Fortunate K9 Dog and Owner Training

This review is so long overdue. My husband and I have a wonderful, mini-labradoodle named Cooper who we both adore. He is smart, loving, has never chewed one of my shoes or nibbled on a piece of furniture. So what possibly could be the problem you may ask. Since the time Cooper was a pup and I began the training process, I would tell Cooper to sit and Cooper would look at me and I swear in dog language say, “Ya right.” Cooper would not sit, lay down (unless it was his choice), stay on command and when he saw a dog outside he could not pull me fast enough to get to the other dog. I actually developed a problem in my shoulder because Cooper pulled on his leash so hard. On top of all of this Copper was skittish. If a big truck or fire engine drove past him he would literally jump out of fear. I put him on anxiety medication but it did not agree with him. I really was at my whit’s end. Then one day, I noticed one of my neighbor’s dog in the elevator. He was calm, he listened to her every command she gave, never pulled or tugged on his leash…he was amazing. I had to ask where she trained her dog. She told me Fortunate K-9. So I looked into it. The reviews were great, the school looked great but in order to get the best results for Cooper, the owner Rick told me Cooper should stay there 3-4 weeks. 3 to 4 weeks I said to myself – that is a long time to be away from my Cooper…I can’t do that. How could anyone do that I said to myself. So I waited and the months began to past. Cooper kept tugging on his leash, pulling me towards any dog that came in his sight, he would not sit, lay down or even come when I called him…unless a treat was at the other end. Finally, I got sick and tired of being sick and tired of Cooper’s behavior – or lack thereof and I called Rick again and set a date to bring Cooper in. Having Cooper trained at Fortunate K-9 Dog training was the BEST thing I ever did for my family and my shoulder! When we came to pick up Cooper, my husband and I sat in a large room and Cooper walked in with Rick. The old Cooper would of went ballistic. But the new Cooper, as much as I knew he wanted to come over to us, was calm, cool and collected. Rick went through a routine with Cooper having him sit, stay in place, lay down, etc. I could not believe that this was my dog. Rick had Cooper walking right next to him – there was no pulling of the leash going on here! Rick would give Cooper command after command and Cooper would execute the command without hesitation. Then Rick gave Cooper permission to come over to see us. After our wonderful reunion, Rick showed my husband and me how to do everything he did with Cooper. I thought I was with a different dog. I would tell Cooper to sit and he would sit - lay down and he lay down! I was walking around with Cooper and he was by my side – no pulling of the leash! Although Cooper is still a little skittish (this is part of his genetic makeup), he has gotten so much better. People that knew him before cannot believe the changes in him. One person who knew him prior to my sending him to Fortunate K-9 is sending their dog for training next month so they can take their leash back. Cooper can now have a fire truck pass him and he has no reaction to it and so much more. So if you are sick and tired of your dog training you, take your leash back and contact Fortunate K-9. The new, better, loving bond you that is created with your dog as a result of this training is priceless. But the training does not stop after you leave…Rick has drop-in classes several times a week if you need a little help (and who doesn’t). Mary and Ed Glazer Boston, MA
5 8 years ago (07-06-2018)

Great place for our dog training. Great people fun dogs!
5 9 years ago (23-12-2017)

I'm following up on my husband's original review and the inaccurate response from the owner. We did in fact pay upfront for sessions of training that we did not schedule. We asked for a refund, almost immediately after the initial consult. We did our homework and changed our minds and went with another trainer we met with a few days later that turned out to be fantastic! You refused to refund our money for classes that we NEVER scheduled and instead sent out a certificate of completion for our dog. ALL of your response is wrong and your a rip off.
1 9 years ago (12-10-2017)

I am currently enrolled in the private lessons with Rick. I have a one year old Cane Corso who was a handful! We’ve had her enrolled in obedience from 12 weeks on but she was still very reactive with strangers. She did awesome in the classroom setting but in the real world she was a total mess. After multiple trainers and more money then I even want to think about, I heard about fortunate K9. I did my research and was convinced she needed the Board and Train package. During my evaluation, Rick explained to us our dog needs to respect us as her handler and we would be better off in private lessons. This completely surprised me (in a good way). I had been to another facility for an evaluation a few weeks earlier and was told the trainer wouldn’t work with me unless I did the (expensive) board and train program. This showed me Fortunate K9 isn’t about the money; they really want what’s best for you and your dog. Our lessons have been going great! Since the lessons are typically not in a training room, I find them so much more valuable. She is definitely a work in progress but I couldn’t be happier with the pace of the results I am seeing. I absolutely recommend Fortunate K9 and plan on being a long time customer!
5 10 years ago (31-05-2016)

I was excited to potentially work with the trainers there, and a girl name Jen was rude in her email to me and very pretentious. Her context in her email was belittling my experience and my excitement of what I could learn from them. Her customer service is extremely poor and now has just lost a client willing to spend $499 a week on a program for 6 weeks. I would NEVER recommend them to anyone based on Jen's customer service skills.
1 10 years ago (16-12-2016)