has shaped Ernie into a very well mannered, exemplary therapy dog who now volunteers at two rehab facilities.I also have a 5 year old German Shepherd, Esther, who was not well socialized growing up. She also growls at other dogs at times. I decided to do an evaluation with Sophia to see if training could help her. Weve had a few session and the results are nothing short of amazing! Sophia knows how to read dog signals very well. Esther has fear based anxiety which I did not realize. Dogs Downtown has wonderful, well-balanced service dogs at their facility that they utilize during training sessions. They know exactly what temperament of dogs to use to help build up Esthers confidence. Its like when Caesar Milan brings in a well balanced dogs to assist with training. Esther is much happier since we started training and she loves going to Dogs Downtown.

Alexa the trainer is amazing she trained our dog and now he is much better than before and even the owner Sophia is amazing and all staff is friendly and very cooperative

I highly recommend David as your dog trainer. Hands down the best trainer I’ve ever had. He taught my dog the basic obedience in just 8 weeks and it’s amazing because my dog wasn’t obedient at all. If you end up going to dog’s downtown, I highly recommend David.

This place is wonderful! We have been taking Lady, our 8 month old puppy, for training for the past few months. Clif was excellent with her. He was patient and really helped us understand the best ways to work with her at home. The difference in Lady from day 1 of training to day 8 has been night and day. I cannot rave enough about the standard of professionalism and expertise Clif showed. Dogs Downtown has offered a place that we feel comfortable bring Lady and leaving her because the people who work there are excellent. I highly recommend this place for anyone who is serious about working with/training their dog.

5 Stars with out a question for this business and my master trainer, Leah. Since the day we walked into this business and meeting Leah, my husband and I knew we had made the right decision. Leah went above and beyond to find us a service dog to match our needs. Our pup is now 8 months old and we can not believe how mi j we have learned from Leah.If you are looking for a dog trainer, or even just a great place for a dog play time, this is your place. Clean and reputable. Very grateful to have found Leah!!!

Lets talk about Sterling.I have a 1 y/o Cane Corso rescue confiscated from a cruelty case. He was under socialized with limited human interaction and a lack of understanding for life as a dog. He has been to a 3 week board and train at another facility which definitely helped with his obedience (bc there was none), a behaviorist (which just wasnt the right route for us) and we were basically in the position where we were having to contemplate him going into rescue because he was terrified and reactive at basically everything. He couldnt be handled by anyone but us which really limited our options.Then he met Scott and his team. They have been tremendous. They have had him for a 1 week board and train, boarding, and even daycare and he LOVES them. He has become less reactive and more confident. Does he run up to strangers wagging his tail? He does not thatt not really what we signed up for. He has come a long way and continues to improve daily. We cant thank them enough.When we our first evaluation meeting, I was emotionally exhausted from trying to find a solution that would work for us and more importantly for him. Another client was picking her dog up and she recognized the fearful behavior...she said you have come to the right place, Scott is amazing She was 100% percent correct.

We travel from Laurel, MD weekly for training. That should say it all! I am so happy we found Dogs Downtown so that my granddaughter can get the support she needs from her dog. Leah helped us find the right service dog. She and the rest of the Dogs Downtown team have trained us and our dog. There is a terrific understanding of what is needed for the relationship between the dog and the individual in need of the dog.Dogs Downrown is not just for service dogs. I watch many non-service dogs come for training. Proper training of us and the dog makes both of us much happier!!

Very professional and knowledgable trainers. They helped pair me with my future furry best friend, Hap a pure breed German Shepard who is now my service dog. The boarding facilities are top notch and I never worry about leaving Hap for a few days. He absolutely loves the days when he can go to playtime and visit with his friends. Highly recommended!

Wonderful trainers, great dog supplies, excellent source of sound advice! Our human and canine family members love feeling respected and welcome at Dogs Downtown. Clifs training sessions produce great results!

Highly recommended. Dave is one of the best trainers Ive worked with ever. I have a very high drive working line GSD that I required a professional trainer to help him reach his potential. Not only has Dave helped us progress as a team but my dog is now able to go just about anywhere with us while making leaps and bounds in his training. As a new handler I couldnt ask for a better school.

They treated my dog with such care and friendliness that he loved coming to his sessions! Great tips and super helpful as a first time dog owner. I highly recommend Dog’s downtown for beginner training!

Cliff helped me with behavior issues with my new rescue. I’ve seen a huge adjustment in her behavior and have learned to be better at home with her and adjust my training at home. Great experience!

Very happy with Dogs Downtown. Extremely knowledgeable and personable trainers.

I can honestly give Dogs Downtown a 5 star rating -- no kidding. My situation goes beyond the basic obedience needs; I was seeking help for my adult rescue Aussie mix, Sophie, who has issues meeting new people or dogs displaying aggressive behaviors when uncomfortable in these situations. I met with Sophia for an eval and felt I finally found what I was searching for. After observing and handling Sophie, Sophia suggested a a realistic plan to help Sophie with her anti-social behaviors. Sophias plan worked to address these issues in a pace that my Sophie could handle, and my Sophie has shown marked improvement in her stranger danger reactions as well as tolerance to other dogs in her personal space. I attribute this to Sophias ability to read my dog, understand her temperament, and help her accept some of the scary things in the world around her. Most importantly, Sophia understood when to challenge Sophie to the next level and which intro dogs to pair her with. We are almost done with our 8 sessions but trust that Sophia will provide sound guidance as to where we go next with Sophie.I can only say that Ive consulted with a few dog trainers in the 21 months of living with Sophie and Ive actually worked with a few. Most are competent with teaching basic obedience skills. Sophia is truly a master trainer in working with dogs and understanding what makes them tick. The facility is clean and welcoming, the staff friendly and helpful and the rates are competitively priced for the quality of the service -- believe me, I know. So happy I found Dogs Downtown.

If you are looking for a positive dog training experience where anyone has any idea what’s going on.... AVOID THIS PLACE!My puppy and I have been to Dogs Downtown for a consultation. Two drop off trainer sessions with owner training at the end. And one week long Boarders and stay’.The consult went fine. The woman who did the consult seemed compassionate and knowledgeable. She took notes on my puppy and the plan for her and I scheduled a training session.The first training visit; the trainer didn’t know anything about my puppy, how long the session was for, or what it was for.That was surprising since the consult had been quite thorough. But I filled the trainer in briefly and dropped my dog off for 4 hours. The training session at the end was supposed to be 45 mins. It lasted 18mins.The second training session; a staff member just came and took my puppy off her leash while I was singing in and took her to the back.When I returned after 2 hours. I was told our trainer was out but had EBT given enough notice for us to be notified. The person that was filling in didn’t even introduce themselves to me. They asked if this was our first session! This is after they had spent time training my puppy. They had no information on whether my puppy had even been there before or what training had already taken place. The lesson from the last week had just been repeated. It was outrageous. The manager spoke with me and apologized for the situation and I didn’t pay for this session.The board and stay; I spoke with the regular trainer that would be working with my puppy during the stay in advance of drop off so that I knew there was a plan. The trainer was very nice and accommodated our after hours pick up. We did a trading session that was 45 mins and that was good. However, I had communicated with the manager in writing that I would like to have the trainer work with my puppy to have her nails trimmed because she was developing a fear. The manager assured me that would get done. On pick up, discovered it was not done. They did it quickly in the waiting room and did a not great job. Exactly what I was trying to avoid.The note that I had left for the trainer never got to the trainer even though front desk said they would pass it along.My puppy also got an eye infection while there. She is now on antibiotic drops.I wrote DD and the manager basically said ‘Thank you for your feed back...”, that is the risk of boarding, and best of luck.Terrible place! Terrible customer service! Terrible communication! GO SOMEWHERE ELSE!

We adopted a puppy with the sole intention of it being a family pet after losing both our dogs within months of each other. Our daughter is medically complex and her epilepsy is not well managed by medication so I began researching service animals. Dogs Downtown provided an honest evaluation of our puppy to determine if it was feasible to proceed with training. We have only completed 5 sessions with Sophia and our dog is doing so well. She reads the dogs body language very well and quickly figures out what works best for your dog. She customizes each session to the dogs specific needs. I leave each session wondering where she has hidden her magic wand because the progress weve seen is nothing short of amazing.

This is by far the best dog grooming shop around.  I love how friendly these guys are. They’re really inexpensive for the quality service they provide. You guys should really try this place out.

The essence of professionalism. David has helped me now with 2 dogs over the last 7 years. Strict fundamentals and a needs driven planning stragety has worked really well for us. I recently had to board our pup with them because of a business trip. My dog had some adverse effects from a vaccine and they took impecable care of her. I was embarrassed to know that they had to clean her up a couple of times in the middle of the night due to her symptoms. I was kept in the loop and they reassured me without making me feel worse than I already did. I am super grateful. I recommend Dave and his crew the moment anyone brings up dog training. Obedience? Sporting dog? Scent detection? Boarding? Theyve got you covered.

Best training and boarding around!!

Sophia did an outstanding job in training our 8 month old Kerry Blue Terrier, Monk. Her professionalism and expertise was evident throughout the training sessions. i highly recommend and endorse Dogs Downtown for new puppy training and socialization classes.

Im pretty sure my dog was abused at this place while boarding. When I contacted the manager Leigha, I listed the reasons for my concern and her response (without investigating) was that I had to apply logic to the situation.Heres the logic I expressed to Leigha prior to her statement. My dog is 12.5 years old, has been boarded his whole life and has never expressed anxiety. He has also been left home alone all day his entire life.In the weeks since his most recent boarding he hides in his bed on high alert all day where he used to sleep and look out the window. He also began scratching his face bloody with anxiety and I had to buy a cone for him to wear. I have cameras in my house and verify this behavior daily (pics attached if this site allows posting them).Do I know he was abused? No, I never will. Do I suspect he was? Yes. Was this suspicion made stronger by the manager’s response and unwillingness to investigate? Absolutely. I’m not one to accuse and hopefully this doesn’t sound like I am, though be very wary of this place and their manager’s lack of willingness to investigate a serious allegation.

The team here is talented and caring.

Training personnel are amazing.

Service Dog - Two months ago my psychologist recommend getting a service dog to help with my chronic PTSD. I searched and quickly found the wait to be 1-2 years. Dogs Downtown was able to quickly pair me with one of their in-training dogs. She is a seven month old yellow lab and her name is Nina. Nina and I have been working on specific tasks to help me. Cliff is my master trainer. Hes a retired Air Force veteran. Cliff spent most of his career as a military dog trainer and he can read a dogs body language in a split second. He seems to know what the dog is going to do before the dog even acts. His experience and patience has been a tremendous help to me and Nina.One of the things I like best about Dogs Downtown is their overall approach to dog training which is positive reinforcement....not punishment for bad behavior.

David is an amazing trainer and we could not be more thankful for everything he has done for us! We recently adopted a rescue pit bull mix who is very high energy and was having some behavioral issues such as leash pulling, biting, jumping, and just all around not listening to us. We were desperate because we knew that with his breed this type of behavior needed to stop immediately. We started doing private sessions with David and saw results even after the 1st session! Our dog is now still his goofy, funny, and hyper self--but he is obiedient when he needs to be. This dog trainer was worth every penny, I highly recommend him! Thanks David!

I use Dogs Downtown regularly for training and boarding. I highly recommend if you live in the area and you are looking for a place that can provide safe and monitored playtime, a wide range of training, and a clean safe boarding environment.

Great facility for boarding and absolutely the best training for all levels of obedience! David is amazing!

If you need a true service dog and you are prepared to put the work in then you need not look any further.

Smelled strongly of urine and very unprofessional.

My dog Misty did 5 basic training sessions with Sophia and loved it!

The reputation of Dogs Downtown while good, understated how tremendous this place is. I am an Army Veteran with severe PTSD and Depression and needed a service dog. I was on a list for almost two years and heard nothing. My fiancé contacted Leah,the owner, and she had gone out to breeders to see if any of their puppies were fit for training. She brought two for me to see and I chose Brody, a 10 week old Lab. We have conducted training with Brody there with Leahs team for the last 8 months. Recently, Leah made a superb addition to her training staff. She hired an expert, Cliff Lingle, who is also a veteran and was in charge of training the Army dogs for combat. Cliff is a tremendous trainer and uses his vast experience to add to the curriculum to help meet the specific needs for each veteran/person. While Brody has some work to go, I am very confident he will pass the Service Dog test with flying colors thanks to the great team at Dogs Downtown.I would recommend this superb team to anyone

I met David when my GSD was about 4 months old, referred to us by the Shiraz Farm GSD breeder. David taught me how to train my dog and reinforces the need for consistency and repetition. My big dog who is now an adolescent, would be such a challenge if David was not still training me. David has a way to re-focus my dog on the acceptable behaviors he learned as a pup, that now as a “teenager” he sometimes decides to forget. He teaches me the best approaches to get results. I have lost count of the number of compliments I have received on how well behaved my young dog is. David is one of the best trainers I have worked with and will continue to use as I have confidence in his ability to take my training skills to new heights as my dog enters adulthood. David is committed to helping my dog be the best he can be.Dogs Downtown is an outstanding training / boarding facility with a remarkable staff to compliment what David started, but I will always refer to David as “my trainer.” He is a rock star and has a special way with dogs that is unmatched.

I came to dogs downtown by chance, I came to have my original pup temperament tested, he did not make it but Leah, my trainer, immediately had a dog in mind that would work for me the only issue was is that I live in Maryland. Ultimately we decided to come back, take April home, and come back for training. The decision was made because when I learned my original puppy wasn’t gonna Work I mental break, but Leah not only was able to calm me (which is a feat in itself) but also had amazing dogs that day that I was able to watch and let me tell you they were incredible. Well we come back once a week and not only did Leah help train April she taught me how to have confidence in myself and my ability to train her. I have had April since September 16th and now on March 15th I have a amazing 9 month old happy pup whose smarts are beyond anything I have ever seen. Through Leah’s training of her and her training of me, April can open and close doors, drawers, and cabinets, she can bring my water, she can respond to my panic attacks, alert to my anxiety episodes and I got lucky in that she has also latched to my heart condition. Leah is the reason I have more freedom AND more confidence in myself. I highly recommend her to anyone who is in need of a Service Dog, her training and ability to connect with these dogs is beyond anything I have ever seen and it’s amazing.

Leah and the Dog’s Downtown have changed our daughters life in such a positive way! A little over a year ago, she was limited by her severe anxieties and panic attacks. She found Leah and was matched with the perfect GSD pup, to be trained to be her service dog. The GSD has been life changing for my daughter and our family. Leah and the team at Dog’s Downtown are Angels who have answered our prayers! My daughter and her amazing and sweet GSD attend weekly trainings and are doing so well. Highly recommend!! Don’t think twice - they know what they are doing with over 20+ years of experience. And they are the nicest people! So caring and wonderful!! True blessings in our lives! Thanks Leah, Roger, Sophie, Hannah and Kaitlyn and the rest of the crew!! P.S,- Doga (puppy yoga) is the best - puppies provided!

I cannot say enough good things about Dogs Downtown! My husband and I rescued our one year old pup (German shepherd, terrier, bulldog mix) in June of this year. Her backstory was unclear but was thought to have been kept chained up, potentially abused. She was sweet as can be when we met her and with us however we soon realized she had definite issues with strangers and other dogs and would become extremely reactive when out on walks and difficult to control. She also of course needed obedience work. Initially we signed up for training via the local pet store but it became apparent that wouldnt be enough for our girl and we began researching other options.I found Dogs Downtown online and signed up for a consult session. We met with David and Ivy barked at him for a solid 45 minutes, wouldnt let him near her and it was only towards the end of the hour that she would run forward to gobble up a treat he tossed her then quickly retreat away. David was completely honest with us and said he didnt know if he would be able to help us but he was willing to work with her if we were committed. Three months later we have a completely dog. Ivy LOVES going to Dogs Downtown and we go there not only for training but also for playtime. We completed 8 sessions with David and she knows all her commands plus a few simple tricks weve taught her at home. She is SO much better on walks and no longer barks at people, we still have some issue with other dogs on leash but shes easier to correct and we hope with more time this behavior will be eliminated and we also know that shes not reacting aggressively but just wants to play and is frustrated when shes not allowed to.We give so much credit to David who not only trained Ivy but taught us to train her. She always enjoyed her sessions and he always knew exactly when she needed a quick 2 minute play break. We are so glad we found Dogs downtown and even though weve finished our training for now we know we can always get refresher lessons if we need them and we still bring Ivy there for playtime because she loves it so much so we still get to have interaction with the staff and trainers on a regular basis. David has told us he wishes he videotaped her first session so everyone can see how much she turned around. He even suggested that she was almost ready for the Canine Good Citizen test which we didnt think we would be able to do for awhile. We also frequently get comments on how well behaved she is, we have worked so hard so to hear that from strangers is so rewarding. We would have never progressed to where we are so quickly without Dogs Downtown and especially David!

The trainers take the time to individualize each training experience and all of the staff is held to high expectations even if just out with a dog for a walk.

My 5-months-old GSD, Rudi, has completed his first series of Puppy Obedience with Sophia.Sophia’s training method is impressive, she is fully in charge, yet gentle and patient. Lessons with her are full of fun, for puppy and for owner.Sophia is a professional when teaching dogs. Not only does Rudi perform well during training, but Sophia’s teachings carry over to home situations; Rudi no longer jumps on people; he has started to heel when we go for a walk; he now enthusiastically gets into the car which was his greatest fear not long ago. And she also taught me how to clip Rudi’s nails without trauma.Sophia’s training sessions were 100% tailored to Rudi ‘s needs.We will be back for more training when Rudi is a young, boisterous dog.Karin

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