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We were very happy with the puppy class at barkers in balance. We learned effective everyday training skills for our pup in a fun supportive learning environment. Trainers made an effort to listen to and address our individual concerns and referred us back to Hamilton vet clinic for any issues that required advice from the vet.
- Veronica P.
Dear Julie, We just want to thank you again. Danielle, Laylah (16 week old border collie) and myself learnt so much at puppy preschool. We now have a disciplined dog (almost) and some very fond memories of our time at puppy preschool.
Julie you are a true professional and should be congratulated on your skills and enthusiasm.- Kay Houstone
My three dogs have all been through your puppy classes and are so well behaved. Your experience in puppy and dog training enables you to stop anti social behaviour right at the start and continue this on through in your other levels of courses. I wouldn’t even consider going to any other provider-your depth of knowledge and experience in all facets of doggy life give the best possible training.
- Angie W.
Hi my name is Mikki, the Spoodle, and my owners Janette (Mum) and Martin (Dad) thought it would be a good idea after I first came home to go to puppy preschool. I was a bit shy and found mixing with other puppies a bit scary. I was also having a few problems at home with separation anxiety and not knowing my place, so after puppy school finished Mum asked Julie to come to home and help with my problems. It was hard work for everyone but I started improving and found my place in the home, 4th I even come after Bimbo the cat. I still needed some direction so Mum took me to Adolescence classes where we did lots of exercises and learned more ways of being a good puppy. We even won some achievement ribbons! We both liked going to classes, we have been to all of them, other than the Growly one, and I love Julie and Michelle and love meeting up with new and old puppy friends. I loved going to Williamtown and doing the agility courses. I am usually the youngest there (I turn 2 years old in June) and sometimes I am a bit distracted, but by the advanced course I was better disciplined. Can’t wait for the next course!!
I am more confident and I am becoming the well adjusted grown up dog that Mum and Dad love to have around.
I even feature in the advanced class section of this website, yep that’s me jumping over a jump – don’t I look good?- Mikki
We would like to thank Julie for understanding our unique circumstances and helping Mikki and us put coping mechanisms in place and giving direction so we could change Mikki’s behaviour and Michelle for her help during the classes. I really enjoyed the classes which became more challenging with off lead work in the advanced course. Mikki is growing up to be a great Spoodle.- Janette & Martin
My dog Charlie is very timid and before she started training she hated walks because she would always encounter other dogs. She did not want to do anything other than lie in her kennel or look for worms in our yard. She was scared of people who she didn’t know. When we tried to teach her sit and stay, she didn’t understand and usually walked away. We took her to Julie’s Lochinvar class and she quickly came out of her shell. She loves walks, although she is still a little afraid of other dogs. She now plays with me in the backyard and chases sparrows around (she will never have a chance at catching them; she makes too much noise running). She now wants to befriend every person she meets and thrives on attention. Best of all, she started doing tricks and now we are working on some harder ones for her to learn. I would recommend Barkers in Balance to anyone with a dog that needs some help. It was a great class. Thanks Julie.- Matthew G
To say I recommend barkers in balance is an understatement of monumental proportions! We first came across Julie and the team when we were looking to help our old girl, Molly, experience more of life. Molly was a nervous and reactive 13 year old girl who had absolutely no idea how to interact with other dogs. She was a people pup through and through. After a private lesson with Julie we were equipped with priceless tools to help her navigate the world a little more smoothly and saw great success. These tools allowed us to take her to the dog beach and out and about, making our last days with her very special. More recently when we adopted Felix, our new pup, we didn’t hesitate to contact B.I.B again to arrange the best start possible for him. We have, just today, completed their level one course, having loved every moment of the puppy preschool class! We owe our training success to BIB and are so grateful to them for not only teaching Felix, but us, the tools we need to not only raise a well behaved pup, but to be courteous and socially conscious dog owners. We aim to guide Felix into therapy dog training and thanks to the Barkers in Balance team, we feel we are off to a flying start!
- Toni H.
Hi Julie, I would like to thank you and Michelle so much for helping us with Narla. By showing us how to communicate with her more effectively, we have gotten even closer together. It is an absolute dream to walk her now and I’m not scared that I’m going to be a passenger if she decides to take off on me. Where we had to strain so much taking her for walks, I often let go of the lead now and she stays right next to us. She usually does what she is told the first time which is great. We can control her barking and taught her where her place is in the ‘pack’. It’s almost as if she has gained a lot of respect for my partner and I. It’s an amazing feeling knowing that with one word or gesture she does exactly what she is supposed to. It makes us so proud when we see other misbehaved dogs and it’s no effort to get Narla to do what we want her to. She has gotten so good that we can take her to go have coffee and everything! Something we would never have dreamt of doing.
We look forward to the rest of the classes, if she is this good after 3 sessions, she will be a star when the class is finished.
Thank for turning our ladette into a lady.- Adele & Grant
I would first like to express my upmost gratification for the puppy school offered by Barkers in Balance at Hamilton vet. Barkers in balance is by far superior to any other dog obedience classes I have ever attended, not only for content covered and the excellent knowledge shown by each instructor I have met, but also for the friendliness of staff and willingness to help and go the extra mile to meet any unique needs. I was stoked to find they did courses local to me as I had heard by word of mouth that the team at Barker in Balance are incredible, and I wasn’t disappointed. I have gone forward to recommend Barkers in Balance to friends and family asI am that confident in their ability that they’ll continue impressing anyone who is lucky enough to school through them. In comparison to other puppy schools I have attended in the past, Barkers in Balance was much more hands on and interactive. The team made me see training as a fun bonding experience for me and my dog that will be beneficial to her forever. I plan to continue my dog’s obedience training through Barkers in Balance as I believe you can’t get a better service elsewhere.
Thank you, Barkers in Balance, as well as the venues that help facilitate the classes for helping provide my dog with the best possible start she could have in life.
- Laura-Lee G.
Just thought we’d drop you a line and let you know how things are going. Harry is doing so well. His behaviour has changed so much since our 2 sessions with you and I would like to once again thank you for teaching me the techniques to be able to help Harry become a more relaxed dog and to be a puppy again where his biggest concern is what ball should I chase. Walking is such a pleasure now. I no longer get rope burn after each walk and no longer dread having to take him for a walk. He very rarely jumps on people anymore however every now and then he has a brain snap but as soon as he is told no he stops. And his anxiety level has dropped heaps.
I thought I’d attach a photo of Harry for you since his training he has become a bit of a poser.
Take care and thanks again.- Emma & Harry
My name is Kelsey and my dogs name is Lexi, we both attended the Hamilton vet clinic puppy school training and Julie was our trainer. If it weren’t for Julie I can assure you my dog would not be as good as she is now, we learnt so much stuff in such a small amount of time and it was fantastic. I came to Julie with troubles with Lexi and her pigs ear, I can now successfully say I have no issues with Lexi and the pigs ear now after her time and management with Lexi helping me to overcome that issue. I am now booked in to another class for Lexi to go to good behaviour school and we both can’t wait to see the results. I would highly recommend Julie and Barkers in Balance to any dog owner without hesitation. I appreciate the help and support that Julie and her team provide on any occasion that I needed it. The Hamilton clinic was just perfect for Lexi and the other dogs she did the course with, the space is great, it is closed off and safe for the dogs. I even felt quite welcome when staff members would come out and say hello and pat the dogs. Julie was by far a life saver for us and I hope she gets to keep doing this at your clinic and helping other dog owners.
Thank you.
- Kelsey E.