Elite K9 Unit

To tell you about us is to tell you about a story of a little boy who wanted something more than the very air he breathed. As far back as I could remember I wanted a dog, it IS possible for a baby to want to own a dog. I was that baby ... When I was five years old I could remember my first lesson dealing with a dog. My neighbor had a Border Terrier that I loved to see and one day she let me hold the leash. One second I was in front of the steps of my apartment building and the next I was being pulled half way down the block.

The time came when I had the age, space and money to take care of a dog. Now what type of dog would I get? This is the same question that all people go through when deciding to buy or adopt a dog. 

As you can see from the picture above, I chose a German Shepherd. His name is Blade and he has changed my life forever. I got Blade at 8 weeks of age from Jagermeister German Shepherds.

Like most new dog owners I had no idea what I was doing with this new puppy. I was not like other dog owners who think they know what they are doing and years later that dog bites someone or has behavior conditions. So thinking I wanted to do good for Blade, I enrolled him in puppy class where the trainer let the puppies play and run around without any benefit to the puppies. Years later I realized he allowed a behavior to go on with my puppy, he allowed it to continue during the classes and did not tell me it would be bad in the future.  

Some time later I bought Blade back to Jagermeister German Shepherds for basic obedience training. The distance was too far for me, in both time and cost, so I tried a local trainer that came and went ... She would train Blade with harsh treatment and a lot of stress. After promising me she would complete Blade's training, she disappeared and did not return any of my phone calls.

I wanted to complete Blade's training in obedience and protection, but I had to start over in looking for a new trainer, like so many other people out there! So I contacted Connecticut K9 who had me drive out to their place just to tell me that Blade could not do any protection work. They suggested I was better off buying a new dog from them. I let them know I was not interested in getting a new dog and I would be happy with just obedience training. I left a few messages to call me to start training but I never heard from them. That is no way to run a business of any kind.

After all those headaches of just trying to get my dog trained I found the Hudson Valley dog whisperer, Master Trainer Bob Conklin of Hudson Valley K9 Academy. He took Blade from basic obedience, advanced obedience, behavior modification to protection training. Imagine that! Blade doing protection work ... I guess some trainers should go back to learning how to train dogs in Connecticut. Bob did all the training without harsh treatment, treats or clickers. He puts K9 training to a science, and believe me it is. He is someone that loves his work and does not hurt your animal to make him/her do something. That is when I decided to learn his method that he has developed over 40 years.  

 Blade in Protection Class....

When I signed on to do the trainer course at Hudson Valley K9 Academy, I thought I had some knowledge from doing training with Blade. Nope! I was wrong ... I knew the same as many other dog owners: not much. The very simple task of holding the leash was wrong. But with his guidance I put the energy and the science to dog training. The course was intense and required me to have an all “hands on experience” during its entirety, working with various breeds, temperaments and different sized dogs. Dogs with temperaments that they could or would bite at any moment. This certification helps surpass other trainers that are guessing what they should do with your pet or use heavy hand techniques to train, that many times causes the dog to shut down.

The techniques and knowledge I have learned will not use treats, clickers or compulsive training because you don't have food or a clicker on you 24 hours a day.  I will use proper handling skills and energy to correct your dog at the proper time and make him think instead of react. Many times that reacting is the problem. The client will be shown these skills in a fun manner for both you and your canine. It will take time, it is not a one day quick fix. You can't make an athlete or a trained soldier over night, so why would you ask that of your dog? Over time and patience you will develop a bond with your furry friend that will be priceless.