Ridgeside K9 Winchester - Winchester, Virginia

Olivia D.

We had a great experience sending our 5 year old rescue, Willie, to Ridgeside! Michael was her trainer and he had great communication with us on how she did over the three weeks. The whole staff was friendly and helpful. We’ve had Willie back home for a couple weeks now and working with her to reinforce what she learned! She’s doing much better with new people and with recall. Thank you!

Stephanie S.

Our 4-month-old golden retriever attended Ridgeside K9 Winchester’s two-week board/train puppy university. He is a very energetic and strong-willed puppy and as someone with mobility issues, I was concerned with how obedient he would be when he was older and much larger (especially since he had already knocked me over once while I was trying to walk him). At the end of the two weeks, our little boy came back a young man with well-behaved manners. It was like night and day. Danny, his trainer, worked wonders with him. Danny also worked with us to address our specific needs (i.e. having Finn learn to heel next to a walker/wheelchair/cane).

In addition to the two weeks of training, Danny spent about four hours with us at turnover going over how to continue Finn’s training at home as well as how to communicate effectively and positively with our pup (and also answered our 100+ plus questions). To be honest, I was very nervous about sending my puppy away for two weeks with someone I didn’t know. But Danny calmed my nerves by sending us a daily update along with several videos and photos to show us how our pup was doing. I could see in the videos that Finn was having a fantastic time and was learning so much. We highly recommend Ridgeside K9 and Danny as a trainer. When the time comes for Finn to continue onto adult training, we will definitely use Ridgeside again and request Danny as his trainer.

Lisa I.

We are very pleased with the overall experience we had with the three week board and train program. We were highly skeptical that our dog would be a compliant trainee, and pleasantly surprised at her response. She seemed to genuinely love her trainer, Michael, and I was amazed at her composure when I picked her up. The learning for us and the tools we were given to continue reinforcing the training are the most significant asset. This investment was well worth it.

Stacy S.

We brought our golden retriever/black lab mix to Ridgeside K9 with their all-inclusive puppy training and adult training program. He spent 10 days with them as a puppy to get some basic skills in, then he went back for 2 weeks several months later to build on those skills. He is a super energetic and smart lab that wants to please but also has issues with impulse control, boundaries, and focus and was basically running our house. Ridgeside has done an absolutely amazing job with him! The trainers are incredibly kind, treat the dogs with care and love, and address all our dog's behavioral concerns. The biggest thing that they do though, is teaching us as owners how to communicate with our dogs. When you pick up your dog after a board-and-train, they go over dog psychology and communication methods with you and that is a GAME CHANGER when it comes to continuing your dog's training at home. We definitely recommend Ridgeside K9 for all your pup training needs!

Jay N.

We couldn't be more pleased with the training our lab mix (Gunnar) got with Ridgeside. His biggest issues were reactivity and separation anxiety (he's a 7 month old rescue), with some obedience issues as well. We did the 3 week board and train. Danny and his crew did a wonderful job-we saw frequent photos, Danny responded to our occasional e-mailed questions, and we got back a well-behaved dog. He obeys all of the commands he was taught, no longer pulls on his leash, and somehow so far we have seen no signs of the separation anxiety when we go out and leave him, but we are slowly pushing the envelope-so far, so good. We had some questions the first day we arrived and the owner of the business patiently sat with us for 2 hours to be sure we were satisfied and informed. He gave us some great information and answered a ton of questions. The difference in Gunnar is night and day; he's still playful and energetic but an added layer of good behavior makes him a joy. Not to be overlooked is the"Turnover Day" class for owners. Shannon did a very thorough 2 hour session with us explaining what we needed to do on followup training, how the collar works (it's a tone, then if that fails a vibration, not a "shock") She answered every question from "Who gets up all of the poop from these dogs?" to "How do we re-charge?" We've read that some folks have skipped the turnover day session-not good. Huge thanks to all of you !!!

taylor A. F.

The team here at Ridgeside is absolutely amazing. Emily was able to help my very reactive 3-year old goldendoodle become more confident. Lou went for the 5-week service dog prep course (board and train). Within one day of picking her up, and her confidence has significantly increased and she is able to stay on command. After a few more days of reinforcement training at home, she will go back for a public access test. I am very confident Emily has fully prepared Lou! Thank you to everyone there, especially Patrick, who spent a little extra time with her as this was her first time away. Iggy has a great team. Thank you all!

Kim G.

Molly just finished 3 weeks of Board & Train, and I couldn’t be more thrilled!
She is an 8 y/o rescue with a sweet personality but poor manners. She needed to unlearn the unwanted habits and relearn basic obedience skills. Molly’s trainer, Sydney, was awesome with me on pick up day! I learned so much from her about the training process, and then I got to reunite and practice these skills with Molly!!!
I deeply appreciate the intensive, methodical training techniques used with Molly and with ME! All of these new tools and skills will help me to keep her & I safe, and will enhance our bond.
This training course was time and money well spent, and I would highly recommend Ridgeside K9 Winchester!!

Nicole D.

My dog, Brooklyn, took the 2-week daily training course at Ridgeside. I was highly impressed with the facility, the trainers, and the staff. Everyone was so professional and knowledgeable. EJ was her trainer and she just adored him. He taught her several new commands and then taught me how to keep the training going at home. She started off a very shy and scared pup, but this training helped to bring her out of her shell and she is doing wonderfully at home. I highly recommend this training facility. Very worthy investment!