Training & Behavior Testimonials

Mary & Bijou

Chrissy has helped several of my neighbors with their dogs and I finally made the investment for my very high-drive GSD, who was bred by police officers to work. I had no idea what I was getting into with her and could not understand why our relationship was so hard for me. After spending thousands on different training approaches, and after being dragged by my dog, feeling so out of control, I realized the training methods never felt good to me or right for Bijou. I began to understand she was highly sensitive, something I can relate to, and did not thrive being powered over (prong collar, etc), because who does?

From my first session with Chrissy, everything clicked and felt so calming, simple, reassuring and natural for Bijou and for me. While we're still working on some house habits, I can now walk her comfortably by barking dogs and cars that are driving by us. We even stopped to talk to a neighbor who was in their car and she was so relaxed with zero barking! We are both feeling far more comfortable and less vigilant. The fundamentals Chrissy has shown us have grown into me trying new things on my own and really falling in love with my dogs again. It’s not easy but it’s so fun to put this high-drive, highly intelligent being to work and watch her love it.

Thank you, Chrissy, for not only reviving my relationship with my dog, seeing her clearly as such a good dog, but also being so patient with me through the process. This relationship is so worth investing in and I am blown away by the 180 Bijou and I have taken together. Chrissy is compassionate, patient and curious. She really worked with me and my situation which led me to succeed. I appreciated her knowledge of dog behaviors, body language and emotional cues, which made so much sense to me. Trainers in the past took a “gain control of this poorly bred dog” approach and it was all wrong. It turns out, she’s perfect for what she was bred for and I needed to learn how to support her better. Thank you, Chrissy! We are so grateful for you!

Phil & Bandit

I recently had the pleasure of working with Chrissy, a fantastic dog trainer. From the first day I met her, I could tell that she was very knowledgeable and passionate about helping dogs and their owners. Chrissy has an incredible ability to break down complicated behavior training into a small series of achievable steps with positive reinforcement. This skill makes it easy for me to understand what steps my dog must go through to learn different behaviors. She empowers me to be able to train my dog myself, which gives me more confidence in taking care of my dog.

Moreover, Chrissy is very friendly, engaged, professional, and she is simply fantastic with dogs. Her ability to communicate with them is impressive, and she makes training so much fun for both my dog and me. My dog Bandit was extremely submissive and scared of any training before working with Chrissy. She turned his attitude completely around with her friendly approach to teaching. Now Bandit is excited to learn and always looks forward to training sessions with Chrissy. Overall, I highly recommend Chrissy to anyone looking for a great dog trainer!

Jamie & Winnie

Working with Chrissy has changed my life. Although that may sound extreme, having a reactive dog limited where I could travel. Winnie and I weren’t living cohesively, and we weren’t able to trust each other or communicate.

I can now walk by other dogs with ease, introduce Winnie to other dogs in a way that is safe, and take her to public places knowing that she is comfortable. My favorite part of working with Chrissy has been the training she provides for ME as well as Winnie. Her training style involves training for people and pets and the cohesiveness of it makes for a beautiful communicative relationship that is unbeatable.

I’m forever grateful for Chrissy’s knowledge, patience, and love. She’s an incredible human being with an amazing talent that has since allowed me to travel all over the states with my sweet Winnie dog.

Kelly, Derek, & Zuma

When we got our dog Zuma we quickly learned that she is very afraid of other dogs and chooses to attack because of her fear. We started working with Chrissy and learned tools to help decrease her reactiveness and just train her in general. Since our time working with Chrissy, Zuma now has a few dog friends that she can comfortably be around and is so much easier to manage while out on walks or in other situations where other dogs are nearby. We love working with Chrissy and have learned so much.

Marci & Nala

My dog and I had the opportunity to work with Chrissy for five sessions over a three-month period of time. Although my dog is going on 8 years old, she is a young 8. She is a rescue, and thus I missed the first year or so of her life. This allowed us to focus on the details, nuances of timing, observation that built more depth and trust into our relationship. Sometimes people stop paying attention and that limits the relationship.

The way that Chrissy understands the nuances of people and dogs without judgement, allows her to share tools to shift and shape the relationship to be more. This carries over to other parts of life. Empowering one to change what they can in themselves for the betterment of the relationship with one’s dog, and their entire world.

Chrissy’s skills, talents, and gifts help those who are open to it....to make the shifts needed to become more tolerant, generous, and actively observant. The Nature of Animals helps one find the better nature in themselves. This awareness helps us all to be a better team player in all parts of our lives, and thus maybe in the world at large.

Rebecca & Teague

Chrissy has been instrumental in me and my dog's success, both independently and together in the world. We have been working with her for a few years now and she has helped my large, reactive German Shepherd be able to successfully walk loosely on a leash (our first major win, years ago!), make trusted human friends and interact with them, react less and recover incredibly quickly to environmental triggers, navigate challenging and stimulating environments like pet food stores, "leave it" with very tempting things, and establish cooperative care and body handling skills. My dog loves his time with Chrissy and whines at the front window in happy anticipation as soon as he sees her car pull up. All of these skills help me to have a more positive, successful relationship with my dog. She understands the human aspects of interacting with reactive dogs and helps me to feel supported and "seen" along the way. Thank you, Chrissy!

Jenny, Bard, & Charlotte

Chrissy has been instrumental in helping our German Shepherd, Charlotte, to feel calmer and more confident. Like many German Shepherds, Charlotte is reactive to other dogs and strangers, and her reactivity has been difficult to manage. Thanks to Chrissy's consistent, positive reinforcement and desensitization work, we have a much easier time walking Charlotte and introducing her to new things. And the best part of it all is that Charlotte absolutely LOVES Chrissy and literally does pirouettes when Chrissy arrives for a training session. We highly recommend Chrissy to anyone who needs help with dog training, but especially for anxious, reactive dogs.

Kristi & Lucy

As a first time dog owner, I feel very fortunate to have found trainer Chrissy Messick. She has helped me understand why my fearful/aggressive dog exhibits certain behaviors. Chrissy is kind, patient and extremely knowledgeable. She ONLY uses positive training techniques. She presents things in a way I understand and is always available to talk. When I thought I was going to have to give my dog up because I couldn’t manage her, Chrissy sat down with me and helped me go through all the options. Because of Chrissy, I have a deeper emotional bond with my dog. Chrissy continues to work with my dog and I on a weekly basis. Chrissy is one of the few humans my dog trusts besides myself and we continue to work on growing her inner circle of trusted friends. Without her expertise and guidance, I wouldn’t be where I am today with my dog.