Private Lessons: Persistence and Training Pay Off
Phil Marr impressed Bonnie Strauss with his dog training skills long before he founded Park Cities Obedience School.
“Phil trained my Silky Terrier 20 years ago, when he held classes in a parking garage," she remembers.
A few months after that dog passed away at almost 16 years of age, Bonnie decided she wanted another dog.
She looked up Phil Marr again and discovered he had opened Park Cities Obedience School. Only then did she get Basil, an Australian Terrier from a breeder at about eight weeks old.
"I'm a senior citizen; I'm retired. I wasn't about to take on a little terrier without knowing that I could get someone to teach me how to deal with him."
And she did need help.
"He was absolutely uncivilized – a little stinker!"
Basil was so feisty, in fact, than Nancy Pantusa, the teacher of his first puppy class, wasn’t sure he should be in a group class, hinting that Basil might be better suited for private lessons. But Phil let Basil continue in the class, and he did complete it.
"He completed a couple of obedience classes, actually,” Bonnie says. “I tell everyone he flunked obedience class! He just wanted to play and do his own thing; he was very disruptive and not easy to train."
But Bonnie didn't give up.
"I was dedicated. I took as many classes as I could, including private ones."
Owners and their dogs can take private lessons with Phil or Nancy Pantusa at the school or at their home, and benefit from one-on-one time with the trainer for behavioral problems, learning basic commands, or for advanced training.
“Phillip could make him do anything he wanted him to do,” Bonnie says.
When her husband had surgery, she dropped Basil off for doggie day care during the day and picked him up at night. Finally, between her efforts, the training, and his time spent socializing with other dogs at doggie day care, Basil learned good behavior. He’s four years old now and boards at Park Cities Obedience School when Bonnie goes out of town.
“I know Basil is in competent hands, having a good time playing with the other dogs when I board him,” Bonnie say. “I travel worry-free because of the excellent care he is receiving.”
For more information, or to enroll your dog, call Park Cities Obedience School at 214-369-7267 or email pcoschool@sbcglobal.net.
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Board and Train Program Brings Rastus out of his Shell
Rastus is an American Bulldog, just over one year old and he weighs 80 pounds. Owner Marc Mintle describes him as, "the bodybulder version of a dog." Howerver, despinte his intimidating size, Rastus started out scared of everything. Shyness was his biggest problem.
"He was kind of a weenie," Marc says, laughing. "On walks he just wanted to go back to the house. He was scared of other dogs and everyone except us."
When Marc and his wife Casey took two-month old Rastus home from the breeder, Casey's 13-year-old Shih Tzu immediately took charge. "He barked, growled and even bit Rastus a few times," Marc says. "That little dog bosses Rastus around."
But Rastus wasn't interested in having Casey as his boss.
"She had bruses where Rastus jumped up and bounced his giant head against her. He knawed on her arms like she was a big chew toy."
And Marc says he had a laundry list of other problems. "Everything a puppy could do wrong, he did wrong."
When Rastus was about five months old, Marc took him for a private lesson at Park Cities Obedience School, to get a few pointers. But after a couple of months, he and Casey decided to enroll Rastus in the two-week Board and Train program instead.
"With my busy schedule, it was a big help. We just didn't have time to properly socialize and train him ourselves."
In the Board and Train program, dogs stay at the school for two weeks in an intensive boot-camp training program in which they learn basic commands and good behavior. Just as important in Rastus' case, dogs enrolled in the Board and Train program are socialized with other dogs and people.
Follow up classes are included in the price.
Rastus is still a little people-shy, and very protective of his owners and their property, but he's well behaved. And now he loves to run up to other dogs and encourage them to play with him, whether they want to or not!
"But even if he sees a dog, and he's wagging him tail and wanting to play, he'll sit and stay if I tell him to."
And he stopped treating Casey like his favorite toy. Now she's the boss.
Marc and Casey went to the follow-up classes, where Rastus' skills were reinforced and they learned how to keep a handle on their pet.
"They became practice sessons to train us, not the dog," he says. "They teach you to go home and do this stuff yourself."
Rastus goes to the dog day care at Park Cities two or three days a week, which Marc thinks does wonders for Rastus by socializing him with other dogs and people in a way he'd find difficult to do outside of the school. The trainers at Park Cities got past his issues, and he thinks that says a lot about the school, and the staff.
"I think all of the people there are wonderful."
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An Unwanted Dog Becomes Part of a Happy Family
When Yvette and Peter Everitt adopted Emmitt six years ago, they didn't even want a dog.
"My friend needed to get rid of him, and I felt bad for the dog," Yvette says.
A rescue organization had originally found Emmitt after he'd been tied to a tree and abandoned for over a week.
"He'd already been through two homes. He was unruly, and had no manners at all, but I didn't want to see him go back to the pound."
Yvette and Peter soon discovered Emmitt's problems went deeper than just a lack of obedience. "He had a lot of mental problems, sever separation anxiety," Yvette tells us. "He'd been through doggie therapy, on anti-depressants, and none of it worked."
He even damaged her home when he was left alone there during the day. That's not the kind of extreme remodeling that any family likes to find when they get home.
Yvette took Emmitt to Park Cities Obedience School and enrolled him in the group training classes that meet once a week for six weeks.
"He's stubborn, but the group dog obedience classes really worked. It was hard work."
As part of their "homework", Yvette took Emmitt on a daily hour-and-a-half walk. She read a book by the Monks of New Skete about how to make your dog a part of your life. And she applied everything she learned from Phil in class.
"People told me you couldn't train an older dog. But I did everything Phil said, and I was able to train him."
Emmitt benefited further from Park Cities' doggie day care program. "Before he went to day care, he was so nervous, he'd bark all through the night. But getting to play with the dogs all day seemed to help him the most."
Emmitt went from the dog she didn't want to a dog whose name goes on family party invitations. She doesn't even worry about Emmitt's behavior around her toddler.
"Phil Marr's whold philosophy is that you train a dog so you don't have to lock him away when you have people over, the dog can be a part of your life. Emmitt alwasy goes and greets everyone".
Emmitt's almost 11 years old now and goes everywhere with Yvette and Peter. He still goes to day care, adn when the couple leaves town, tehy board Emmitt at Park Cities Obedience School.
"They have a great staff. They know his idiosyncrasies, and that he's a special needs dog. It's comforting to know that I can leave Emmitt and know he's okay."
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