A wonderful Testimonial

Congratulations to Matrix who just got is Canine Good Citizen award…he is such a great dog to work with..

                                                             photo courtesy of Steven Schwartz Photography

Dear Jeff,

I just had to write to tell you how thrilled we are with all that you
have done for us.  When we first decided to get Matrix, we were
concerned about bringing a German Shepherd into a neighborhood where
kids are always running in and out of the yard.  We have always loved
the breed but also recognize the large responsibility a dog owner has
as well.  We took him to puppy kindergarten and researched different
trainers and their methods.  I don’t think there was a single episode
of the Dog Whisperer that we missed.  We were blessed to stumble across
your web page.  After reading everything you wrote we thought “this is
it, he’s perfect”.  Your training philosophy was exactly what we were
looking for.  Real school.

So off went Matrix to 6 weeks of summer camp with you.  He was missed
terribly but the heartache was softened by your updates in your blog
and Kennel Journal.  It was a fun family experience to see what Matrix
was up to while at camp.

The 6 weeks went by quickly and I had my doubts that you could
accomplish all you needed to in such a short period of time.  We were
also worried that somehow he wouldn’t remember us or would be a
different dog altogether.  When we picked him up I was impressed at how
much he respected you.  It was quite clear though that he didn8
0t forget
us!  When we got him home we couldn’t wait to take him out for a “ test
drive”.  Despite all the excitement of the day it was amazing to see
him transform into everything the perfect dog should be.  As for our
worry that he would be a different dog altogether?  He is, but in a
wonderfully good way.  No more mouthiness, stealing shoes, chewing,
jumping, barking at the kids or taking stuff off the table.   Outside
he now heals like a gentleman, stays where you put him, meets people
politely and plays with dogs at the dog park.

The following week we took him to N.H. for the long weekend.  We stayed
with my family, my brother has three little boys and the house is on a
lake.  Matrix had a blast.  Since you taught him how to swim, he spent
most of his time in the lake.  Despite all the kids running around and
having fun he was gentle and didn’t even knock anyone over.  Inside the
house full of people he was put in Place command and there he stayed (
I think he was happy to have a spot of his own).

After the N.H. break we took Matrix to Boston Vet Specialists for his
hip dysplasia surgery.  He was planning to have a triple osteotomy on
his left hip to correct his dysplasia and your training was going to
help with keeping him controlled during his recovery.  The vet was
surprised that his hips felt better on exam and repe
ated the xray.  He
was impressed to find that his hips had improved so much that he no
longer needed surgery.  I attribute this to all the low impact exercise
that you did with him on a daily basis, especially the swimming.  The
fact that you saved me from a $4,000 vet bill is the ultimate icing on
the cake you gave us.

You are a wonderfully warm and kind human being that understands dogs
on a level most of us will never reach.  We are so lucky to have found
you right in our very own backyard.   I hope you can use this letter as
a testimonial to your great talent so that other may see how wonderful
you are.

For others that may read this all that I have written is true but you
must  also understand that training is a lifelong process.   We
continue to work with Matrix everyday constantly exposing him to new
things, constantly testing, constantly putting him in various commands
under different settings.   To not continue his training would be an
insult to you Jeff for all the hard work and dedication you gave to
Matrix.

In closing, we would just like to say that you have shaped Matrix into
a wonderful dog that we can all be very proud of.   We look forward to
a continued relationship and will be planning another  training session
with you next summer.  Maybe you can teach him to drive next.

With love, thanks and admiration,

The Cord Family
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A
P.S.  Matrix passed his Canine Good Citizen test today with flying
colors.