Tails-A Wagging

Angie and her staff are over the top helpful at training you and your dog! I have taken 4 different classes at Tails and could be more happy with the results. Angie is more than happy to take the time required to answer any questions you might have regarding training for you and your dog! Even if your not taking a class she will make time to help you and you dog! My dog and I would be a wreck if we didn’t find Tails A Waggin…
Thank you Angie and staff…

The Tails-​A-​Wagging team is amazing! We have an incredible dog today thanks to all the dedicated daycare and puppy training our dog received.

This place will be good for some, and not so good for others. I fell into the latter category. The management style is a bit too OCD for me. Every time we picked up our dog we would get a on 20-​minute lecture about his behavior and what we needed to do to improve it. All this while in front of other dog parents. The whole scene was a bit demeaning and a little too uptight.

We have three dogs that go to Tails a Wagging every week. Chloe, at age 4, is the oldest so we have been a part of this family for several years now. Angi and her team have helped us through all the joys of puppyhood and beyond. One of our pups, Fiona, came from tragic circumstances and had much to overcome. Once a shy and frightened pup, she is now a happy, confident dog. All thanks to the support and positive training of Angi and her team.
The classes are fun and instructive; the trainers are skilled at teaching the humans how to be the best dog owners they can be.
In addition, Tails provides free classes to new pup owners so that the new families get a positive start.
Lastly, in our four years going to Tails we have had several family emergencies and without fail Angi has stepped in and helped with Chloe, Fiona, and Madeline.
Three paws up.

We love our new rescued Carly Girl, but we had been not so loving the demand barking and the reactive jumping, pulling, and turning while on walks. She seemed scared of almost everything and everyone unless she was in our home in our laps. If you can relate at all to this, please read on.
Not knowing what to do, we knew this called for professional help. We first did an In Home Evaluation with Chelsea, who was most helpful and encouraging. That told that Tails is well-​qualified for working with Carly and us for socializing and training.
We began working on practices given us by Chelsea at home and enrolled her in Doggie Day Care. At first, even this was too hard for her. She could not even walk to and through the front door of Tails without a huge display of the crazies. thanks to owner Angi’s determination to have it work for Carly, Carly can now not only arrive politely, but be in DDC and Love playing with her furry friends and learning good manners from the trainers. This would not have been possible had it not been for Angi being willing to think outside the box and see Carly as a little Rock Star instead of terrier terrorist and develop a plan that worked for all concerned.
Now she comes home from DDC a happy and well exercised doggie. Soon she will be able to be in her first class and begin basic training. We are so pleased. She is learning, and so are we.
Thank you so very much to Angi and her great staff for being Doggie Gurus. And thank you so much to Carly’s four-​legged classmates who have assisted their trainers in teaching Carly to play fairly and listen to and look at the teacher always.
You are all loved and appreciated by us.
Dee, Ben, and Carly Andrews

I was a customer of TAW for just over 2 years. I have attended many classes, and my dogs were in daycare 3 — 5 days a week.
TAW is a good environment for dogs, if your dog is able to handle the environment, that is. If your dog can’t handle a highly stimulating environment where too many dogs are supervised by too few people, you will be deemed to have a «troubled» dog.
First big thing to watch out for with TAW: All «troubled» dogs receive the exact same plan and homework (raise your hand if you’ve heard the words «50 settles a day» so many times it makes your head pound). When this plan fails, TAW management blames the customer for «not doing the work.» Well, I can tell you first hand that I have done the plan more times than I care to count and it’s mildly effective. In fact, my dogs worsened while attending TAW. I feel awful because I kept pushing them into a situation they were not able to handle (nor should they be expected to!), but I relied on the knowledge of the «expert».
The second big thing to watch out for is your personal feelings of frustration — I assure you that you are not alone! Management appears unaware that customers are paying for convenience. Instead, a lot of us end up feeling like we are paying for inconvenience, shame, guilt, and stress. Furthermore, if a customer challenges the opinion and policies of TAW management… look out, you will be met with an emotionally fueled, argumentative response — this totally shuts conversations right down and leaves everyone feeling like they have failed. I have also noted on many occasions that the staff seem unhappy in general, almost afraid to engage in conversation with customers. It is odd to me because these are the people taking care of our beloved pets everyday and it would be nice to see some enthusiasm! I suspect the staff aren’t treated well as the turnover is high and outdated management methodology is applied.
The last thing to watch out for are the dogs who are granted access to TAW daycare. In the past, TAW only granted admittance to the crème de la crème, but as reputation continues to tank, so does the quality of dog. TAW once had a long wait list and now, they can’t keep their daycare full. I suspect for financial reasons, admittance requirements are slipping.
As customers, we didn’t feel valued, heard, or respected. My husband did the drop offs and pick ups and he came to dread and resent even walking through the doors. We know a lot of other TAW customers and the conversation is always the same: TAW is not worth the money. I wish more would communicate this with TAW management, but my guess is they do not feel confident that the feedback will be received professionally and they’ll end up being kicked out.
While I’m not a fan of the daycare services, I always highly recommend the TAW classes — especially Puppy Preschool as it is an off leash positive rewards puppy social class that passes on really good information to help you raise a confident dog. Bonus: It’s free!
Since leaving TAW, we have been working hard with our dogs and no longer feel like we are pushing water uphill. I am happy to say that our dogs are much more balanced 6 months later. We have been working with Amber Todd of
. She took the time to really understand my dogs and put together a plan (never once mentioned the word «settle» — *fist pump*) that has been 100% successful. I highly recommend Amber’s services and I promise you won’t have feelings of shame, failure, or guilt.

Michael The Dog Guy at TAW is amazing. He’s thoughtful and really knows what he’s talking about when it comes to how to understand and train your dog. I highly recommend TAW for daycare, training, and especially Michael.

I found the customer service to be 100% MISS. Trail Dogs is the far better solution — they pick-​up your dog and take them on a group hike. Door to door service from 9:30am — 2pm and your is outside all day.
First we were interrogated about our puppy who didn’t sit 50 of 50 times when asked. Second, we were able to watch our beloved dog on the TV where he literally just sat in a small room with other dogs for the whole day.
The reason for the one star review is that Angi, the owner, unexpectedly kicked out dog out of daycare the week my wife was hospitalized for pre-​term labor. In the midst of a family crisis, we were let down. Angi’s rationale was that it was our dog’s 6 month birthday and therefore he couldn’t be unnuetered in doggie daycare. That was 4 months ago and our dog has not yet had any issues with other dogs and has been in multiple group hike services.

Yes, TAW has some good employees and has an overall clean facility, but I do think the customer service is either HIT or MISS. Very inconsistent. I felt very judged by one of the employees that worked there (not Angi). The staff and I spoke over the phone regarding bringing my puppy to their kindergarten class and she was not excited. She scolded me for having adopted a dog that was not at least 10 weeks. I called to gain advice and she specifically told me that «if it was really in the best interest of the dog, the puppy should have stayed with his mother until then.» I was obviously calling to help our new dog. She then asked me why I wanted to adopt a dog so young… if the dog looked unhealthy… and so on. She didn’t leave much room for me to comment or ask more questions. At the end of the conversation, I told her that I was really looking forward to signing our dog up for some classes and she didn’t say anything except, «Make sure you read our pamphlet online.» She didn’t acknowledge my efforts to help our dog. No «thanks for calling» or «you’re welcome» or «give us a call back if you have any more questions.» I don’t need affirmation but I also do not feel the need to be judged within our first conversation. Overall, that TAW employee/​experience was unwelcoming and exuded judgement.

We have been taking our mini australian shepherd, Gypsy, to Tails-​a-​Wagging for a little over two months. She was extremely shy and pretty fearful of other dogs when she first started puppy kindergarten but with the help of Angi, Chelsea, Michael, and Lizzie (to name a few –there are many more helping when she’s at daycare whom I have not personally met!) our little fluffnstuff has come out of her shell! Gypsy just graduated from puppy kindergarten and is enrolled in puppy prep –which we are getting very excited for. She also goes to daycare one day a week and has attended several doggy socials.
I think one of the most important reasons why you should train your puppy (or dog) with TAW as opposed to just at home is that you and your puppy will learn to respond to each other in an environment where there are other dogs and people serving as distractions, all while being safe with trainers and other responsible dog owners. It’s definitely a secure environment that mimics the «real world» more so than your backyard or living room.
Also, addressing the waitlist: It is totally worth the wait. Prior to Gypsy’s first visit to daycare, I just periodically checked the TAW Facebook page and when they posted there was an opening I called and got her in. Now she can go whenever –Angi is great about getting us in. And the staff have never treated my husband, dog, or I with anything but the upmost respect.
PS I love the webcams. It’s nice being able to check on your pup from the office and see that s/​he is being treated well and having fun with her/​his classmates!

I tried another doggy day care, now out of business, and found my way to Tails four years ago. Best thing I ever did for my dogs! I love the trainers and have learned so much over the years. They worked exceedingly hard with my reactive dog and have never given up on him. Angi takes the training of her staff seriously and I recommend them to everyone I know.

I really have nothing bad to say about Tails A Wagging. I thoroughly read the review below by the unhappy person and have to say I’ve not had the same experience at all, and we’ve been with Tails for 5 months now.
I’ve found them to be very responsive to phonecalls/​emails. I’ve never been rushed or ignored.
Angi (the owner) has been nothing but kind, helpful and is full of great information. She has never talked down to me, and instead, has more than gone out of her way to help me. She is incredibly good at what she does. I’ve never heard her mistreat, talk down to, or berate a fellow classmate.
Michael teaches the classes we’ve been going to and is also very skilled at what he does. He knows dogs and I’m constantly surprised at how easily he gets and holds a dog’s attention.
Both Angi and Michael say the same thing almost every time we go to class or have a discussion: CALL OR EMAIL ME if you need help or are having problems.
I really appreciate their free puppy socialization classes. We learned so much about our dog and it set the tone for starting out right. I encourage anyone with a new puppy to get the dog into the classes ASAP. And they’re free, so you’ve got nothing to lose.
We have since moved on to obedience class and I have to say that just about anyone who takes their dog to class, does the homework and practices, will have a wonderful pet in the end. These people know and understand dogs. I would recommend them to anyone, and in fact we started at Tails after 2 different neighbors saw our new puppy and the first thing they told us was — call Tails A Wagging. I’m so glad we did.

There are a lot of good things about Tails-​A-​Wagging. They have a large day care facility and offer a wide variety of training classes plus Sunday «doggie socials», all of which are quite helpful for socializing and training your dog. However, the negatives outweigh the positives for me and for an increasingly large number of former patrons who have left for more friendly pastures. They emphasize that «All of our teaching methods are based on positive reinforcement». Unfortunately, that statement applies only to the dogs, not the humans (and teaching the humans is really more important that teaching the dogs). The owner of this place is really full of herself. She, and one or two of her senior staff, tend to treat their human customers like ten year old children, even if they are old enough to be their parents. If she doesn’t like you (or your dog) she will constantly talk down to you. Berating a customer in front of other customers is the height of unprofessionalism, and she did this several times to me and my wife. She will also berate her competitors. The rules for acceptable dog behavior are also rather unrealistic. Basically, to be acceptable for doggie day care, your dog better not have too much energy, be a little immature or have special needs. If your dog happens to be a herder you better hope they don’t do any herding. That’s against the rules. Tell that to a shepherd! They seem to want dogs that are easy to care for. That’s understandable, because most of the staff that runs day care are uncertified and very young and inexperienced. Back to the positives, their classes are in general very good; however, all of the classes we have attended were taught by contractors who teach all over the area and are not part of the actual staff of Tails-​A-​Wagging. We now go to another place, where the daycare is handled by adults. Our current place loves our dog and treats us with great respect. I’ll never set foot on Tails-​A-​Wagging again.

We absolutely love Tails. We have taken their obedience classes with Herman, our Berner; gone to Doggie Socials on Sundays; and he attends daycare at least once a week. The training is all positive reinforcement-​based and the staff is knowledgeable and caring. They have helped us with all facets of Herman’s life. We recommend Tails to everyone with a dog!

Fantastic organization! They are very willing to help and have great customer service. They help educate owners and help you understand how to communicate with your dog. Wonderful environment — you and your dog will be so happy there!