I rescued Belka this past October. With me, she was a sweetheart. But when my mother came to visit, there was nothing but snarling and growling and hiding under the bed! My mom and I are both experienced dog owners, but we decided it was time to call a pro.

Anthony helped me better understand what was going on for Belka, and how I could help her to trust more. He taught me to help her confront her fear until she realized that the hallway wasn’t going to eat her, my mom was not, in fact, an evil terrorist, and visitors don’t come over just to threaten our little pack.

He came back for a follow-up visit when other problems arose, and helped me teach Belka to cope with separation anxiety. I appreciate his holistic approach: he believes that every piece of the behavior is connected, and that by addressing one issue, we can help other issues as well to make Belka a happier, more trusting pup.

It doesn’t happen overnight; we are still working on it every day. But Belka and I are making progress using the tools that Anthony gave us. She even tried to bite him once, and he was completely unphased. Calm energy, indeed!

12/22/2011 - Kat Lee