We are Total Balance K9s

The philosophy behind Total Balance K9s' approach to a totally balanced relationship between you and your canine companion is simple: in dog ownership and dog training, the issues that arise between humans and dogs are due to communication problems almost 100% of the time.

Although genetics and prior experiences may add to this, it is extremely rare to come across a dog and owner that does not greatly benefit from training. We pride ourselves on improving the quality of life for the dog and owner alike, and we focus on transparency, clarity, and great communication with our clients and their dogs. With us, what you (or your dog) see is what you get.

In our board and train programs, your dog stays with us in our home for the duration of training. Training begins at our location and quickly immerses into public environments to implement obedience around distractions, socialization, and exposure to real-world situations.

While your dog is in our care you receive daily updates. At the conclusion of the program we hold a 2-3 hour transfer session covering everything they learned, how to maintain it, and how to keep building on that foundation.

We have been training dogs for over 10 years and always approach each dog as an individual. After training we continue to support you for the life of your dog through texts, pack walks, our online community, and ongoing guidance whenever you need it.

Our mission is to keep dogs in homes. We work toward it by improving the communication between dogs and owners, because without a balanced relationship the quality of life of both the owner and the pet suffers, and sometimes the pet's life itself.

Whether the problem is a day-to-day life dulled by unresolved issues, dogs fighting in the house, or an owner considering the pound as a last resort, we step in, bridge that gap, and bring real balance and happiness back into the home.

Short term, we give back to the community by volunteering with shelter dogs the general public would be unable to work with, and by offering free or low-cost training to adopters.

Long term, we want to foster dogs at risk of being unadoptable and provide a calm space outside of the shelter to begin behavior modification and give them a second chance.

Our methods are scientifically based, using all four quadrants of operant conditioning as well as classical conditioning, properties of ABA, and natural-based training. In other words: it depends on the dog. No one method is right for every dog or every issue, so we approach each dog with time and care.

We train with as little resistance as possible, but we will never claim to be positive only or force-free. That said, we use a ton of positive reinforcement and training with play.

We do not believe the ends always justify the means. We take care at each step to avoid adding undue stress, while being honest that training can be stressful, just like therapy, college, or training for a triathlon. We do use prong collars and e-collars (not shock collars) and we are proud that we do, because it saves dogs' lives. We do not use them on every dog, and not because these tools are only for difficult dogs. In most cases the opposite is true. It is simply because not every dog needs them.