Colonial Dog Training - Boston, Massachusetts

Carly K.

Jamie has been an absolute lifesaver!! I found Colonial after adopting Poppy, my 2-year-old poodle/collie mix (lord help me), who was an absolute terror of uncontrolled energy and excitement when I got her. Everything we’ve done with Jamie has worked like a charm!! In 4 short months of working together, Poppy has transformed before my eyes into a well-behaved girl who gets compliments from others around the apartment complex about how good she is. It’s a lot of work, but knowing that it was a flat fee for as much training as we needed what exactly what I needed to put my mind at ease as a new dog owner - I love that I can just work with Jamie now on whatever issues we’re tackling without having to worry about paying more per session. I truly can’t believe the progress we’ve made and cannot recommend Jamie and Colonial enough! Attaching a photo from our last appointment to prove how much we love our training sessions!!

Marni

Finding trainer Jamie was the best thing to happen to me since getting Chloe, my now 5-month-old German shepherd mix, which I rescued on a whim... when I say "whim," I attended an adoption event to "look" and left with a puppy, having only purchased a dog leash I had left at home.

This was the most uncharacteristic thing I've ever done. I'm not spontaneous. I'm a planner and a researcher both professionally and in nature... but that face, those puppy dog eyes, and wow! She's so calm (false: she was exhausted from adoption day). I went with it, knowing only that I had the means and would give this dog every bit of love I had.

Raising a puppy on my own, I quickly realized that I could use support. I needed someone with the expertise to answer my many questions, interpret behavior, educate me on milestones, and physically stand beside me and train me so I could, in turn, train my dog.

When I first met Jamie at the consult, it was clear that she understands dogs. She has studied dog training and has seven years of professional experience. Her confidence instantly put my nerves at ease. I was impressed with her ability to effortlessly capture and hold the attention of my adorable but distractible 3.5-month-old puppy, Chloe.

Towards the end of the consult, she offered a demo of one of the commands we would be working on. Clo went off script and started chewing on a forbidden item; Jamie instantly dropped to her level and, on her first attempt, without even touching her, got my dog to stop and redirect. How?! Who is this woman? I was sold.

Session after session, it became clear that Jamie was born to work with dogs and yet is equally skilled at teaching humans. She understands the "why" behind each instruction- from why we teach a command to even the quickest, most minor corrections. She almost always has the answers to my questions; when she doesn't, she will find them and proactively follow up. Outside of sessions, Jamie is helpful and generous with her time- always there for guidance and to offer her expertise without judgment.

Jamie deeply cares about Chloe and is committed to seeing her clients progress- both in training skills and owner/dog bonding. I'm thrilled with how Chloe has responded to our training. I know our lessons with Jamie will pay off, and she'll be an important person in our lives forever!

Juliana K.

We can’t thank Jenna enough for the work that she did with our dog and us. She was knowledgeable, compassionate, and really took the time to answer our questions and educate us on how to work better with our dog. Thanks to her we saw massive improvements with our dogs, reactivity, separation issues, and overall anxiety. He is a much happier pup today and we have her to think for a lot of that! I would absolutely recommend her to anyone looking for help.

Cole D.

Maggie worked with our 1 year old Vizsla and completely blew us out of the water with how impactful her work was! We went into training with a wild, chaotically energetic puppy, and felt like we came out with an incredibly well trained dog, and it legitimately took only three lessons. While previously we had to worry about and watch Piper at basically all times, now she stays on her place quietly when asked, walks in a perfect heel on leash, doesn't jump on counters or people, lies down in the middle of playing with another dog when asked, and interacts beautifully with all dogs, people, and kids! The biggest change was apparent at work - after training, people stopped by my desk almost daily to say something along the lines of "wow, Piper has calmed down so much!" Piper is capable of hanging out quietly and calmly for an entire workday, which has changed the game for us. We know this is because of Maggie's awesome training (of both Piper and us!), and it's really made having a dog totally enjoyable (and never stressful). We tell anyone we know that spending the money to train with Maggie is the best money you'll ever spend on a dog.

Eden B.

Five Stars – Amazing Training for Anxious Frenchies!

Jamie at Colonial Dog Training has been incredible in helping my Frenchies, Cooper and Maggie. They both struggle with anxiety, which has led to some aggression between them, and Jamie’s expertise has made a huge difference.

From the start, Jamie provided clear, practical strategies tailored to their needs. We’ve already seen so much progress, and I feel more confident handling their behavior. If you have a dog with anxiety or behavioral challenges, I highly recommend Colonial Dog Training!

Kayla T.

Our dog who has always been stubborn started showing sign of aggression with our newborn. We quickly reached out to Colonial training and they were able to get our first session booked within a week. Not only has Jamie addressed our biggest concern of having the dog and baby peacefully cohabitate together but she has also helped us better control our dog on walks, confronting triggers, and helping our dog relax in the process. She has a great method of using both negative but mostly positive reinforcement to get results and in turn helping us keep up with the training techniques. We are so grateful for her help and have already recommended colonial dog training and Jamie to our friends in similar situations.

Shelby M.

Maggie at Colonial has been nothing short of incredible with helping us train our pup. She met Cooper as a 15 week old head strong puppy who loved a good temper tantrum and helped him grow up to be a good, good boy. I always wanted a dog who could be off leash, was great at recall and didn’t pull while on walks and that’s exactly what we got with Maggie’s help and guidance every step of the way. I have, and will continue to, recommend Maggie and Colonial to anyone who mentions they want/need dog training!!

Julia P.

Jamie has been helping us with our 7 year old lab/pit mix who has shown fear aggression towards children in the past. We called them when we were 6 months pregnant. Jamie worked with us during our pregnancy on basic obedience for Jasper to help us when the baby arrived. I was especially grateful that she was there when we made the first introduction between Jasper and my newborn.

I’m so glad that I can call Jamie at the next stage when my baby starts crawling. We have had the baby home for over 2 months now and Jasper has adapted wonderfully. He gives the baby plenty of space but does not seem afraid of her at all. He’s also easier to walk and much better at settling down in his bed on command. Thank you!!!