My dog’s aggression was a hard problem for me to tackle… but fortunately I found Zenergy Dog Training. I serendipitously met them at Whole Foods and just loved their compassionate balanced energy. They were there with a dog that also had dog aggression and human aggression and the dog was amazing. So I did a consult with them. I was very skeptical at first as they use an e-collar and prong collar for training (but once the dogs are trained they are pretty much collar-less unless they are in situations that could put them at danger). Again I was so hesitant… was pretty ignorant and was weary especially of the e-collar. But they spent a ton of time with me, showing me how mother dogs train their puppies and how these methods emulate that. They had me test the e-collar on myself– it was not at all painful– and showed me videos. Eyia is now amazing! She has such confidence and clearly feels safe — which is really the issue with aggression so much of the time. I can now take her out without ever needing to use the e-collar. She use to lunge at and try to attack every dog and now she will say hi to dogs — even on leash, at least dogs who aren’t aggressive to her, in a calm and friendly manner. Aggressive dogs she may raise her hair at and initially give a warning bark but once I let her know she is safe she just ignores it. And, she goes back to the trainers for pack play twice a week and is super excited to go which again reinforces how much she likes them and how safe she feels with them. Again it took a lot for me to get over my own biases but RJ and K truly make a huge impact on dogs lives, making them confident, safe, and feel like they have purpose.
She had a very difficult start in life and had severe severe dog aggression. Its hard to believe now because she is such a love bug. But previously she would lunge and try to attack any dog regardless of size — pitbulls, german shepards — and I was petrified she would get mauled and seriously hurt. And then I found Zenergy…
I want her to be free and not to be fearful. I want her to feel she is safe with other dogs. Given her history and her past trauma, I know she needs structure and guidance that creates a safe situation because her aggressive behavior is very fear driven. When she feels safe — when she feel she has an alpha backing her up, who will protect her and take any stress off of her — she has no aggression and is calm and confident. It’s just like with a kid…
I was hesitant at first about the methods Zenergy uses because I didn’t understand them. But, RJ and K are so thoughtful and deliberate and intelligent in their understanding of dogs and their needs, and they themselves have such good energy, such presence and clear desire to protect dogs, that I got over my own biases in terms of e-collars and prong collars and realized that they truly understand dog psychology — and then saw the results when Eyia came back from her training stay. Zenergy really helped turn her around and has given her confidence and a sense of safety.
-Katrine Lofberg and dog Eiya