As first time dog parents with an 8 month old American Pitbull Terrier, we took many obedience classes, taught our good boy to “follow commands” nearly flawlessly. He was very “obedient”… until there was another dog present. At that point, all of the “sit, down, focus” commands went unheard and I needed more help! I couldn’t walk him without fear of seeing another dog because he would pull, lunge, twist and flip uncontrollably! I turned to Facebook for help, and an old friend reached out. John said “hey, this is what I do!!”, and that’s when I found HumbleK9!! He heard desperation in my voice and Right away, over the phone, he taught me how to exercise patience to make sure Domino was in a calm state of mind before we left the house, then we met with John and he observed my pup and assured me that he wasn’t trying to kill everything he saw (as one trainer told me was the case) he was just really over excited, but most importantly, he helped me to see that it was MY anxiety fueling Domino’s reactions. He worked with both of us teaching me how to use the tools we have, such as the kennel, to teach Domino that he wasn’t responsible for protecting me when my anxiety started to spike. Now, it is 3 years later, and because I am more confident, Domino shows “almost” no reactivity at all: when he sees another dog now he will show some interest but will continue to walk on by. Now we have learned to work together so that he can alert me to my anxiety rising, comfort me when I let him and as a result, I have learned to control my own anxiety response better. We even take him camping and he loves to relax and watch all the other dogs walking by. Not only have I learned to work with my dog, but my mental health has improved immeasurably, and I know that wouldn’t have happened so cohesively without the expertise and insight of John and HumbleK9! We are so grateful for them everyday!