Freedom Dogs Vancouver, Washington

Super impressed with Jon and Christa. We sent our new puppy for their 2 week board and train, and we are so impressed that we are already thinking about sending him back once he’s a little bit older. I have done dog training before, but …

I have two GSD puppies. Having two is no joke and I did my homework before deciding to get two from a local breeder, I knew how much work I was in for. For GSDs a huge part is training. It isn't something you can "maybe" do, it is something you have to do....day in and day out. The breed needs a high level of mental stimulation and wants nothing more than than to be by their owner's side. I knew training was crucial from day 1. I did my absolute best and worked hard through month 5, then I knew it was time to do a board and train. I wanted someone who could provide me extra insight into each of the dog's personality and build on the basic training foundation so each of the dogs could reach their full potential. I wanted someone to pick apart my strengths or weaknesses so I could develop better strategies for handling each dog. I wanted to find someone who loves animals and is deeply committed to helping an owner/dog become an amazing team. Christa and her team did all of these things for us. I knew the dogs were completely taken care of while they were with her. She will provide you with the good, the bad and the ugly. Her training advice about major concerns is spot on and if you follow her specific instructions, you will see an instant difference in behavior. She is extremely talented in knowing exactly where each dog is at in their training journey and can prepare you for more advanced work. In addition to all the services she provides, she checks in to see how things are going and provides free classes to clients. I would highly recommend her services.

Christa has worked with our dog Kiki on socialization and helped with interdog aggression. Kiki did a board and stay with Freedom dogs and came back more confident, socialized and able to play with other dogs well. Freedom Dogs is responsive to any ongoing questions and provided the much needed training so that our dogs could live in peace together. Freedom Dogs has helped to improve both our dogs lives and we hope to continue the relationship with them!

The owners / trainers are the best dog trainers I’ve ever worked with. My Pit is such a sweet dog, but his dog aggression made life very challenging for us. After boarding school and training with Christa and Jon, my dog and I are both much better prepared to deal with off leash dogs in the neighborhood. Not only that, but we have much clearer protocols in the house, and both me and my dog are sleeping easier at night. Highly recommended for any dog and human!

Christa and Jon have my undying gratitude for taking my anxious, reactive young dog and teaching him -- and me -- how to cope in the world. Christa knew my dog's potential was there & did the hard work to find it. With Freedom Dogs Grizz has discovered his inner Good Boy. I look forward to many happy years with him & sharing our successes with Freedom Dogs.

If you are on the fence at all about getting a dog trainer, and you’re looking at Jon and Christa I’m going to stop you right there and say your search is over. We were beyond lucky to have had them recommended to us by Ruff Roads Mobile grooming. I was honestly hesitant at first...I had had a dog growing up, so was a trainer really necessary? In our case - yes. Jon was able to not just train our dog, but also patiently trained us. He is great at asking questions to get you to recognize the correction you should be doing, or in some cases not doing because it’s giving mixed signals. I highly recommend the individual training sessions. But if possible - also give the board and train a try! The best thing about Jon and Christa is how much they care about our dog. They are so aware of her needs, and want to make sure their training is effective for her and her personality. It would be so easy for a trainer to set a schedule and then whether or not the training was working just end after the set date - but not these two. They care about their craft and making sure you and your dog walk away happy. They also are great about telling you all the options you have. They aren’t there to push an agenda or make you do something you aren’t comfortable with. It’s been really nice attending their weekly Wednesday group sessions for some tweaks and maintenance. Could not recommend these two more. Recognizing this is an investment, it is well worth the cost. We feel confident in the work put in now to make the rest of her puppy years and her life the best it can be.

Our puppy Luna attended a 7 week board and train with Freedom Dogs. She is a GSP so is very energetic and has a mind of her own. When she left us, we were struggling with a lot of her behaviors. However, after her board and train she came back to us a much different puppy, in the best way possible. We as owners were given tools to maintain her training and address new behaviors that come up. Even though board and train is complete, I am able to connect with Christa for advice on new situations we experience with Luna. She is quick to respond and understands that we aren’t dog training experts so does a great job of giving us really actionable tips. Aside from training, we were also able to go to Christa in a pinch when we were suddenly without boarding. She was more than happy to accommodate the boarding requests and I could be comfortable knowing that Luna was in a familiar environment with people who care about her. Our family highly recommends Freedom Dogs and Christa, Jon, and Angelina are great to work with!

I cannot say enough positive things about the team at Freedom Dogs PNW. We continue to work with them months after our pups completed their 7-9 week board and train. We "adopted" two littermates in January 2020. (Our neighbors' rescue dog had nine puppies shortly after they rescued her!) We knew there were risks raising littermates, "Littermate Syndrome" is real, but we did not anticipate COVID! Some of their behavioral issues were already starting to show, pre-pandemic like their redirected aggression toward each other when they see other dogs, and separation anxiety when apart from each other despite our attempts at separating them. Generally they were happy with people and kids. The pandemic did not help. By mid-pandemic we were beginning to have fear-based issues with not just other dogs, but people. Occasionally the redirected aggression would be redirected at our 8 year old, not comforting. The trainers we were using "fired" Iggy (the merle male) and felt that Phryne was stressed all the time and recommended we rehome one of them. By the time I contacted Christa with Freedom Dogs PNW we were feeling desperate! Christa and I spoke on the phone and I immediately knew we were going to be OK. We setup a board and train plan and schedule for both pups with flexibility built in to accommodate their individual needs. In mid-January 2021 we began "doggy boot camp" as we called it, and sent our female pup off to Christa and Jon for almost 9 weeks! Her brother joined her after she "warmed up" to her new surroundings, which I think took a couple of weeks. We had two very different pups when they finally came home and a plan for how to continue working through issues back home. As I mentioned in the beginning we continue to work with Christa and Jon and Freedom Dogs PNW, not because the training wasn't successful, it was a huge success, but because things happen at home with us that are difficult to recreate in a training environment or with the trainers. I recently noticed while attending a group training that Iggy just hears Jon's voice and immediately starts doing his job, down-stays, of falling in line on the leash and ignoring other dogs etc. He's on his best behavior! He sees Christa and whines and whines and rolls over on his back like "look I'm relaxed". We still have work to do when they are with us alone at home and out in public, but now we have a set of tools and resources available to us that we did not have previously. I am so glad and relieved that Christa, Jon and their team are available to us to help resolve issues as they come up, not to mention a place we trust and they love to board them when we travel!

We are so happy that we sent our dog to the puppy board and train program with Freedom Dogs!! Christa and Jon did a phenomenal job laying a strong foundation for our puppy. When he was finished with the program, we were thrilled to see that he was happy, healthy, and potty trained. In addition to the great training around behavior and commands, Freedom Dogs is continuing to provide online follow up training sessions and are available when I have questions about his training, food, and more. The true testament is that my parents came to stay with us from out of town for a few days and were so impressed with our puppy. They are not animal people whatsoever and we were trying to figure out what do with him in planning our summer trip to visit them. Do we find an Airbnb or friends who can dog sit? My mom said that he could just stay at their place, which was HUGE! She said he was truly such a great dog and well behaved. Even though the program is over, I still feel like we have support and are part of the Freedom Dogs family. Christa and Jon are great people and love and know dogs. This was truly one of the best decisions and investments we have ever made.

Crista with freedom dogs made such an incredible difference with our puppy, Sox. We got Sox during COVID and he spent every minute with us for several months. When it was time for our kids to go back to school, Sox had developed separation …

Super friendly and gave me a ton of quality information while I'm shopping for a trainer.

Before Freedom Dogs NW, I felt overwhelmed by the behaviors our dog was exhibiting. He jumped up on people, became rude to children coming to our house, pulled constantly on the leash, barked nonstop at anything on the other side of the …

I highly recommend Christa, Jon and the Freedom Dogs team. They have worked with both my dogs. My older dog was in training to work on his leash reactivity, the younger one for socialization and lack of confidence. Free Dogs dedication to understanding each dog, and tailoring a training regime specific to that dog, is amazing. Christa and Jon take the time to build a personal relationship with each dog, really getting to know what makes them tick. Thus setting up the perfect atmosphere for dogs to feel safe, loved and engaged in training. On top of regular training, Christa arranged for massage therapy for my older dog with a back injury. She also gave him frequent massages herself to keep him feeling his best. Freedom Dogs really goes above and beyond to do everything they can to help each dog be their best. The transformation in each of my dogs has been amazing! Christa is also so patient and effective at training us humans; she makes sure to communicate everything we need to know to carry on the training at home. I know if anything comes up in the future, Freedom Dogs will be there to support my dogs and I. If you are on the fence about Freedom Dogs or board-and-train, I encourage you to go for it! You, too, will be awed by the change in your dog.

I just wanted to share why we’ve been so delighted with Christa at Freedom Dogs. As an individual I’ve never run across anyone with such a tremendous connection with dogs. She quickly has them wrapped around her little finger. Our two dogs Harley and Sydney Were both leash aggressive one feeding off the other. Additionally, Sydney had recall issues. Christa worked with them both and when they came home worked with US to make sure that we would be able to continue the training. Now we can walk them and know all the right things to do to avoid confrontations and leash pulling. Both dogs have been up to Christa’s multiple times and we will be sending them back for refreshers. I call it “summer camp” for our doggies. But it’s not just the discipline that makes the experience special. It’s the fun they have in the process. Her generous Instagram posts show what a great experience our dogs receive. Work, play, repeat.

If you want trainers who will literally be there for you through anything, Christa and Jon are perfect for you. My dog, Theo, has been through multiple training programs and never really got better until he spent two months at Freedom Dogs. …

Chista she is amazing person professional training. I would like to recommend this company. I had my dog 10 months old he doesn’t listening to me at all not enjoy walking see people bucking try to bite them I …

Training my dog with Freedom Dogs was an excellent choice. In addition to effective training, the staff provided wonderful insight and tips that we have used ever since. When we picked up our dog, we had no idea how well-trained he would …

Christa is kind, professional, talented. If you are considering training with her, do it!! She will take you and your dog to the place you are dreaming of. You cannot go wrong.

I was referred to freedom-dogs by my vet, after a very discouraging conversation of how I was failing at transitioning my 12 week old puppy into the family home. My vet was very confident that freedom-dog can get her there and they did not …

We reached out to Christa at Freedom Dogs PNW earlier this year because we learned that we were expecting our first baby and wanted to help our dogs develop the manners that would allow us to enjoy our time inside and outside of the house together as a full family. We sent both Harley (maltipoo) and Gus (border terrier) to "summer camp" (we called it!) with Freedom dogs for 6 and 8 weeks respectively. Both of our dogs are 8 years old, so they had old habits that took quite some time and effort to course correct. Gus, the border terrier, showed pretty severe leash aggression as well as anxious/protective behaviors. Christa and team have helped Gus learn that he doesn't have to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders and he is now a much more relaxed dog both inside of the house and out on walks (he even walks now with an extended leash!! Something we would never have been comfortable with before). Harley (maltipoo) benefited from a boost in confidence. She was a bit timid and would bark as a reaction to seeing other dogs, especially in our neighborhood. She also has never been interested in treats, so we had always struggled to know how to teach her and train her. Christa and team gave us the tools to communicate with Harley and help her build confidence while learning to become a better mannered member of our family. Christa and team are extremely dedicated to the work that they do and you can tell that they love your dogs as their own. They are committed to making sure you feel successful, both for the duration of the program as well as the days and weeks that follow. We would highly recommend Freedom Dogs PNW for anyone hoping to build a better, stronger, and respectful relationship with their pups.

HIGHLY recommend Freedom Dogs PNW! They are incredible! Such talented, knowledgeable, professional and kind people - who TRULY care about your animal and what you're looking to achieve with your pet. I'm so grateful for how they helped transform our anxious pit-mix into a calm, confident, happy girl. 10/10!

Our severely anxious dog Shelly spent 8 weeks at Freedom Dog training and graduated a loving and smart member of the family. Our family highly recommends Christa and her pack for training, dogs and humans.

Christa is pretty much my best friend! She has helped my dog Maya immensely in learning how to deal with her fear based anxiety. Her follow up after the program (behavior mod aka doggy camp) is amazing! I feel like I have the tools to help …

I am completely satisfied with the work done by Christa and John to get my 20 month old Dobe trained as my service dog. Christa is amazing at identifying and solving issues that can arise during and even after training. I would recommend them to anyone in need of an excellent dog trainer. My boy just loves Christa

Freedom Dogs is hands down the best training program out there! Our breeder, Hunterberry Hill Labradoodles recommended Christa Sapita , and we are grateful to have had the opportunity to work with her. …

We've had a fabulous experience working with Christa at Freedom Dogs. Our 1 year old pit-mix needed help with obedience and dog socialization skills. Christa did a remarkable job understanding his challenges, our families needs, and working …

Christa is a natural with dogs and an awesome trainer! My puppy got her best start in life because she spent those first critical weeks in Christa’s capable hands. She took my pup (Ruby) from 8-14 weeks old and returned her to me as a …

Awesome Dog Trainers! I've personally met Christa and Jonathan and seen them train first hand and its nothing short of amazing! Their approach is easy, and very effective!

Christa is an AMAZING person and TOP NOTCH dog trainer! She took in Myles when he was 5 months old. It's a difficult age because (1) the puppy doesn't have the attention span and aptitude of an older dog (2) as a puppy, he didn't have many …