“Rebecca has been a real game changer for Gilhooley, our 20-month old goldendoodle. He is a wonderful and sweet dog, but had almost no impulse control in real-life situations. On walks, he pulled on his leash, picked up everything he saw on the ground, and reacted to nearly every dog we passed by lunging and growling. His behavior in the house was equally frustrating and included jumping, nipping, and counter surfing.

We contacted Rebecca and after an initial phone consultation, we realized that most of his behavior issues stemmed from anxiety and not being held accountable for his actions. We understood the important role of positive reinforcement from his previous training, but Rebecca explained the importance of Gilhooley understanding a negative marker as well. That seemed to be the missing piece of the puzzle.

Rebecca communicated with us frequently while she was working with Gilhooley. And the videos she posted nearly daily kept us informed about his progress and provided tips for handling him when he came home. The “Go Home” session with Rebecca was also extremely helpful, since we were a little nervous about being able to continue enforcing his good behavior. As Rebecca explained, many of his unwanted behaviors simply went away naturally, once his anxiety was reduced.

Gilhooley is now a much calmer and happier dog around the house and the once-dreaded walks have become a fun time to bond with Gilhooley. We are still working on our signals and timing, but he has successfully passed other dogs with no reactivity at all the vast majority of the time. Rebecca offers much more follow-up than we had with other training programs, and we’re looking forward to working with her during 2 more sessions as we fine-tune our handling of Gilhooley. We highly recommend Rebecca and Love in the Lead!”

“When I first got my Aussiedodle pup, Drizzy, I looked up training programs around Charlotte, read reviews, and met with trainers, but always loved Rebecca’s program. Drizzy knew his basic commands, but struggled with duration because he was impulsive and excited. He was smart where he chose when to listen but not consistent. He struggled with being obedient around distractions and would want to run up to everything. I could not walk him on the leash without him pulling the entire time. I had a phone consultation with Rebecca and explained all of this to her. She was very honest and understanding.

We did the 2-week boarding program and WOW did she amaze me. I followed Drizzy’s progress closely on her social media, which I loved. She is transparent about where the dogs are in their training so you can see them improve! Drizzy returned to me still the loving, playful pup he had always been, but much more focused and obedient. He is able to walk in a perfect Heel both on and OFF leash, he will sit/stay in distracted environments, and has an amazing recall where I feel comfortable letting him roam off leash to play. He is much calmer and knows how to control his excitement and impulses. I am shocked and happy as I can take him anywhere now and I am not worried about him misbehaving. She uses the E collar, which is more a muscle stimulation and not a shock. She takes the time to teach the dogs properly.

During the entire training, Rebecca was responsive and replied in a timely manner. She was professional and Drizzy adored her. She had us visit half-way through so that she could teach us what Drizzy had been learning. She even took the time out to spend time in our home and around our neighborhood at the end of the session to go over training plus a 2 week follow up session. Out of the many training programs in Charlotte I would always choose to go with Rebecca. I already have fellow coworkers signed up after they saw how focused, confident, and obedient Drizzy was after his training.”

“Rebecca and her team are miracle workers! Our papillon, Meli is the sweetest dog, but from the first day we brought her home we could tell she suffered from separation anxiety. She followed us everywhere and cried when we weren’t home. She had a problem with sprinting out the front door and running down the street, never coming when called. And then there was the crate. Even with one of us in the same room, she suffered anxiety every time she was in it. For months, I tried training her myself—but when she, literally, almost broke her neck trying to get out of the crate one night, I knew we needed help.​

I had a phone consultation with Rebecca and we decided the best option for Meli would be the 3-week board and train program. Rebecca sent frequent emails about Meli’s progress and always answered any questions I had. The social media posts were wonderful—I could see how well Meli was doing, how much fun she was having, and also why certain exercises were being done.

We had our 1st training session 3 weeks after dropping Meli off and couldn’t believe our eyes. She walked into her crate on command without any hesitation. She came to me when I called her. She had a calmness about her we had never seen before. Now at home, Meli is no longer following us all over the place and she sits patiently when the front door opens. We can let her out in the backyard to play or go potty and she’ll come right back to us when called. And the crate is no longer her enemy! She’s still our spunky little Meli, but with better manners, more confidence, and no longer riddled with anxiety. We can never thank Rebecca and her staff enough for the incredible job they did with Meli, and for the support Rebecca continues to provide. We highly recommend Love in the Lead!”

“I cannot say enough about the experience that we had with Rebecca and Love in the Lead. We struggled with a strong dog that pulled terribly on the leash, didn’t listen around distractions and counter surfed. We had tried to fix the behaviors ourselves but quickly realized we were not having a big impact. I knew we needed to send him away for more advanced training but was very concerned with finding the right fit for our family. Calhoun is the sweetest most loving puppy and we were terrified that sending him away would break his spirit. So I called the owner of a local non-profit that works with puppies/service dogs to ask for a recommendation. They suggested Rebecca/love in the lead and gave a very glowing recommendation. We called her and the rest is history. We dropped off a 10 month old that desperately needed some manners and got back a super polite and willing to please puppy. He was the EXACT same puppy but now equipped with beautiful manners. I cannot say enough about his experience with Love in the Lead as well as our experience during and post his 2 week training session. I can also say that we can take him anywhere now! He goes in stores, dinner in the car, off leash at the beach really anywhere. People often comment about our well behaved dog. Rebecca and her team are so knowledgeable, kind and so willing to help every step of the way. We are so thrilled with our experience and would give Love in the Lead more than 5 stars if that was a thing :-)”

“Our dog Henrik recently completed the 3 week board and train program and to say we are amazed is an understatement! Rebecca and her team kept in contact with us with emails and videos, so we could keep track of his progress, and she was very responsive to any questions we had. Henrik came home and in three weeks our dog has the skills to focus on us as we walk, does not lunge or bark at other dogs or people he encounters. During training all the dogs go off property to Charlotte area parks, and the white water center, and big stores, which was a main reason why we chose Love in the Lead for training. It’s so reassuring to know a professional brought our dog to a place we may bring him and he has familiarity with it. We brought Henrik to the whitewater center this weekend, and he was able to walk calmly with us as other dogs, bikes, kids and zipliners were all around him, and he never lost his composure. We could not be happier, and highly recommend Love in the Lead, having a well behaved dog is absolutely priceless!”

“Life changing – truly. We sent our 3 year old boxer mix rescue, wild-man, Charlie, to Love in the Lead for a three week board and train program. Charlie was reactive to strangers and other dogs, a professional counter surfer and pantry raider, and would pull so hard on the leash walking him was unbearable – just to name a few things. We couldn’t trust him around people or food so he had to be in his kennel often. Now?! He is calm, confident, obedient and polite. Friends and family who knew him before can not believe the transformation. Not only is our life less frustrating, but Charlie now gets to go on many walks, can be with us when we are eating or have guests over, has much more freedom and gets to go most places with us.

When I spoke to Rebecca about her program her philosophy and process was logical and compassionate – it made sense and felt right with us. She has spent a good amount of time training us as a family so we are all consistent and can keep Charlie on track. Rebecca is a true professional and is experienced and knowledgeable. I couldn’t be more thankful to her and that we made this investment – it was worth every penny.”

“Rebecca was recommended to me by another trainer in Charlotte. At the time Gracie was 4 months old and I was working with her on basic commands and off leash walking. Although Gracie was progressing I knew she needed professional training if she was to achieve her Canine Good Citizen Certificate and become a Certified Therapy Dog.

When meeting Rebecca for the first time I noted her professionalism, attention to detail and overall love for dogs. After an initial consultation and learning that Rebecca is certified to train dogs to become service dogs, I felt comfortable enrolling Gracie in the (3) week advanced training class. Rebecca did a wonderful job keeping me updated on her progress via Instagram photos/videos. I especially loved seeing Gracie on her off property trips to Freedom Park, The Whitewater Center, and Lowes.

Gracie had a good foundation for obedience when she arrived at Love and the Lead however Rebecca and team improved her overall confidence, impulse control and ability to avoid distractions. The training at Love and Lead enabled Gracie to return home a more confident puppy. She knows how to walk politely on a leash, avoid distractions, control the urge to counter surf, stay in sit or down position. In addition, Gracie is off leash trained!

My most proud moments are when other dog owners or dog trainers see Gracie in public and they comment on how well behaved she is! I highly recommend Rebecca and her team, thank you!”

“I am ECSTATIC with my experience with Rebecca and her team! I sent my 10 month old lab pup, Sneaky, to the 3 week obedience training and she came back a different dog. Prior to training, Sneaky would bark anytime she wanted attention, making it unenjoyable to bring her anywhere. She was highly reactive on her leash, pulling extremely hard, having zoomies anytime she saw a squirrel, found a stick, or saw another dog. Walks were a chore, and letting her off leash was out of the question.

LOVE IN THE LEAD SOLVED ALL OF THESE ISSUES! She came back from training a well mannered and much calmer dog. She’s so much more in control of her impulses, and there’s not a single bark or whine – which is life changing. We do almost all of our walks unleashed, with nearly no reaction to other dogs or squirrels. We receive so many compliments on our walks, which speaks wonders to the excellent level of training she received. I recently took her to a brewery for the first time since training, where she lied down calmly the entire time. One of my friends who knew Sneaky pre training said “whose dog is this and what did you do with Sneaky!” I especially love the level of training I received at the facility and in my home. Walks, outings, activities, and life in general are so much more enjoyable after training with Love in the Lead! It makes me love Sneaky even more than before. I can’t recommend Love in the Lead enough!”

“Our 10 month old Golden Retriever went to Love in the Lead for the 3 week board and train. She arrived to the training program with issues such as: counter surfing, eating inappropriate items (kids socks/toys/drywall/our deck/siding on the house to name a few…), and hyperactivity. We probably called 30 training programs, but something was different about Love in the Lead. We chose Love in the Lead because Rebecca answered every single question we had. She was transparent and it was clear she has a passion for not only dogs, but families. She immediately had a set plan in place for how to make sure our Golden Retriever could become a larger part of our busy family.

After training for three weeks, our dog no longer has the issues with counter surfing, she listens when told “no” in the event our children drop a toy right in front of her and she properly channels her energy. We can now take her everywhere we go and she has truly become a part of our family as she goes and does everything with us. We can not thank Rebecca and her team enough for helping us to foster the most amazing relationship with Piper. We are already planning 2021 trips and will only choose dog friendly places from now on, as Piper will now be a part of every family adventure we have. This was an investment that will truly last a lifetime.”