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2004 Jabula Dog Academy |
Dear Kate,
I am writing this letter to tell you how pleased I am with miraculous work that you were able achieve with my Golden Retriever Sierra. Before I came to you I was about to give my precious dog away. Let me give you a bit of history on Sierra and why your training has been so important to our lives. I waited years to get a Golden Retriever because I heard that they were the ultimate family dog. I don't have any kids now, but I thought that in the future if I did I wanted a dog that would adapt well. I brought Sierra from a reputable place and I was so excited. Well my excitement was short lived once I brought her home. Sierra has what is called SEVERE SEPERATION ANXIETY. As soon as I brought her home I knew there was something wrong. To make a long story short here is the run down on some of what she has done to my house, other objects, and herself: Busted out a fine metal crate purchased as soon as I brought her home. She would thrash around in the crate so much and bite on the bars trying to get out she actually broke 2 of her permanent front teeth. She also destroyed the bottom plastic part of the crate and left a permanent scar on her nose. In less than 2 months of having the crate Sierra was also smart enough to learn how to squeeze herself through the sides of the crate and get out. When I would come home she would be walking around the house and the crate door would still be closed. I thought “OH MY GOD! The dog is breaking out of the crate and closing the door behind her just to spite me. Well I soon learned that she was actually squeezing herself through the sides of the crate (that explained all of the hair that was left in the crate after she got out). I know that you have some of those at Jabula Dog Academy and it seems impossible to squeeze though those holes. However, leave it to Sierra to learn how to figure it out. After busting out the crate and hurting herself I felt I had no choice but to let her walk around the house while I was gone. Sierra ate up all of the linoleum off of the laundry room floor as well as the drywall. She also ate the siding of the door in the laundry room. Basically the laundry room looks like a war zone. I am sending you the pictures to prove my story because nobody ever believes me. Sierra destroyed all of the original blinds that I had in my house. After that I went to temporary paper blinds. She destroyed 4 sets of those. When I would drive up to the house from work if the blinds were ripped down I knew she got out of the crate. Sierra would open up all of the cabinets in the kitchen and pull the pots and pans out and spread them around the house. Well I thought I had the answer for that. I tied the doors closed so she could not get in. Well she pulled so hard she broke one of the doors apart. Luckily I was able to glue that back together. One day Sierra locked herself in the bathroom by accident and decided to bite her way out. I am sending you the picture for that one also. I decided once to try and leave Sierra outside in the yard to see if that would calm her down. Bad idea! She put a hole through my screen on the screened in porch trying to get back into the house. We then tried leaving Sierra outside in the yard with a neighbor's dog to see if that would work. Well, everything was going ok until one day they got out of the gate and ran around terrorizing the neighborhood. I was called at work later that day by the neighbor explaining that they escaped and Sierra was missing. You just don't know the panic I felt in my heart. I went rushing home to start the search and rescue. We later found out that someone called the dog pound and she went to Doggie Jail. Since I had to go to my second job my boyfriend went and bailed her out of prison, and paid the fine for her being loose. I have a very large fenced in back yard. I would usually let Sierra go out on her own watch her every couple of minutes to make sure she was alright. Well on this particular day Sierra discovered a small sink hole near the bottom of the fence and squeezed herself through it. By the time I looked out the window the only thing I saw was her hind legs pushing herself through the hole. I was not even fully dressed. With my hair standing on air I threw on a pair of shoes and ran after Sierra. To make a long story short Sierra dragged me through 3 subdivisions before I caught up to her. I ran so fast and hard it took my throat a couple of days to recover from the screaming I was doing while chasing after her. The straw that broke the camels back was when I came home and Sierra had ripped my sofa to bits and pieces. She walked up to greet me at the door and had foam on her nose. I thought hummmm….foam where would that come from? Only thing I could think of was the couch. I turned on the light in the family room and there it was torn to pieces. There are no words to describe this so I am sending you the picture of this also. That night I cried so much at the thought of having to give away my dog. The next morning I got your number from her Doggie Day Care and called you. It was about 7:30 AM and I knew nobody was going to be there, but I was so desperate I just wanted to leave a message. To my surprise you answered the phone and listed to me as I cried my eyes out. The next week I met with you and 2 other dog trainers. I choose you because I felt a sincere concern to get to the root of Sierra’s problem, and not just being concerned with the money involved. So off she went to a 2 week boot camp with you. During that time it was a joke in my family that you would not be able to pull it off. I would call every couple of days to see if you had called it quits. My family and I even thought about just not picking her back up at all if it did not seem like you could help her out. To my amazement 2 weeks later Sierra was a new dog. When I first got there and you had me just watch her from the window outside I could not believe my eyes. I was literally in tears as I watched you bounce a ball around Sierra and she would not move. You would run past her and she would stay still until you gave her the command. I thought to myself the ultimate test will be when she gets home. I brought a new crate as you recommended that is not wire, and put Sierra in the first night. I could not believe it. It was as if she was not even in the house. She did not make a sound. A couple of times during the night I even got up to make sure she was still alive. It was amazing to me. Before I sent her to you when I would put Sierra in her crate she thrashed around and barked so much that she would come out soaked, and with each occasion the crate would get dented out a bit more. It has now been over 6 months since I took Sierra to you for boot camp and I could not be more pleased. I am able to leave Sierra in her crate up to 8 hours while I am gone. Some of the other great things that she learned while she was there with you are:
Kate there are just so many wonderful things that you taught Sierra I could go on and on. Before I took her to you I would ball up in tears because I thought the only solution was to give her away. Your training methods have re-defined my relationship with my dog, and my house. I can leave in peace knowing that she will be ok in her crate while I am gone. She no longer rules the house and makes me feel like I am the dog. I would recommend your training to anybody who is looking to correct unwanted behavior. All of my family members and friends cannot believe how Sierra turned out. My only regret is that I did not send her to you sooner. My pocketbook, house and mental state could have been spared a lot of pain. Whenever I need to leave Sierra anywhere for a couple of days I would not think of anywhere but Jabula Dog Academy. Sierra is always so happy to see you, and I know I am leaving her with somebody who cares. If you ever have a client that wants a referral tell them to call me, because boy do I have a story to tell!
Sincerely,
Diana Robinson |
The Couch
Laundry Wall
The Bathroom Door |
