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Justine's Testimonials.
Sharon McCombe
I was recommended by a friend to contact VIP dog training. I have a standard Dachshund called Matilda. She was very reactive on the lead barking, lunging at anything that moved including dogs, people, prams and bicycles. Walking Matilda was an absolute nightmare, it was very stressful and so embarrassing. I’ve lost count of the amount of times I’ve come home vowing that I would never walk her again.
We tried everything, from buying books on reactive dogs to watching lots of on line training on YouTube. We even sought help from another dog trainer before Justine but nothing worked .
Matilda’s behavioural problems also extended inside the house too, she constantly barked at anyone who walked past and also terrorised my poor neighbour whenever she sat out in her garden.
We booked a consultation with Justine to assess Matilda.
To start with we were given training exercises to practice with Matilda in our home environment, the settling exercise and lots of brain enrichment to calm Matilda.
Justine also recommend changing her diet. The reactivity behaviour wasn't going to be a quick fix, we knew that we had to put lot of time and patience into training Matilda..
We practiced a lot of distance training with Matilda, so she wasn't over the threshold when she would see other dogs or people, we also did engagement training so Matilda would focus on us.
I can honestly say from the moment I met Justine I just knew that this woman would be the one to help Matilda. She was so knowledgeable and professional, she knew instantly what Matilda’s problems were and gave us plenty of advice on how to manage them. She was an absolute godsend, I cannot thank Justine or recommend her enough .
Matilda has calmed down so much now, she is no longer a nightmare to walk and for once she is a pleasure to walk. We have finally got the family dog we always dreamed of having ,don’t get me wrong Matilda can have a little outburst now and again but thanks to Justine when she does we know how to manage the situation and resolve it quickly.
Liz Lewis
Last year my Dad got his new best little friend, our lovely Beagle puppy called 'Pal'. A friend of mine recommended Justine from VIP training and we never looked back! The advice was literally priceless with everything from toilet training and crate training to enrichment toys and whistle 'call back' training for walks to name but a few!
How quick Pal responded to the positive reinforcement training was unbelievable! And even though our bond with Pal was fabulous from the minute we set eyes on him through training our bond just got stronger and stronger and training was actually fun! Pal was as excited and delighted as us!
With Justine’s amazing dog walking training my Dad (and us a family) have literally gone from being pulled down the street to having our gorgeous Pal casually walking beside us... unbelievable! The way it has changed our whole life with Pal is just amazing!
With Justine’s training Pals adventures have widened from enjoyable walks to taking the train to London with my Dad to spend the week in my brothers with his family! Not to mention joining my Dad on the ferry over to New Brighton too! Honestly I cannot recommend VIP training enough and Justine is amazing with help and advice whenever we needed it.
I highly recommend VIP training to all.
Amazing service, advice and life changing help all round.
Bonnie Darlington
I’ve read a LOT about Justine’s service and would HIGHLY recommend her! With such a beautiful soul inside and out, how could you not trust your beautiful pets to this wonderful woman?! God Bless Miss Justine, if she lived in the states she’d be working with my stubborn Goyles!
Jeanette Dorrian
I would highly recommend Justine who is a fantastic dog trainer I can see a great difference with my dogs just after one session ����
Jacquie Dee
UPDATE ON MY REVIEW ** Buster, my 11 year old jack russell, has had a few problems over the years. He is a very anxious which causes problems i.e. leaving him on his own, if he sees another dog he will start to bark even before it gets close. As we leave the house, he will bark and nip at your ankles. Also pulling on the lead and jumping up with excitement when he is going for a walk. What made the situation worse was his sister Millie died in January and he just became really depressed and his anxiety increased. I decided to ask Justine to give me advice on the best way of dealing with him. Aside from the help on training him she advised me to buy an easy walk harness and some St. Johns Wort for animals. It has made such a difference with his anxiety issues, he no longer sits shaking if people come into the house. He seems a lot calmer and happier, going for walks is now a pleasure. We haven't got to the point of leaving him on his own just yet. I do believe if we follow the advice Justine has given us, that will happen. **
About four years ago I was very ill and Millie my Jack Russell took to her bed, wouldn't eat or drink, we had to lift her out to the garden and when she did walk, she crawled along. Took her to Woolton Vets who could find nothing wrong with her and they recommended Justine. What I appreciated about Justine was when I told her I was on my final dose of Chemotherapy, she advised me that once I had finished that Millie would most probably return to her normal self and did I want to wait and see. I didn't because I wanted Millie to get support as soon as possible. Within a week Millie was back to her normal self after I followed the advice from Justine. I would have no hesitation in asking for Justine’s support in the future.
Diane Thomas
I would just like to say that Justine is an excellent dog trainer she is so professional, understanding and caring. When I take my dog to the park people are amazed how good my 5 month old staff is Justine whistle trained her to come back never thought she would do it but she is amazing I would recommend Justine to everyone who has problems with their dogs or just want a well behaved dog
Jennifer Pearson
I have an over excited and anxious 18 month old black lab who Justine has provided us with some extra crucial and important training he needed after he had bitten another dog! Her technique and advice is most valuable and our dog has responded so well to her training regime we are doing good stuff now.
DI had a problem with my family (especially my 3 year old granddaughter) coming into the house, my 17 month old very excitable Rottweiler was a nightmare not realising his size and strength just wanting to say hello but knocking her over and not leaving her alone as he wanted to play, Justine after 10 mins had him calm and at a point even ignoring my granddaughter, showing us what to do and practice to get the same result ourselves.
We also had a problem with him with recall, Justine again shown us how to cure this we now don't have the problem.
I could not recommend Justine enough, we are going to have some revisits to sort out other little problems we have, absolutely brilliant dog trainer.
Anna O’Hare
Justine understands dogs and provides an excellent dog training and dog walking service. Her interest and care for all animals shines through in her work and any dog owner would benefit from her expertise and support.
Daniel Hammond
My name is Daniel and my French bull dog is called Theo. I bought Theo for my Mum he’s a lovely dog and we are delighted to have him in our family. My Mum was recommended to VIP dog training, we though being responsible dog owners we needed a bit of help with Theo at the time he was 6 months old, he was quite boisterous in the house jumping up on visitors and digging in the garden. Theo started another behaviour being reactive and aggressive with others dogs when we walked him, he would try bite other dogs if he didn’t like them. My mum was taking him to the park to meet other dog walkers that she knew and let him play but Theo started to get very reactive and it got out of control with one of the other dogs. Justine told us to stop that interaction it was over threshold for him he needed some one on one training and to calm him down. Justine has done some separate training with Theo first, then my mum has had some one on one training sessions with Justine. We thought about castration for Theo to calm him down but it was something we didn’t want to do, Justine recommend not to castrate and I strand we needed to work on his behaviour first then see where we are. We have kept up with the training for Theo and have been very dedicated, he’s doing amazing his recall is really good he’s not reactive with dogs my Mum and I are lot more relaxed taking him out. Justine has been a great mentor for both my mum and I. The sessions alone are greasy but it is also very important to keep up train at home. We highly recommend Justine to anyone with an issue with their dog.
Joanne Greaves
This is an update on Rodney's door training , it has been a big success. Justine showed us how to use commands and a tasty reward only when the doorbell rings he will still charge to the source of the noise he will wait on command and stop acting like a crazy fur ball. Now the community nurses & deliveries from the chemist are met by a much happier and contented dog and more relaxed humans. Rodney says a big thank you woof to Justine for her patients and care towards him. Traffic noise drove Rodney mad, lunging and barking at lorries & Buses etc, walking every day by noisy traffic and keeping him relaxed on his lead has done wonders and only the most noisiest motorbike or scaffold laden wagons upsets him it makes his walks more enjoyable. We will update his other great progress at a later date. Justine's training works but you have to keep it up in between her visits. So anybody out there who does have problems with their dogs I would highly recommend Justine's to train them, you can find her under VIP dogs which you can find on Facebook. Remember though you must keep her training up in between visits otherwise it is pointless to waste her time and energy. She is a brilliant Trainer. Everybody says Rodney is so chilled now they don't recognize him, so that makes him happy and us.
Devil to Angel (well Nearly) Rodney wasn't going to let anyone enter his home without a show of aggression, teeth on show, growling and pulling on the lead until he was dragged away this was one of his many faults. The poor window cleaner, if he attempted to come round the back of the house was met with the same behaviour. He is a 3 year old Shih Tzu, came from Manchester dog rescue centre and was a bit of a handful to say the least. We called Justine who came to the house via the front door and saw him at his most horrible ! The change in him after his first training lesson was wonderful. If you need a good dog trainer then Justine is the one we would recommend. Rodney is now a changed dog he is more laid back little dog so a huge thank you Justine for coming to our rescue.
David Mclennan
I had a problem with my family (especially my 3 year old granddaughter) coming into the house, my 17 month old very excitable Rottweiler was a nightmare not realising his size and strength just wanting to say hello but knocking her over and not leaving her alone as he wanted to play, Justine after 10 mins had him calm and at a point even ignoring my granddaughter, showing us what to do and practice to get the same result ourselves.
We also had a problem with him with recall, Justine again shown us how to cure this we now don't have the problem.
I could not recommend Justine enough, we are going to have some revisits to sort out other little problems we have, absolutely brilliant dog trainer.
2 weeks ago
Justine is amazing! We were really struggling with our new pup but Justine is giving us the tools to help make him into an amazing little dog. I cannot recommend Justine highly enough.
Justine has been a huge help to me.Although I’ve owned dogs for 30years with no problems, the latest addition to the family defeated me. Justine has shown me ways to calm and control a very high energy retriever. Loads of tools, tips and commands to help him settle and learn impulse control. I have learned so much from Justine. The most useful part of the process has been the texts from Justine between appointments to see how we are getting along which allow me to ask questions if I am not sure what to do. This provides the reassurance you need to help you keep going. Thanks Justine.
Jill Fairfield
Hi,
Just wanted to share our experience with VIP dog trainings (Justine Shore).
We got Goose, our miniature schnauzer as a puppy just over a year ago. Our initial experiences with Goose were as any new dog owner, feeling our way and celebrating new triumphs such as toilet training and teaching him new tricks. We both had dogs in our families growing up and we thought that the experience would prepare us for having our own however the reality was quite different and we felt like we needed a bit of help with the behavioural challenges that come with a new puppy in a house hold with partners working full time.
This year we found that we were expecting our first baby. With this in mind, we started to notice certain traits in our beloved puppy which we felt needed addressing. Goose had started to become reactive towards other dogs, people and bikes when on lead walks. He also tended to bark if we had any strangers in or even near the house (a nightmare as we were having a lot of work done on our new house at the time).
Goose initially spent some time at a Doggy Daycare to encourage socialisation and provide him with what we thought was fun and stimulation, hoping that it would tide him out in the evenings and allow him to relax.
Without any rules and similarly untrained dogs at daycare it became apparent that we needed some help as his behaviours persisted and became worse. We needed to see improvement.
We found Justine with a Google search and we are so glad we did!
After preliminary discussions with Justine, it became clear that day-care with masses of other dogs was overwhelming and stressing him out. We were failing to reinforce good playing skills with other dogs.
Justine agreed to help Goose and set on training exercises.
Goose has 1-2-1 training and engages in brain stimulating exercises and engagement training to learn how to become calmer on the lead.
Training has taken time and consistency and is still ongoing, producing positive results in our little Goosey.
We were determined that he be part of the family once the baby arrived and this required him to be calm and less stressed.
Justine set on management in the house including crate training, introducing baby gates, and creating boundaries within which Goose was able to feel more secure.
Over time we have seen such an improvement and our friends and relatives have said the same thing. They often comment he's like a new dog, so much calmer and respectful with the same fun loving personality we know and love.
He is now able to walk down busy roads and enjoys going to dog friendly cafes. He is also a lot calmer at home which was the most important thing to us, massively reducing our stress levels.
Thank you so much to Justine who has become such a big part of our lives not only training our dog to expert levels, but we always look forward to a chat after Goose's sessions.
She has been a huge part in making sure the integration of a new baby to the family ran smoothly and is always just a message away when we have any queries along the way.
We don't know what we would do without her and couldn't recommend her any more highly.
Zesty and Kip
Orly
I contacted Justine after a recommendation from a friend. Whilst I had read a lot of information on training my dog and attended puppy classes early on my partner and I found it hard to pick a method and stick with it. Our lovable, over excited, slightly nervous cockapoo was becoming a lot to handle and we needed guidance. His behaviours, we was struggling with jumping up, mouthing, wanting to chase the children, when playing, his recall, barking when visitors arrived. justine was amazing, she sent us a lot of information and guidance before our meeting and then when she came really took time to understand our puppy and family situation. She provided us help on what to expect from our training and also how to build on it once our pup had mastered that area. Since our first meeting she has checked in regularly and revisited and really helped reassure that what we were doing was working. The difference we have seen in our pup is amazing 🤩 thank you Justine for all your guidance. See you soon!
Jane H
I was recommended to contact Justine by a friend. My daughter recently had her first child, and their Shih Tzu became very stressed and anxious whenever the baby made noise. At one point, the dog even snapped at the baby. Despite following all recommendations for introducing a new baby to a pet, they realized they needed additional help.
After consulting the veterinary surgeon who suggested an animal behaviorist through the vets the behaviorist spent about four hours with the dog and recommended continuing to just play baby noises to him, However, after a couple of weeks with zero improvement in Reggie’s behaviour we contacted Justine.
Justine advised implementing management strategies in the home before Reg, the dog, returned home for safety reasons. This included using a "settle exercise "started getting him used crate training, baby gates put in place in the house, practice brain stimulation exercises. Reg is now doing very well and has even had visits home, and is a lot calmer in the house. We also had to look at his behaviour outside the house, on his walks he could be reactive with traffic. Justine changed his walking equipment to a front D ring harness double end clip lead, and we practiced engagement with him, Justine explained that it was important that he remained calm on his walks so his bucket wasn’t getting full (stacking) we needed him to be calm when we return home to the baby. We have also worked on his behaviour running out in the garden and barking at everything. We have seen big improvements in Reggie’s behaviour, but the training needs to be on going.
Kirsty
I was recommended to contact Justine by an ex colleague as was at breaking point, our living situation had become immensely stressful.
Our staffie had suddenly decided he didn’t like our 5month old baby any more. He had become very anxious we couldn’t let him upstairs anymore as he had become destructive and that’s were he wanted to go so when the baby was downstairs he would high pitch cry, bark and scratch erratically at the living room door. His behaviour escalated to scratching the walls, scratching us, scratching at the hoover, knocking brushes & mops over till finally he started to scratch at the play pen when the baby was in it. I was beyond stressed and would go out nearly all day everyday with the baby to avoid the unbearable stress and upset.
We contacted the vets who wanted to put him on medication for cognitive behaviour which we knew it wasn’t so we contacted another behaviourist but I didn’t like what she was suggesting. Her idea was to put a cage upstairs for the dog and when the baby went up he came down. This wasn’t solving the problem as was still segregating them both and we needed the house to work as one. He also wasn’t crate trained and was being destructive upstairs.
I contacted Justine speaking with her on the phone first for 50minutes she was so helpful and knowledgeable for the first time in months I felt positive. We implemented a few changes then like a complete ban of the dog going upstairs so as not to give mixed messages & she suggested a cage downstairs mainly where we spent time as a family which made more sense which we applied. We booked in for a home visit so Justine could witness the dogs behaviour straight away she could see how anxious he was, she showed us how to break the behaviour before it escalated to the point of no return to stop our boys stress bucket becoming too full by having a collar and small training lead on in the house, by using cues instead of shouting and using his name. We turned under the stairs in to a dog room a safe space for our boy to go & for time out, to chill she told use how to use enrichments like kongs, snuffle mats, rope tug toys for play engagement burn off energy and that he needed some form of exercise daily, and brain stimulus work.
It has been two weeks and we have a much calmer, happier home but most importantly it is stress free for us all. I can’t not believe the difference in our boy. We still have work to do but going from breaking point and thinking of rehoming our boy to him lying calmly even when the baby is being noisy is amazing. I can’t recommend Justine enough she is always on hand for help be it by text or call and has kept in touch for updates giving any pointers required along the way we are so grateful.