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I have absolutely been thrilled with working with Torin!! My 3 year old Pitt/Husky mix has been training with Torin for the past few months and the results so far have been great. He developed fear aggression and reactive behaviors at 2 years old and Torin has helped navigate these behaviors. I myself have learned a lot about dog behavior and how best to handle aggressive and/or reactive behaviors. My dog is visibly better on walks, passing other dogs, and greeting people, so much so that family and friends have commented on our progress! Torin has been so easy to work with and he really listens to what my goals are and is active in achieving these goals of safe interaction with other dogs again. In addition, we have worked on general obedience and tricks, which has just made my dog an overall better listener, confident, and happy pup!
We can't say enough good things about Jamie! She has been an absolute lifesaver for our cockapoo, Koda. From the early puppy stages to helping us navigate some really tough reactive and aggressive behaviors, Jamie has guided us with patience, skill, and so much compassion.
Her training approach is thoughtful, practical, and tailored to both the dog and the humans — we always felt supported and understood, never judged. Thanks to Jamie, Koda is more confident, calmer, and happier — and so are we. We’ve learned how to handle difficult situations with the right tools and mindset, and it’s made a world of difference in our day-to-day life.
If you're looking for a trainer who truly cares, knows her stuff, and will be with you every step of the way, Jamie is the one.
Jamie has been helping us with our 7 year old lab/pit mix who has shown fear aggression towards children in the past. We called them when we were 6 months pregnant. Jamie worked with us during our pregnancy on basic obedience for Jasper to help us when the baby arrived. I was especially grateful that she was there when we made the first introduction between Jasper and my newborn.
I’m so glad that I can call Jamie at the next stage when my baby starts crawling. We have had the baby home for over 2 months now and Jasper has adapted wonderfully. He gives the baby plenty of space but does not seem afraid of her at all. He’s also easier to walk and much better at settling down in his bed on command. Thank you!!!
We can’t thank Jenna enough for the work that she did with our dog and us. She was knowledgeable, compassionate, and really took the time to answer our questions and educate us on how to work better with our dog. Thanks to her we saw massive improvements with our dogs, reactivity, separation issues, and overall anxiety. He is a much happier pup today and we have her to think for a lot of that! I would absolutely recommend her to anyone looking for help.
Five Stars – Amazing Training for Anxious Frenchies!
Jamie at Colonial Dog Training has been incredible in helping my Frenchies, Cooper and Maggie. They both struggle with anxiety, which has led to some aggression between them, and Jamie’s expertise has made a huge difference.
From the start, Jamie provided clear, practical strategies tailored to their needs. We’ve already seen so much progress, and I feel more confident handling their behavior. If you have a dog with anxiety or behavioral challenges, I highly recommend Colonial Dog Training!
Jamie has been an absolute lifesaver!! I found Colonial after adopting Poppy, my 2-year-old poodle/collie mix (lord help me), who was an absolute terror of uncontrolled energy and excitement when I got her. Everything we’ve done with Jamie has worked like a charm!! In 4 short months of working together, Poppy has transformed before my eyes into a well-behaved girl who gets compliments from others around the apartment complex about how good she is. It’s a lot of work, but knowing that it was a flat fee for as much training as we needed what exactly what I needed to put my mind at ease as a new dog owner - I love that I can just work with Jamie now on whatever issues we’re tackling without having to worry about paying more per session. I truly can’t believe the progress we’ve made and cannot recommend Jamie and Colonial enough! Attaching a photo from our last appointment to prove how much we love our training sessions!!
Our dog who has always been stubborn started showing sign of aggression with our newborn. We quickly reached out to Colonial training and they were able to get our first session booked within a week. Not only has Jamie addressed our biggest concern of having the dog and baby peacefully cohabitate together but she has also helped us better control our dog on walks, confronting triggers, and helping our dog relax in the process. She has a great method of using both negative but mostly positive reinforcement to get results and in turn helping us keep up with the training techniques. We are so grateful for her help and have already recommended colonial dog training and Jamie to our friends in similar situations.
Finding trainer Jamie was the best thing to happen to me since getting Chloe, my now 5-month-old German shepherd mix, which I rescued on a whim... when I say "whim," I attended an adoption event to "look" and left with a puppy, having only purchased a dog leash I had left at home.
This was the most uncharacteristic thing I've ever done. I'm not spontaneous. I'm a planner and a researcher both professionally and in nature... but that face, those puppy dog eyes, and wow! She's so calm (false: she was exhausted from adoption day). I went with it, knowing only that I had the means and would give this dog every bit of love I had.
Raising a puppy on my own, I quickly realized that I could use support. I needed someone with the expertise to answer my many questions, interpret behavior, educate me on milestones, and physically stand beside me and train me so I could, in turn, train my dog.
When I first met Jamie at the consult, it was clear that she understands dogs. She has studied dog training and has seven years of professional experience. Her confidence instantly put my nerves at ease. I was impressed with her ability to effortlessly capture and hold the attention of my adorable but distractible 3.5-month-old puppy, Chloe.
Towards the end of the consult, she offered a demo of one of the commands we would be working on. Clo went off script and started chewing on a forbidden item; Jamie instantly dropped to her level and, on her first attempt, without even touching her, got my dog to stop and redirect. How?! Who is this woman? I was sold.
Session after session, it became clear that Jamie was born to work with dogs and yet is equally skilled at teaching humans. She understands the "why" behind each instruction- from why we teach a command to even the quickest, most minor corrections. She almost always has the answers to my questions; when she doesn't, she will find them and proactively follow up. Outside of sessions, Jamie is helpful and generous with her time- always there for guidance and to offer her expertise without judgment.
Jamie deeply cares about Chloe and is committed to seeing her clients progress- both in training skills and owner/dog bonding. I'm thrilled with how Chloe has responded to our training. I know our lessons with Jamie will pay off, and she'll be an important person in our lives forever!
Do not book with them. The training was borderline abuse. The way she handled my dog was not helpful AT ALL. After have more n in owlets and experience with a great training, I highly RECOMMEND STAY AWAY. She stopped answering and showing up after a few sessions. Took the money and never followed up and showed up. Do NOT BOOK WITH THEM
Hello. I am more than happy to elaborate. I contacted Colonial Dog training a couple of years ago to do private training with my dog where the trainer would meet at my apartment in the center of Boston. The trainer contacted me a few days before training and asked me to pay for her parking in Boston since it is expensive. I thought that was incredibly inappropriate and unprofessional. For one, I was already paying a premium for at home private training and do not think it is the client's responsibility to cover parking nor is it mentioned anywhere on the website that I could see. Furthermore if the trainer cannot afford parking then possibly they should be paid better by the owner or use public transportation to get to work like many of us in Boston do. I have used 2 other private trainers from other businesses that have come to my apartment and never have I been asked to cover parking costs. Thus I left one star as I found my experience with the trainer to be unprofessional.
Reply from Colonial Dog Training
2024.02.29
Hi Isabella - we are not sure who you are and why a negative review was left.
Took 5 weeks to schedule a first appointment and then they failed to show up and were impossible to get on the phone, instead emailing me to ask if I wanted to wait another month
Reply from Colonial Dog Training
2024.02.29
Hi Melissa,
As we discussed a confirmation email would be sent upon booking the consultation, we never got your reply agreeing to the date so nothing was put on the schedule, nor a confirmation sent. We are extremely responsive whether it is over the phone or via email. I responded to you right away and called you as well.
We are very busy and down to only two trainers which is why it takes a while to schedule with us. We are always upfront about that.
I apologize again for the confusion and not getting the email. We wish you all the best in your dog training endeavors.
As we discussed a confirmation email would be sent upon booking the consultation, we never got your reply agreeing to the date so nothing was put on the schedule, nor a confirmation sent. We are extremely responsive whether it is over the phone or via email. I responded to you right away and called you as well.
We are very busy and down to only two trainers which is why it takes a while to schedule with us. We are always upfront about that.
I apologize again for the confusion and not getting the email. We wish you all the best in your dog training endeavors.
Maggie Mader is an absolute to joy to work with. From the first time I contacted her she got back to me quickly, answered all my questions, informed me of the process, and got us scheduled for a first appointment. From the first lesson with Maggie I saw immediate improvement in Tundra. Each lesson had a new focus and was individually tailored to Tundra and I’s needs. Tundra came to me with resource guarding and I had tried everything I could think of and research and nothing worked until I started working with Maggie. Given that Tundra is a husky, I never thought I could teach her recall or to trust her off leash as huskies are notorious for running off and not coming back, however with the skills Maggie has taught us, Tundra was safely able to be recalled after slipping out of her collar, something I never thought I’d be able to say about a husky after growing up with two others. Maggie was so fantastic to work with the first time around with Tundra, that it was a no brainer to use her again with our newest puppy, Denali. After just one lesson, Denali has learned skills that I tried for months on my own to teach him in just an hour with Maggie. I do not know how she does it, but Maggie is truly magical in her way around dogs and I would recommend her to anyone. Not only is she fantastic with the pups and treats them like her own, she is also incredibly personable, funny, kind, easy and comfortable to be around, quick to respond, and always available to answer questions even if it is months away from the last time you have worked with or talked to her. I could not ask for a better trainer and would recommend her without hesitation to anyone looking for a dog trainer.
Reply from Colonial Dog Training
2024.02.29
Thank you so much for your review!
When we first got Elijah, he was so sick for several months. After he was better, he was a big boy at 7 months, and very hard to control because he was too sick to really train well. I learned about Colonial Dog Training, and Maggie from a co worker. From running around, and not listening at all to being outside OFF LEASH, Maggie really helped us get to a good place with him. I didn’t see how it would be possible, but it happened!
Maggie helped me get to live a dream I always had…to walk my dog down the street safely, and so we both could have a good time! I can’t say how much I recommend this company, and this trainer!
Reply from Colonial Dog Training
2024.02.29
Thank you so much, Marie!
Maggie worked with our 1 year old Vizsla and completely blew us out of the water with how impactful her work was! We went into training with a wild, chaotically energetic puppy, and felt like we came out with an incredibly well trained dog, and it legitimately took only three lessons. While previously we had to worry about and watch Piper at basically all times, now she stays on her place quietly when asked, walks in a perfect heel on leash, doesn't jump on counters or people, lies down in the middle of playing with another dog when asked, and interacts beautifully with all dogs, people, and kids! The biggest change was apparent at work - after training, people stopped by my desk almost daily to say something along the lines of "wow, Piper has calmed down so much!" Piper is capable of hanging out quietly and calmly for an entire workday, which has changed the game for us. We know this is because of Maggie's awesome training (of both Piper and us!), and it's really made having a dog totally enjoyable (and never stressful). We tell anyone we know that spending the money to train with Maggie is the best money you'll ever spend on a dog.
Reply from Colonial Dog Training
2024.02.29
Thank you, Cole!
Maggie is fantastic! We have a feisty and precocious golden retriever puppy that was somewhat of a handful. Within the first few weeks Maggie had him trained in going to ‘place’ and healing while walking and not pulling on his leash. He is great off-leash and his recall is now excellent! The training she provided has made all the difference and we now have a well-behaved, welcome addition to our family!
Reply from Colonial Dog Training
2024.02.29
Thank you so much, we appreciate it!
