The Pawsitive Dog Boston, Massachusetts

Jennifer, Francis, Breslin, Scott, Rebecca & Geoff are the greatest training team in the world. Their hard work saved our rescue's life, she is a brand new dog because of these amazing people.

We’ve sent our pup there for over 6 months now & weve seen some major changes in him. Not just that but the classes we attend have been helpful in teaching us how to train him. I read a lot of books but they weren’t near as helpful as Francis and Jen have been. I do think it’s costly (but I’m a student not a full time employee), but i also think if you have the cash this is a smart choice if you have a dog with issues or if you just want a day off (soooooo much better than daycare!)

Fantastic trainers who really care about your dog. We’ve seen a lot of improvement from coming here with our dog Indy- our walks are much calmer now! She loves coming here!

An amazing group of trainers, challenging you and your dog to go beyond your expectations.

Enjoying the company of your dog. Living peacefully. No yelling. No scolding. Setting your dog up for success & reward: that is what you will learn and practice here. This is not about "obedience" or "commands", rather communication and trust. How do you command Trust? You don't. It is earned. The trainers: Jen, Francis, and Scott, are brilliant coaches. Whether it is at the beginning when you are learning how to be consistent, or in more advanced work (think 11 dogs relaxed and lying down in the middle of the room [humans are sitting] with a 12th sprinting past them toward it's human who is calling it, joyfully. The 11 don't move), the trainers meet you where you are. Do professional athletes still get coaching? You bet. No matter the level of your relationship with your dog, The Pawsitive Dog will get you to the next level of calm enjoyment.

The trainers at The Pawsitive Dog are AMAZING!! They are all very knowledgeable about dog behaviors, how dogs process situations and dog training methods. Jen and Francis show their expertise in every class with a passion that is unparalleled. They are completely dedicated to the dogs and their humans! They are always there if you have questions or issues even outside of your own class time. This week Storm has hit her 1 year anniversary of being at the Pawsitive dog! I want to say THANK YOU for helping us save her!! If our home did not work for her, she would have been euthanized. When we rescued her, she had already been returned to the rescue 5 times for her various issues and energy level. She was an untrained dog who never had any rules, structure or consistency in her life. She was fearful of a lot and did not trust people. She came into our house just as her name described - the "Storm" had arrived!! Without all of the knowledge and training that you have taught us, Storm would not be where she is today! She now is well behaved, has manners and knows how to relax. Does she still have quite a way to go -- of course she does -- but she has shown how amazing she is!! She has come a long way in one year and we could not more PROUD of her!! A HUGE THANK YOU again for helping us save Miss Storm!

Very reasonable prices! Lucky does not seem to mind going here. Positives also include an animal medical center located adjacent to the "resort and spa." I will continue to bring him here unless I find out they are mistreating my dog...

Harry, here! I just took my human walking on the VERY icy sidewalks in Boston. Thank goodness for + Dog!!! because "we" trained her well! She walked right by my side today, so there was no chance of a slip or fall. She walks very nicely even though she is 3/4 of a century! Phew! She learned so much at + Dog, I can take her everywhere...the MV ferry, the subway, outside restaurants, even bed and breakfasts! (I love room service!) I have so much fun training her, so sign your human up today! You'll be thrilled you did! XO Harry

Jen, Scott, and Francis do an unbelievable job with our Doberman Beau. They are extremely organized in the class structure is perfect. When you drop your dog off for days school they provide very intensive training but you also have to go to classes once every other week to back up the training they do. This helps a lot because it shows me where I am allowing disruptive behavior without even knowing it. They give you all the tools you need for success and I highly recommend this facility to anyone looking for intelligent and intensive training.

Francis, Jen and Scott are great and our dog and many of our neighbors have gone through the day school programs and the bi-weekly evening training. We highly recommend them!

The trainers here are fantastic! They are super knowledgeable and all of their dogs are incredibly well trained. They teach you to raise a healthy adjusted dog that is obedient but not submissive. Classes are great and really enjoyable. If you ever have any questions you can call and they will give you great advice

Extremely knowledgeable and competent staff. They have an arsenal of training techniques suitable for all kinds of dog, behavior issues, or unique training needs. They are very thorough in ensuring they understand your training needs/goals and providing the guidance to improve your confidence in handling your dog and managing their behaviour.

We brought our deaf dog to Pawsitive Dog for over a year and a half. While our dog did gain noticeable confidence around people, thanks to the controlled environment Pawsitive Dog provided, many other issues persisted despite our dedication inside and out of the classroom. One of his biggest problem areas - fear of walking outside - actually worsened despite our dedication to the Pawsitive Dog training. Feeling frustrated we decided to do some research and found that much of what we were learning was based on out-dated science. Given what we read from multiple scholarly sources, we decided to see a different trainer with a positive reinforcement approach rooted in current behavioral science. Within two visits at the new place we learned that what we had been taught to do at the Pawsitive Dog - "desensitizing" him to being outside by having him outside all of the time, feeding him outside, etc - was actually solidifying our dog's fears and rapidly dissolving his trust in us. We threw out the pinch-collar Pawsitive Dog had strongly suggested everyone use (admittedly, we were never that comfortable with in the first place) and went with the new trainer's suggestions. After less than a month with the new trainer our dog was actually able to go on night time walks with much less anxiety,(literally) stopping to smell the flowers. It was an amazing breakthrough. He is at the point now where he is even able to tolerate people walking across the street from him. Leaving Pawsitive Dog and switching to training methods based in more up-to-date behavioral science has tremendously helped our dog, as well as our relationship with our dog. While we did learn some useful information from the trainer at The Pawsitive Dog, I am not likely to recommend it based on our experiences there. For the sake of fearful dogs like ours, I truly hope Pawsitive Dog has updated their methodology since we left their program.