Dog Training in the san francisco bay area
At Back to Balance Canine (B2BK9) we offer reward-based balanced training in the San Francisco Bay Area, emphasizing a dog’s state of mind. We focus on appropriate dog-to-dog interactions and clear communication in owner-dog relationships, eliminating unwanted behaviors in the process.
My labrador retriever, Forest (1 yr 3 months at the time), was in a 6-week board and train program primarily working with Jensen. Before the board and train, Forest really struggled with overexcitement, leash-pulling, unreliable recall, and needed more socialization in different settings. I was also personally losing a lot of confidence in my ability to continue training him myself as my work schedule became more stressful and time-consuming.I was referred to B2BK9 and felt their reward-based balanced approach, emphasis on state-of-mind, and clear communication would be most effective to help my dog and I become a better team.Results: I've now had him home for a month since the board and train, and our quality of life together has drastically improved! He's far more composed (but still has his Forest personality), I am able to confidently take him with me to new places, walk away to grab my drink at a coffee shop while he holds a down-stay, and am able to let him play fetch at neighborhood parks without concern that he's going to run after dogs he sees in a distance (e-collar is an amazing tool.)I received regular updates on how Forest was doing with detailed breakdowns of the skills hes learned. I really appreciated the private sessions with Jensen to help transfer the knowledge to me to continue proofing the skills that he learned while in boarding as well. It was difficult to have him away for 6-weeks and he did have some scratches from rough play with other dogs but this was so worth it for us! Highly recommend Jensen, Dallas, and B2BK9 team. Incredible trainers and they take their craft seriously and professionally!
Dallas and the team - Adrian and Jensen - are awesome. These ladies are the most talented dog trainers i have worked with to date. I have a German shepherd who had a beginning of bad socialization and training. They armed me with tools and techniques to better my dog. I watched them work some of their dogs as well and i haven't ever seen dogs that young perform at such a high level. Props ladies your the best.
My 8 month old male Labrador Retriever Riley just finished a 6 week training program at Back to Balance. The training for Riley was excellent and I strongly recommend Back to Balance.Riley's trainer worked with our family to ensure that we would continue his training at home. Riley is a well trained dog!
Had a great experience with B2BK9. I wish we had come here earlier. We are getting so much more enjoyment with our dog now that we are communicating more effectively. Dallas and the team are excellent!
Dallas and her team changed our home life! We have a very smart and driven Australian cattle dog and also a young Labrador and so we got to see how board and train benefited both the adult that needed behavior modification and the puppy that needs regular obedience. Both our dogs now know the same commands and follow the same rules - and regularly use their at home treadmill as well as their place boards. We have tools for handling our older dog who used to run at the front door barking at full speed and actually can stop his behavior. We have tried many trainers and nothing worked before. Our dogs also love their trainers- we were worried it was too strict - but the dogs really like the structure and discipline to know what rules to follow. Would 100% recommend them if you want to have a well behaved dog- and you are willing to do the work to reinforce what the dog learned.
If anyone is looking to get their puppy or dog trained, you cannot find a better boarding school than this.I was super nervous and worried about leaving my dog with the school for 4 weeks during summer time, but I think 4 weeks is a necessary time for the dog to be comfortable with the trainer.Initially, I had assumed that Dallas would take care of my dog in her facility in Los Gatos, but I was informed last minute that Moriah got assigned to train Amelia. While it surprised me a bit, I had to trust Dallas on making that call and I'm glad I did.Moriah took an excellent care of Amelia!!! When Moriah sent me the first set of training videos, all my worries went away and I was really proud of Amelia for doing so well.Ok, so it's not cheap, but this is the time you get what you paid for in a positive way. My only regret is not getting Amelia trained with B2BK9 sooner and went with other personal trainers in the past.Lastly, Madison was friendly and patient when responding to all my questions.I cannot recommend highly enough of Dallas and her team at Back to Balance Canine.Pictures of Moriah and Amelia below.
This facility is the best! The trainers are professional and their work ethic beyond excellent. I am so grateful to everyone at B2BK9 and especially our trainer Chelsea. She taught us so much and we are thrilled with the progress of our 1 year old Labrador Jackson. If you’re looking for training and to better your communication and relationship with your dog, I highly recommend Dallas and her training crew at B2BK9. The best!!!
Where do we even begin?? Sending our dog to board and train at Back to Balance was the BEST choice we've made, only after marriage and Lasik :)We adopted our pitbull/boxer mix Pia in 2019 and hired a private trainer shortly after to help with obedience and leash pulling. While it worked some, Pia started to become reactive and aggressive towards other dogs and strangers. We kept at it for a couple years but things just got worse. She was becoming unmanageable and it was stressful to take her on walks, have friends over, etc. In 2022 we decided to look for a board and train program for Pia. At 4 yo, we needed professionals to help us press the reset button. We did a lot of research and took our time deciding on a program. Ultimately B2B won us over - Dallas and her team were clearly experts, they were personable and kind, and helped us understand Pia's behavior. Although it was more expensive than some of the other programs we looked at, we felt it was the right fit immediately and sent the deposit.Chelsea was our main trainer and WOW, she is amazing. She was so patient with Pia, she sent us so many great videos of her progress and when it was time for our lessons with Pia, she did a terrific job with us too. It felt so good knowing Pia was in such good hands and the progress she was making was evident at our very first lesson.Pia has been home for 2 weeks now and we are over the moon to have our sweet pup back home. She's still her derpy sweet self, but in all other terms she's a changed dog. She is happier, calmer, obedient and so much more attuned to us. We still can't quite believe it's real. While she won't be a dog who will get along with all dogs, we have such a better handle on her and feel comfortable and confident taking her on walks. And, never did we think we would be able to walk Pia off leash but she is doing so well, we're nearly there!!We are beyond grateful to Chelsea and the rest of the team at B2B. Y'all are the best!! Thank you!!
Our 1-1/2yr old labradoodle did a board and train recently and we are very pleased with the care and training provided by Dallas, Chelsea and Jensen. Our Henry requires daily medication and careful monitoring of his stress and the team provided frequent updates so we did not worry. They tailored the training to best address Henry's needs and challenges. You can see how they get to know your dog specifically and it was great to see how happy Henry was during the training sessions. They are also very good at training the owners and not only teach you the how but also the why. We love training with Henry and appreciate everyone at Back to Balance Canine 😁
The most important thing I can share here is this.... Anyone looking to better understand how to communicate and grow their relationship with their dog, Take the time to get to know Dallas and her amazing team, You wont regret it.Back to Balance DOES NOT apply a one size fits all program(like some of the others I researched), they actually make the effort to understand your specific challenges and then that's where the real magic happens.If I am being honest, I don't know exactly what they do, or even how they do it, but I know if I had not of found them I would be screwed. Thank You, Thank you, Thank you!
We have a 9 month old high energy lab. With two small kids at home we struggled with training him and so we looked for intensive training help. B2BK9 board and train program was the perfect option for us because they cater the program to each dog’s personality to see what motivates them…then they set up training sessions with us to transfer the trained behavior to us. We had our pup on the weekends which allowed us to practice what we learned but then could bring him back for highly regimented training to enforce those newly learned behaviors. We could see drastic improvements week by week. We still need to practice with him and keep structure so that he is well behaved but we now have the skills to teach him.Additionally the trainers, especially Chelsea, truly care about the dogs they care for. They constantly provide feedback with photos and videos on how our dog was doing. We felt super comfortable dropping him off every week and he was always happy when we arrived.Thanks guys!
We’re so appreciative of everyone at B2BK9, we’ve been so happy with the progress that Remy made (and of course, that we make since, I’m sure we’re much harder to train than the dogs are.) I’ve been so impressed with the work ethic of the trainers and the work ethic that they expect from the dogs. We’ve been trying to hold up our end of the bargain as well.Thank you for helping to take care of our puppy. Originally she went there because she had spent a couple of days there before we adopted her (as a people reactive dog), she’s stayed there because of the professionalism and caring nature of all the staff, and how obvious it is that the dogs are important… maybe even more important than the people 😀. Everyone we’ve met has earned our complete trust and respect, and we’re very happy to know you all.Looking forward to attending future events for graduates, and I know that Remy is as well.
Dallas, Chelsea and the entire Back to Balance Canine crew truly helped transform my experience as a dog owner, and most importantly, my relationship with my dog. As a first time dog owner, there was so much I didn’t know and many unanticipated obstacles I quickly struggled to face. The team at B2BK9 helped teach me how to navigate these challenges with realistic and sustainable methods that allowed me to gain incredible channels of communication and a healthy, trusting relationship with my dog. I went from not being able to take my dog on a calm walk for more than a block from my house to being able to take her with me out to dinners, sporting events, and even off leash beach and park adventures!We were able to achieve this through private lessons and a 4 week immersion program. In the program she was able to not only learn basic obedience, appropriate dog to dog behavior in pack settings, and the ability to quickly switch to a calm state of mind, but she also was taken on personalized outings to help with the specific challenges my dog was facing.This was all made possible because of B2BK9’s philosophy and values that you can’t get anywhere else. The structured and disciplined, yet fun and engaging approach that they’ve taught me to embrace has truly allowed me to enjoy many freedoms with my dog I never thought possible!
Dallas, Chelsea, and their dogs at B2BK9 are awesome!! Our dog River just completed a 6 week immersion with them, and came out of it super well-socialized with other dogs, confident in new situations, and with super reliable “out” and recall commands and an awesome “off switch”. As owners, we feel as though we are equipped to maintain his level of training, handle new situations with him, and trust him and his training. This weekend, we attended our first post-pandemic party with a few dozen strangers, a handful of babies, and two unfamiliar dogs. We leaned on his chill, recall and out training a fair bit, but were also able to trust him to play nicely with dogs roughly 1/5th his size.We can’t recommend Dallas and team enough, and look forward to boarding River and going to pack days with B2BK9!
Dallas and Back to Balance Canine are nothing short of awesome!! They put so much effort into each dog and do such an amazing job training them. All 3 of my dogs currently attend pack days and have each gone through a board and train program. The board and train programs have been amazing at really working on problem behaviors and providing great basics to set the dogs up for a successful future. In the last 7 months since our first board and train program, I've already recommended Back to Balance to a handful of friends with dogs looking for training for a wide variety of issues/purposes and will continue to do so!! They are the best :]
We did four private lessons with Dallas for our pittie, Lucy, and the progress that Lucy made in that time was amazing. Dallas really helped us understand Lucy’s behavior and learn how to manage her reactivity towards other dogs.
Teal Mackintosh
We did an online training with Dallas during the covid SIP. Her passion for dogs really shines through and the training was excellent. We made huge progress in five weeks and we look forward to more training in person, although online worked surprisingly well.
Eric Johnsen
I met Dallas at a training workshop and I’ve been following her work since then. She is a very talented trainer and I would recommend her to anyone looking to rehabilitate their dog.