Fur and Feather Works, LLC

Took my lab to Joanna at 4 mths for kindergarten and followed with basic manners. Joanna has a great understanding of dog behavior and helped me correct my dogs bad habbits and correct others that were developing.
At 8 months I now have a dog I am comfortable taking on outings in the city and rural setings. Thanks to Joanna of Fur and Feathers.

As the owner of both a reactive dog and a doggie daycare, my life is often filled with training issues and concerns. Joanna and the Fur and Feather Works staff are a resource that I could not do without. They have not only helped my Ali become a more confident and happy dog, they have worked with us to successfully rehab several fearful dogs that can now happily play with other dogs in daycare. In the 6 years that I have referred dogs to her, she has always exceeded my expectations with her professional, kind and knowledgeable help.

Joanna seemed very knowledgeable in her training techniques. She used a ton of positive reinforcement by way of treats. I was just there observing to see if I wanted to take my puppy for training.
Personally, I’m a fan of using treats to aide a pet in learning something new, not a constant barrage of usage. Which is the way Joanna trains. For some people this works great.
Class size was very small. Maximum enrollment is 5 puppies. 6 weeks of classes runs $ 200. What’s nice is that you can jump in anytime, go for 6 weeks and be done. There isn’t a defined start and stop class, which makes it nice.
Last night there were 4 puppies. Joanna did a good job of monitoring playtime and giving the owners tips on how to watch their puppies play and listen for body language while puppies barked and played. She also separated the rambunctious males: German Shepherd and English lab from the quiet females: a bichon and a border collie.
The location is a little bit hard to find. Trinity Lane isn’t clearly marked and it’s a weird pseudo strip mall type of place. It’s not the trainer’s fault the streets are sucky :) Her actual building is nice. The training room is all tile and provides a good space for the puppies to learn. One downside to tile is that it all echoes. It was a little distracting last night watching all the puppies try to learn over the roar of the owners.
Overall not my cup of tea for a puppy trainer, but for some it’d be right up their alley. If anyone is interested in a treat based Positive reinforcement only training program, then this would be good for them.

Since I adopted him, my rescue dog suffered from severe anxiety — he was too fearful to go for a walk or to get into the car. He was also terrified of people. Despite his problems, Joanna was able to gain his trust and taught him (and me) how to deal with the difficult situation life had presented. I was impressed by her knowledge of training techniques and even more so by her compassion. I would highly recommend her to anyone with a problem animal.

We attended puppy class and are well on our way to a wonderful relationship with our dog. Joanna has a very positive approach so that both you and your puppy are made to feel successful. She also recognizes the specific needs of each puppy and family and assists and encourages them to work at their own level and speed (as opposed to a one size fits all approach to training). We saw our slightly timid pup blossom into a confident happy dog, and have been supported by Joanna’s advice and suggestions. I would highly recommend Fur and Feather Works.