Bark Busters Reviews and Customer Testimonials

Cosmo is a fun loving little boy and we like to encourage his curiosity and playful nature, so we didn't want an oppressive training which would knock the stuffing out of him. As he is a SBT, however, it is important for us to be in control as sadly SBTs have a poor and unjust reputation. Alex explained a few simple techniques and taught us the way to make Cosmo see us as in charge and not himself!!! This was a break through and something which made complete sense to us. This allowed us to take the training on board easily and it felt intuitive once we started. Alex himself is a star, he spent time understanding Cosmo and delivered training which he thought Cosmo would understand and respond to. It didn't feel like it was "one training fits all". After only 2 visits we and Alex feel Cosmo has come on leaps and bounds but let's admit it now, it's John and I who have come on leaps and bounds really. We are now the pack leaders Cosmo needs so he can enjoy life understanding John and I are in control. I wonder if it will work on John too :o

We did really thought we tried it all, but after a sleepless thundery night with the dog jumping on the bed scratching us etc I decided to e-mail Barkbusters. We'd never get rid of our dog, but we definitely needed help with his fear of noises. Our Border Collie Darcy is now 11 years old and over recent years developed fears of fireworks and thunder. He always had a hate for noise, as when he was a pup he had to deal with refurbishing works a couple of houses down, which probably progressed over the years to this. I did try the famous noise desensitizing, but our dog seemed to know it was fake. I thought I was going mad, but Jo confirmed I wasn't. Being a Border Collie he is too smart for his own good in a way and indeed knows fully well it isn't real and therefore doesn't feel the same threat. Hence a cd becomes useless, instead we got the advice of using something else that triggers him to train him. Eg the hoover, the one thing all dogs appear to hate. He expressed his fear differently (barking, trying to nip it), but in the end it's fear. We tried DAP before but didn't appear to get the result the product claimed we would have. Turns out the only thing we did right with it was plug it in. What is needed together with the product is someone that helps with how to use it all round to get that success. We created him a safe space as advised by Jo around the Dap diffuser, leave his treats in there every night and noticed this area is now his own chosen safe place. He retreats to this area when he hears a bang and we won't see him till he is ready to return. We put on his thunderjacket everyday as well and this also appears to have a calming effect on him. Again it is a tool that only works if you know how, which we now know. :) The dog needs to associate it as "wonderful" first, not as "I am terrified and now I am dealing with my owner as well trying to put something I don't know on me!" T-touch was explained to us as well and this really calms him down. Similar to a massage or meditation with humans. I don't think we're out of the woods yet (we were told honestly there are no quick fixes), but we are definitely on our way. Still not looking forward to bonfire night, but I think we will actually cope better than other years. Day by day, step by step we'll get there.

A very constructive lesson. Sharon put us at ease straight away. She gave some insure into Hattie's behaviour and how it can be managed and modified. We are seeing some early results and hope to progress. Knowing that Sharon is there when ever we need input is very reassuring.

Thought Neil was very knowledgeable - too early for anything else!

The training was well explained and demonstrated and Ozzy responded well.

Chloe was a rescue dog, 9 years old, with no history and a lot of problems. She was testing boundaries, jumping all over the place, hated other dogs and suffered from separation anxiety. My partner and I were at a loss of what to do - we adored her but her behaviour was very challenging. Just taking her for a walk was giving me a stress headache. Alex really helped. He showed us techniques for calming her down (90% improvement in the home!) and for when we were out walking her. She really is a better behaved, happier dog. I don't think we are ever going to completely resolve her fear of other dogs (I hate to think what happened in the past to her) but because I can control her, understand the signs and feel an awful lot calmer after working with Alex, walking her is nearly a stress free experience.

Fantastic! Couldn't believe how well and quickly Oscar responded to the training and hopefully he will continue to progress. Thank you so much

Training benson today was absolutely brilliant, Kevin explained and showed everything to us thoroughly. After only a few hours we had amazing results without any physical contact at all. We started with a very dominant dog who was constantly trying to be the leader of the pack and have finished with a calm submissive dog that's following commands that he never did before. Very, very happy and looking forward to the future with our dog. Worth every penny.

Lee was with us for a few hours and in that time i learnt what had been the trigger for my dogs nervous aggression and in that time started to work on methods to start to take control back and make her feel less nervous. i am on week one of the initial training and i am very hopeful as i have already notice a change in her behaviour i think it will be a while until she is totally happy with strangers but am confident Lee will help us make her into a happier dog who is a pleasure to walk.

"Alex, showed great empathy with our lively 5 month old setter puppy Tess; he showed us how to cure her jumping up and how to get her to walk quietly on her lead. She's now a much calmer puppy, thanks Alex!"

Flo is a two year old Puggle who was barking and jumping up at anyone who came in the house, barking at the window and every time someone knocked on the door. She also barked and nipped occasionally when me or my family were leaving the house without her. She couldn't be off the lead on the park because she chased bikes and people walking fast/jogging. Alex has been twice so far and spent a couple of hours with Flo, me & my family and explained to us what the problem was a why she was acting this way. Alex gave us a few manageable techniques to use with her to get her out of these habits. He explained them really well so we understood why we were doing what we were doing, showed us each thing a couple of times and then watched us do it. He wrote down a full guide for us before he left and told us what the most important things were. Alex was great with Flo (he clearly loves dogs!) and she responded to him really well which gave me confidence to try what he was doing. The best part about Alex coming out to see us was that he could see what the problems were and as he understands dogs so well he could tell us why she was like this, we got to the root of the problem and are now trying to change her behaviour so she is better behaved in general! Since Alex first came 4 weeks ago Flo has been much calmer from day one! I feel more confident and in control of her. She has not completely stopped barking at the window or the door yet but I think she will get there soon and it hasn't been that hard to follow Alex's instructions and get her to where she is now. I am really glad I called Alex, I feel happier, I think Flo is happier and her problems would have only gotten worse and now they are getting better each day and I know how to control her and teach her what she is and isn't allowed to do. Thanks Alex! I would recommend you to anyone having problems with their dogs.

We were experiencing difficulties when walking Maxi because of her aggression toward other dogs. In almost every other way she was a perfect dog but as walking and exercise are such an inherent part of dog ownership this was becoming a big issue. We contacted Alex Fraser through the Bark Busters website and arranged for him to come and assess Maxi. Within the first few minutes of the meeting Alex was already working with Maxi and getting results. The technique of growling at your dog, a little odd at first, has had a phenomenal effect. Maxi now walks to heel, using the special chain and lead we purchased and is much improved when the post man comes to deliver. The concern with her behaviour with other dogs was treated head on and Alex has taught us to reassess Maxi's place within the family. By placing her back in a subservient position she is much less stressed, happier and is greeting and socialising with other dogs in a way that we could never have imagined. We are delighted with Alex and with Bark Busters and would not hesitate to recommend them to anyone experiencing issues with their dogs. For the sake of your beloved pets, if they need help, get it from these guys, you will not look back.