Testimonials

Within about two weeks of rescuing a poodle and poodle-bichon mix late this past summer, it became apparent that we needed help in figuring out how to keep the peace between the two. With just the right mix of insight, knowledge and patience, Barbara Johnson provided that help. While others had suggested techniques that bordered on brutality, Barbara counseled that the answer did not lie in instilling fear in the more aggressive of the two dogs, but rather in learning what was causing the behavior and then finding ways to change those factors. The turnaround has been remarkable. Initially, we didn't really understand what the term "behavior specialist" meant in regards to dog training; now we most definitely do, and can't recommend Barbara or her methodology strongly enough.

All that said, Barbara is much more than "just" a dog trainer—although she's an extraordinary one at that. She is also a canine problem-solver. We were struggling mightily to keep our adventure-loving, escape-prone pooches (appropriately named Bonnie and Clyde) in our fenced and supposedly secure hillside yard, but were at our wit's end after they'd made countless "visits" to our various neighbors. When the dogs finally found yet another new and ingenious way into not just a neighbor's yard but into the sometimes busy street we live on—nearly getting run over in the process—we realized that patching holes in the fence wasn't enough. Barbara talked us through every solution strategy imaginable, helping us weigh the pros and cons of each, and we finally settled on a dog run. Most trainers—if they even got involved in the problem at all—might have just left it at that, but Barbara actually designed, helped shop for and even assisted in the installation of what was to become Bonnie and Clyde's new outdoor home.

So many people do the work they do simply because they have to in order to make a living. Barbara does the work she does because she loves doing it—and does so amazingly well. If there were ever a person born to work with dogs and their families, Barbara Johnson is that person. In case you can't tell, we think she is absolutely the best!

----The Kammen Family (Glenn, Elizabeth, Alexandra, Bonnie and Clyde)

My husband and I are very lucky (and Darcy too) to have met Barbara and have her as our dog trainer. On Sunday, John and I had our first dog training session with Barbara and it was amazing! Darcy, our 8 month old Golden Retriever, was not coming when called, jumping onto the couch and was a horrible leash puller. Within just one hour, Barbara corrected all of these behaviors and effectively showed us how to maintain the new good behavior. After our session with Barbara, I decided to give it a try and walk Darcy, just expecting to maybe walk around the block once. A true miracle happened! I actually walked 3 miles with Darcy right by my side and he wasn't pulling and struggling.

After the long walk with Darcy, I just cried because I finally was able to easily and succesfully walk him and I knew he was going to get the exercise that he so needs now! The past few days I have been able to easily and effectively walk him twice a day as if there was never a problem before. Darcy, is coming when called, not jumping onto the couch and I feel he is communicating with us now and we feel empowered.

Barbara is our new bestest friend and Darcy's and I would highly recommend her as a dog trainer. She truly is a great dog trainer and really understands dogs! We will be continuing our individual sessions and classes with her.

Thank you Barbara!

--Tracie and John Novak

Our 2 ½-year old American Eskimos, Milo & Denali have been trained by Barbara since they were about 3 months old. Their very first puppy class was quite an adventure as Denali refused to come out from under the chair and Milo would pee everywhere. Eventually, it took Barbara's gentle coaxing, patience, and positive training methods for them to become the well-behaved dogs that we always dreamed of. We believe it was the trust that Barbara was able to instill in them and the proper "training" for us as dog-owners that enabled us to have obedient dogs. We would highly recommend Barbara as a dog trainer. As for Denali, he's no longer the super shy puppy he once was and Milo has learned to stop peeing everywhere no matter how happy and excited he is. Thanks for everything Barbara!!

--Dan, Amy, Milo and Denali

Barbara has an amazing ability to connect with any and all dogs. When we first went to her class a couple of years ago, my dog "Mylo", then 6 months old, would not come out from under my chair. Within two weeks he was the most confident and friendly dog in class. She not only trains our pets, but trains us how to handle our pets in a wide variety of situations that could occur. She knows all the latest training techniques, but even more important, she knows how to connect with everyone and every dog and make us all comfortable, no matter what unique challenges each dog and owner brings to class. She is the best!

Sincerely,

--Anthy Price

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I have a five month old Siberian Husky name Sasha. I have had experience owning Huskies and know how difficult they are to train, especially with come, stay, not to jump, and not to pull when walking. Barbara was not only knowledgeable but also very patient with me. I would highly recommend her to anyone. I am one very happy Husky owner.

Sincerely,

--Dr. Stephen L. Robin

I just wanted to write to let you know how fortunate we are to have Barbara Johnson as our dog trainer. Our story must be the one that goes from "worst off" to "most improved" dog and family.

We had a rough beginning with our Golden Retriever Puppy, Tobey. When he was 9 weeks old, we were crate and potty training him so at 3am I accidentally missed the bottom step of our stairs and fell while carrying him downstairs. I called her right away to come help us with puppy training Tobey. We have a 4 year old daughter, Holly, so with my hurt foot and a small child, puppy training was quite a challenge for us.

Tobey is actually our second Golden, our first Golden, Chester, passed away last year from Cancer. It didn't take us long to realize that each dog has a unique personality, and Tobey was much more stubborn than what we were used to. It has been 7 years since we had a puppy so we had our work cut out for us.

We had issues with Tobey jumping on people, the counter tops, and even the dining room table once (see photo!)

Barbara was very patient and so good with Tobey. The minute she walked in the room, he was so happy to see her, but also knew he needed to listen and behave. I always looked forward to training with Barbara, it gave me the hope and re-assurance I needed to keep working with Tobey and that with consistency and time, things would improve. I had a harder time bonding with Tobey since my injury and Tobey was so big, I didn't establish my role as leader until just recently and Tobey wouldn't respond well to me. With Barbara's help and guidance, I gained the confidence to establish my role and now Tobey is respecting me and also listening.

This has allowed us to bond more and I am finally walking him without being pulled, and we enjoy family time together and take Tobey on hikes on the weekend!

I would highly recommend and encourage Barbara as a dog trainer to anyone, she is the Best and has made a lasting impression on our family and will always be a part of our success story!

--Cathy Berning

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Barbara is a dog's (and dog owner's) best friend! Ziggy, our 3-year-old Australian Shepard began with Barbara's puppy class, then graduated to her intermediate class. We enjoyed it so much we repeated the class just for fun.

Barbara combines fun and discipline with lots of love to make every class an enjoyable, learning experience for both our dog and us. Ziggy has learned all the basics, from sit/stay to off-leash obedience. On top of that, he can bow, crawl, roll over, and high five! Barbara's classes were also great for socializing Ziggy around other dogs. Barbara always remains calm and in control, and helped us overcome some stressful situations with other dogs.

Who needs the Dog Whisperer when you've got Barbara!

--Doug & Louise Benedon (and Ziggy)

From a very young age, I knew that I had to take my humans in for training. All of my buddies told me that I would have a happier home life and build a stronger bond with my humans if they went to obedience school. I wanted nothing but the best for my humans, so we began puppy kindergarten with Miss Barbara. Before you knew it, she taught my humans how to communicate with me on my level.

Once we graduated kindergarten together, we moved onto intermediate and then advanced classes. Miss Barbara taught my humans how to communicate and work with me so well that I decided to get a job. I am now a certified therapy dog with a CGC (Canine good citizen) who visits Children's hospital of Los Angeles. Miss Barbara taught me and my human all of the skills and good manners that we needed to become a therapy team.

You know, they say bulldogs are hard to train because we can be stubborn, but I was more worried about my humans. Now we have a strong bond and an understanding with each other. Miss Barbara has taught my humans how to lovingly lead me and guide me. At the dog park, I tell all of my friends about the loving woman named Miss Barbara who can speak dog. I tell them that, not only can she speak dog, but she can teach your humans the language as well!!

Love,

--Rocco the Bull

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Miss Barbara is the most amazing trainer. My dogs love, adore, and respect her. I can't say enough about her. She understands dogs and how they relate to us so well. Under Barbara's training and guidance, both of my dogs have successfully completed the CGC test and have become certified therapy dogs. I am forever grateful to Barbara for training me and my dogs.

--Amy Ortiz

Chloe (a female tri-color) and her pal Gatsby, ( a male Blenium)... will both be turning 1 year of age next month. We waited one year to obtain these two and they are now our kids. We spoil them; buy them much more than they need: have installed puppy sitters when we travel: have a permanent puppy nurse to look after their health and have asked "The Dog Whisperer" to take a look at them! As you can tell we love our puppies!!!!!

I met Barbara Johnson about 15 months ago. I have not had a dog in 17 years.

What an education in 15 minutes. I learned more from this lady in 15 minutes than I ever did from the snooty breeders and trainers my wife and I ran into while searching for the perfect breed. The first person that we showed Chloe and Gatsby to was Barbara. They were 3 months old. They loved her immediately and we saw the perfect trainer in Barbara. Together Barbara and I picked out their kennel to their food and toys.

I never do anything with these puppys that I don't first contact Barbara by phone or in person to discuss their natural food diet and the toys they chew up. She just shakes her head in disbelief on the way we spoil these two. She is always there for us; she is always up-to-date with her training techniques; she is incredibly skillfull, professional, and loving to my dogs. They have had puppy training and will go with Barbara to Oak Park for their intermediate classes. Then will continue training far into the future with Barbara.

She is sometimes very stern with me on their upbringing, but I am a senior citizern so usually cannot remember her scoldings. I feel very fortunate in finding someone like Barbara Johnson - a wonderful trainer, animal lover, and now a good friend.

Sincerely,

--Neal W. Raffler

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Profoundly, Barbara's heart is in her work. This is of immediate note when she meets you and your dog. She has a delightful pull towards her students of teaching dog behavior and thirsting for everyone to learn more. Barbara's enthusiasm for ALL that is canine, embraces her interactions, while at the same time disguising it behind good solid owner-pet education . Her zest is contagious and she truely creates a wonder for learning. We have seen her grow and learn over the last five years. Every student is a pearl of wisdom for her to absorb and pass on to her newest students. Taking on the challenges of why, where, when, Barbara untangles the training answers with you. Many of our hospital patients have benefited from Barbara's training in so many ways . Also, we are so proud of her own efforts increasing her formal education in dog behavior training. She has immersed herself and is making a difference to all that meet her. She exudes such a love for the understanding of dog behavior and then partners her students in discovering it for themselves. It's been an amazing process to have learned with her and now from her. Thank you Barbara .

--Michael D. Baer D.V.M. and Terrie Von Arista

As a Behaviorist for children with special needs, I never imagined I would have any problems with training my Beau. Little did I know! Beau was only eleven weeks old when we first met Miss Barbara. Being a St. Bernard, however, he was already the tallest in his class. Beau had been a rescue who came home with me when he was only eight weeks old, and it was love at first sight.

Beau began training with Miss Barbara in her Beginning Puppy class and completed both her Intermediate and Advanced courses, at the head of his class. He proudly wore his cap and gown and we celebrated in great style! Miss Barbara did a fabulous job, not only with Beau but with where the real problem laid, me! She taught me how to communicate with Beau in a way which, he could hear.

Thanks to Barbara, Beau and I enjoy a magical relationship. He is the center of my life and if it weren't for Barbara, my life would have been nothing but chaos! Completely humble, unassuming, positive and good natured, one would never guess what a Godsend Barbara Johnson is, has been, and continues to be to so many.

With Appreciation and Love,

--Sharmila and Beau Iyengar

(Beau continually asks: "When do we get to see Miss Barbara again, Mama?")

My name is Kristen, and I became a dog owner when I was 23. I have had the pleasure of knowing Barbara for over a year and a half. We first met the day after I brought home my 9 week old Toy Australian Shepherd, Mason. He had been scratching his ears quite a bit, so I decided to take him to the vet. I was greeted by a friendly woman, Barbara, who asked me, "Is that an Aussie?" I said yes, and thus began our friendship. Barbara walked me over to the vet and helped me get Mason taken care of. She gave me her phone number and told me to call if I needed anything. A couple weeks later Mason started her puppy obedience class. He ADORED Barbara and would bark and cry whenever she used another dog to demonstrate a particular behavior. Mason and I stuck with Barbara and took her intermediate class and "attempted" the advanced class for Mason to become a Canine Good Citizen (CGC). Although we did not pass, we had a blast with our efforts! When Mason electrocuted himself several months later, Barbara was there to meet me at the vet's office. She called me several times that day to make sure I was doing ok, and made sure to pass the story along at all her training classes so people would learn from my mistake of leaving my computer cord out. After the new year Barbara and I were both studying for big exams...me for my comps to finish my master's degree, and she to become a CPDT. Because of my profession I was able to help Barbara with one of the sections of her exam, and I saw how committed she was to learning all she could about dogs and their behavior. After I passed my test I welcomed home my second Aussie, a girl, Brighton. Brighton was also privileged enough to go through Barbara's puppy and intermediate classes, and loved her teacher very much! It is so great to see Barbara now able to venture off to run her own training program. Not only is she incredibly talented, but she has a heart of gold for all the dogs she works with. I know that through this experience she is going to be such a gift to so many more people, and they will be lucky for having her in their lives.

--Kristen, Mason, & Brighton

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My daughter, Ashley, and I have four adopted dogs … Sadie (an English Mastiff), Kiba (a German Shepherd) and Cinnamon & Cracker (sibling Long Haired Chihuahua/Spaniel mixes). Sadie is our most recent adoption, at 8 months of age. We brought her home that first day, having had no knowledge that she carried the world's anxiety on her shoulders. It was heartbreaking. She was petrified to go on walks, and refused to even walk out our front door … forget getting her into our car. Sadie wouldn't get any closer than 8 feet, to anybody but us … and Barbara. Sadie has a heart full of love and not an ounce of aggression in that now 125 pound, 18 month old beautiful body of hers. She became Kiba's best friend, loved our little ones and literally crawled into our hearts with her heart and soul.

With the concern, sensitivity and caring that Barbara has to give, she came into Sadie's life, and began slowly and lovingly showing her that the universe really wasn't a frightening place, at all. Barbara's patience and soft way told Sadie that all would be just fine, and that Sadie's world really was a beautiful place to grow. My daughter and I took our first walk alone, with Sadie and Kiba … 3 miles … to Barbara's house. Barbara happened to be out front, and couldn't believe that Sadie wanted to walk so far, so comfortably. Barbara, Ashley and I had tears in our eyes, and Sadie knew she had gotten past her worst fear. Then came the car rides and allowing the people in her life to show her that they really weren't going to hurt her. What an incredible feat !!!

Barbara also worked with Ashley and I, on taking control when walking Kiba. Kiba has been walking us, for 6 years, until Barbara's knowledge and the Canny Collar both entered our home. After a few sessions with "Barbara", we finally are walking him, and we're all enjoying our walks so much more. Thank you, Barbara, for coming into our world, making our lives less stressful, as well as opening our animals' lives (and ours) up to much more happiness. Sadie and Kiba both send paw-shakes and licks to their favorite "Auntie"! We love you !

--Marlene & Ashley Bracken
Kiba & Sadie

P.S. Cinnamon and Cracker are "next in line" for training . . .

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