WHAT the pack is SAYinG
​"I know this: at Laura's level of excellence, from having studied under the best including Cesar Millan, she brings an insight and passion to her work which you can't teach.
She is a born whisperer, right there with the best veterans I have ever seen, or had working with my dog Bella. It never ceases to amaze me what Laura is able to achieve with Bella, and what she is able to help myself and my wife realize. Laura is one of the lucky ones who has found her calling, as her calling has found her."
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~ Geo Bentley: Silicon Valley CEO; Hall of Fame coach/athlete; business leader - in love with his Bella, a wonderful work in progress!
https://www.linkedin.com/in/geo-bentley-9034481
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Both of Teddy's owners received custom training, based on their needs and goals with Teddy, individually and together as a couple.​
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Here is what each of them had to say:
​​"In a few short weeks, Laura converted Teddy from a disruptive, uncomfortable dog, into the most relaxed, well-behaved office dog. The feedback from coworkers has been staggering. It was like night and day, he was seemingly unrecognizable in his new, calm behaviour.
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I work in a dog friendly office, which is an amazing benefit! However, the office is open concept, full of distractions that can be challenging for a human to focus let alone a young, excitable Duck Tolling Retriever. My dog, Teddy, was not relaxed in this environment. He would react to any noise or distraction, constantly whine or bark, and thought that every person and dog were there to play with him.
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Enter Laura. Laura took the necessary time with me and Teddy to determine the root cause of his behaviour. She was able to assess his issues and gave easy to follow exercises to help him learn how to be calm and be able to relax when I needed him to be. Laura showed a tremendous amount of patience through the process. She was also great with Q&A. Laura was always open to receiving questions via email or text and always responded with effective solutions.
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She made sure I was comfortable handling Teddy through all the exercises she planned out. It wasn't just me watching her do everything. I learned how to guide Teddy through challenging exercises and what to do when presented with unexpected distractions. It was evident through this process that how I acted (or reacted) to a situation directly affected Teddy's behaviour. This was a tremendous learning experience, which allowed me to replicate the results I saw from Laura, when I was on my own.
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This could not have been done without the tireless help and support of Laura. Thank you!"
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~ Derek Rougeau: Hootsuite Employee & owner of canine coworker Teddy
"I love our dog Teddy, but before working with Laura, I would get really stressed out before I had to take Teddy outside our apartment. He could get worked up at certain obstacles - other dogs, new noises etc. - it would lead to a lot of barking, jumping, and pulling on the leash, so I would often feel nervous that we might run into something that would cause him to bark and pull me.
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What really made the difference working with Laura versus previous trainers, was that Laura took the time to understand who we were and our lifestyle and tailored Teddy's training to reflect that. Laura is so great at asking questions to determine exactly what we needed. I knew that she spent so much time thinking about and working on our case even in between the training sessions.
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I feel like a more confident dog owner, which in turn makes Teddy more confident and happy too.
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Laura's dedication and professionalism are clear, and she has been invaluable to our family."
~ Tiff Rougeau & Teddy
"I want to say THANK YOU so very much for the wonderful leashed group dog walking experience on Sunday. I came home and was so excited to share the morning' s events with my husband when he got home from his trip. Though is was pouring rain it didn't bother me one bit!
Your calm and positive nature, combined with your extensive knowledge in dog psychology led me to be so engaged; you were an incredible teacher for both Onyx and I.
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I was SO pumped to put your tips into practice and Onyx was incredible the whole walk home. She showed such improvement during the course of the workshop with you, and her resistance was absolutely adorable in the beginning!
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I am so proud of the changes we saw! I really felt a positive connection with you as a trainer and teacher and you have such passion for helping us humans understand and connect with our best friends in an incredibly special way."
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~ Melissa Falabella & Onyx
"Laura is simply the best. She was an incredible input to Tiger's training!"
~ Mark Strong & Tiger
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"As a new mom, I found myself needing to focus a lot on my son and as a result my dog Bailey started rebelling and stopped listening. It became quite stressful and I found myself agitated more often than not.
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Laura provided me with simple and helpful strategies to deal with Bailey that have given me hope. With Laura being available throughout the process, we have been able to redefine boundaries and enjoy being dog owners again."
~ Samantha Halpern, Eric & Bailey
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"Laura has a great understanding of dogs and energy.
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I brought my 3 dogs to a Pack Walk and 2 of them are reactive, but midway through the class they were relaxed and calm. Nice to check in and realize how our energy affects our dogs. Calm and assertive is the way to go. Thanks."
~ Claire Sojka & Pika, Dora & Denver
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​"Thank you for making this valuable and memorable experience possible for John Oliver's grade 9 students.
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Just a note to say thank you very much for spending your time with us today. It was fascinating to listen in on your conversations and exciting stories!
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The students conversations and interactions with you today have helped them understand a great deal more about not only the breadth of educational and career options for their futures, but also hear examples of how your passions and experiences led you along your journey.
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The object is to have the students really explore their own learning and their beliefs about learning. Students relayed to us how informative, interesting and eye-opening the experience was for them!"
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~ Joanne Martin, Science Department Head,
John Oliver Secondary School, Vancouver BC
"Laura is an amazing dog trainer with the knowledge and skill to help anyone with their dog, no matter what the problem!
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She is patient and takes the time to teach us humans as well!"
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~ Michelle Sellars, Founder & Head Trainer at CASCADIA DOG TRAINING
"Laura attended our PawSwap Meet-up in August. She spent one-on-one time with each of our members and provided them with the utmost attention. She was extremely helpful and informative and we received only positive feedback. We cannot wait to have her at one of our Meet-ups in the future. Thanks Laura!"
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~ Aliya Bhatia, PawSwap Founder & Pack Leader
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"I follow Laura online @westsidedogtraining and find her positive and interactive approach to animal training both inspiring and informative. By presenting the human impact we have over our pets lives everyday she has helped me both as a dog "aunt" and with my own pet cat Waylon.
Through understanding the effect my own stresses and anxieties have on the animals in my care I have learned to bring out the best qualities in them and have improved my relationship with my own fury rescue. I look forward to her posts and would recommend her services without hesitation. Training with Cesar Millan and her own dedication and enthusiasm in the field of animal behaviour certainly makes her an asset to her followers and their pets. Keep up the great work Laura!
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~ Rebecca Smith
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"Incredible!
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Laura is truly special and has an amazing approach to helping us understand our dogs and our relationships with them. She is truly gifted and is making an extraordinary impact in the world with her philosophy and unique training methods with dogs. The world is a better place because of Westside Dog Training!
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~ Cory Sterling (&Vino & Lexi)
Check out what some of our pack members have shared about us on: ​
Google Reviews and Facebook Reviews!
Read some of their reviews here too: