Have Patience! Have Fun!
Have Mercy!
OUR HEART
Here at Have Mercy Dog Training, our primary goal is COMFORT - physical as well as emotional - for all parties, human and canine.
We believe communication is the heart of training. Since you communicate like a human and your dog communicates like a dog, we help you create the lines of understanding that are necessary for your dog to know what you want! We also teach you how to understand what your dog is trying to tell you - especially important if your dog is nervous, shy, or aggressive.
We commit to practices that are least invasive to the dog, allow plenty of opportunities for success, and that garner joyful cooperation from your dog. We use no aversive techniques or tools, and focus on positive, affirming activities and methods to reinforce desired behaviors.
OUR SERVICES
Shelter Consulting
For our canine friends still waiting for their forever homes, we can provide the following for our shelter affiliates:
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Instruction for shelter personnel (staff, volunteer, and foster) on handling, management, and match-making;
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On-site group classes;
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Sustainable enrichment and training programs for staff/volunteers; and
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Treatment plans with implementation assistance for problematic dogs
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$50/hour, on-site
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$75/private in-homes (fosters, new adoptions)
Basic Skills
These in-home lessons focus on practical skills and training foundations for dogs and their people, offering:
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Private instruction targeting your specific goals in addition to basics (sit/down, stay, leash manners, etc.);
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AKC-certified Canine Good Citizen training and testing;
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$100/private in-home
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$300/4 lessons
Behavior Modification
For more challenging behaviors, our Canine Behavior Consultant (CBCC-KA) will work closely with the pet parent to provide:
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A thorough evaluation and assessment of the situation;
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A comprehensive program detailing management strategies and modification techniques;
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Summary reports and observations for veterinary collaborations
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$150 - initial assessment
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$125 - follow ups
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$50/additional Training Assistants, if necessary (multiple dogs, intros, etc.)
OUR WORK
OUR ORIGIN STORY
A tiny bit about how I got started...
I have always - ALWAYS - had dogs and enjoyed training, behavior, and science. All of those things converged professionally in 2012, when I began volunteering at rescue organizations that rehabbed harder cases. Immediately addicted to rehabilitative training as opposed to obedience, I became a paid shelter worker in 2014.
Seeing the dogs returned from adoption was heartbreaking. Rescue animals can be more anxious, more protective of their resources, and more reactive than dogs raised in appropriate circumstances. We did what we could to keep these families united, but we also had to work with our dogs in the shelter. I often found myself saying, "If I only had more time..." I dreamed of being able to devote more time to helping these families stay intact.
While on hiatus from shelter work in 2018, I was contacted by a volunteer friend for help with his aggressive foster. The dog was a handful, and that meeting is what inspired me to formalize Have Mercy! Dog Training as my legitimate, full-time business. I practice a dog-centered, compassion-based teaching philosophy to help people and dogs communicate needs, respect boundaries, and understand behaviors so that your dog fits in to YOUR household as a happy, healthy, stable member of your family.
OUR CONTACT INFO & SUBMISSION FORM
HOURS BY APPOINTMENT ONLY
Evenings & Weekends Expected - Unavailable Sundays & Mondays
Contact Allison