Follow The Leader K9 - Santa Barbara, California

bryan B.

I highly recommend Follow The Leader K9. Eric and his team are wonderful people, and the dog training is very professional. My dog’s behavior has transformed in just a few weeks.

I spent a considerable amount of time researching online training programs for my 3 year old Doberman, and came to the conclusion that I didn’t know which method would be best for my dog. After an initial consultation with Eric, he explained what motivates my dog and how to leverage that, along with the appropriate methods and tools, to be successful with training. A key factor was establishing “house rules” so the dog learned how to be calm and relaxed, which made it possible to curb behaviors such as barking, chasing squirrels and leash pulling - and be ready to use his energy and focus on the training.

Natalie P.

We are so grateful to have found Eric and his amazing team! Working with them has been such a wonderful, stress-free experience from the start. They truly go above and beyond to tailor their services to meet our dogs' individual needs, and the level of communication is exceptional. It’s clear that they always make sure we’re all on the same page to ensure the best possible outcome for everyone—especially our dogs. Eric and his team are incredibly kind, and most importantly, our dogs absolutely LOVE seeing them for both walks and training.

One of the things that has really stood out is how Eric thought outside the box to address our dog's fear and anxiety. No challenge was too big, and Eric never said no. He adapted his training approach as our dog's needs changed, always adjusting and staying flexible.

We’ve been working with Eric for a few months now, and we feel incredibly lucky to have found a team we trust and love. Their dedication, kindness, and expertise have made a world of difference for our dogs—and for us. Highly recommend!

Frances S. M.

I was looking for a dog trainer while on an assignment in California. It took me a while but a friend recommended follow the leader K9. I decided to follow on instagram to see what they offered and make sure that they were a right fit for me and Huxley my one year old goldador. I tried to go to other training classes somewhere else but it seemed that they weren’t helping with my problem but instead of teaching us new tricks. Follow the leader K9 was able to help myself and Huxley how to deal without jumping, leash walking (no pulling), e-collar training and prong collar. I was extremely happy that they make the time to squeeze me in that week since I was leaving within a month and only had three weeks to begin and finish training. We were able to train Huxley with only 5 sessions. It was hard to do with working and trying to train him but I felt as though the follow the leader K9 team was able to get me through it. They were tough at times, which was fine to tell me what I was doing wrong but mainly they were very encouraging and telling me that I was doing a great job with such a short amount of time. If I didn’t move back to the east coast I would continue to do in person training. Thankfully I spoke to my trainer and asked if he would be able to do training if I needed to online. Would definitely recommended these trainers. Thank you follow the leader K9 team for helping us out and making sure that Huxley is such a good boy and a very well trained dog.

Marissa J.

I cannot recommend Eric (and his team) enough! We took in a 70lb Husky foster with significant energy and reactionary issues, and the Follow the Leader team donated time and worked wonders with him. They gave us tools that completely changed our experience. He skillfully uncovered the amazing dog hiding beneath all those challenges. Eric's effective training techniques made all the difference, not just for our dog but for me as well. He truly helped transform our foster to uncover the true a "diamond in the ruff". Thanks to Eric (and his team), I am excited to continue fostering.

Leah L.

Follow the Leader K9 has been our saving grace and we wholeheartedly recommend working with them! My husband and I adopted our dog (renamed Milo) a young border collie mix, from SBCAS at the end of July. As soon as we brought him home, we discovered that he was extremely reactive to everything and anything. It was terrifying to take him on walks because he would bark, growl, and lounge at people (especially at older males and those on bikes, skateboards, scooters, etc.). He was incredibly sweet and loving with my husband and I, but skeptical and reactive with others. For example, my in-laws came to visit for my husband's birthday at the end of August and Milo nipped at my father-in-law twice and my mother-in-law once. Anytime someone came to the door, he would bark loudly, growl, and pace until the person was long gone. It was getting to the point where we decided that if he didn't improve by the end of the year, we would try to re-home him.

Short story long and after researching several trainers in the area, we reached out to Eric and his team at Follow the Leader K9. We had a initial phone call with Katia and after pouring my heart out to her about Milo's reactivity and how overwhelmed we were feeling, she assured me that he was a dog that they could definitely help. We then met Eric and had an initial consultation session at the Follow the Leader K9 HQ. Milo started off the session super reactive, but after only 20 minutes or so, Eric was able to get him comfortable and following commands with hardly any reactivity. We decided to move forward with Follow the Leader K9 and had Milo attend the day training program for about 5 weeks. By the end of week 3, his reactivity had IMMENSELY improved and his trainers shared that he pretty much accomplished the basic dog training concepts and suggested we do more off-site and home training sessions. We absolutely loved the off-site and home training sessions, because they got to see how Milo is in his home setting and they provided us with helpful strategies on how handle his reactivity in our neighborhood. We also had an amazing session in downtown SB to get Milo immersed in higher activity settings and he was such a good boy! The two biggest breakthroughs/Milo's accomplishments have got to be: 1) Milo loving on my parents and my in-laws now and 2) How he reacts towards/with strangers. He is a completely different dog who just needed some help and support to feel more confident.

If you decide to work with Follow the Leader K9, please be honest and open with them about yours and your dogs needs. For example, we found that the prong collar was not a good option for Milo and they immediately switched us over the e-collar (non-shocking, only vibration) which was the golden ticket. We used to have the e-collar on Milo pretty much all day, except for when he went to bed, but now we only put it on him when we know he'll be in a new and/or high activity setting. We highly recommend Eric, Katia, and the Follow the Leader K9 team and are so extremely grateful for all of their support with Milo!

~ The Lynches

Melissa G.

You will not find better expertise and quality than Follow The Leader K9. The first day I called, I was a desperate puppy mom and Eric immediately made me feel more comfortable and optimistic. They started working consistently with my French Bulldog at 9 weeks and he is now a very happy and well behaved 5 month old who can adapt to different environments, people and dogs. Not only did the team work with my pup, but also with me so that I could adjust my approach which made a HUGE difference. What they say is true, you get what you pay for. Make the investment NOW- you will not be sorry. A++++

Madi B.

I recently adopted a dog who is more on the nervous/anxious side and has developed separation anxiety. Eric has helped me significantly in building up her confidence, motivation, and trainability, while equipping me with the tools and experience to continue the work with my dog outside of sessions. He has been flexible in his approach and will only use tools and methods that you are comfortable with and that feel right for your dog.

Eric D.

We brought our jumbo pittie to follow the k9 leader as we had a baby on the way, and since we were unsure of his past (untrained rescue) we figured some formal training was in order. We worked primarily with Eric and Katia, and it is clear they know their craft very well and take it extremely seriously. We got near instantaneous results (getting into the car on his own was a game changer) and it was clear that Bubba enjoyed his time there each day. Our sweet dog is now a well trained sweet dog. You can expect some positive results if you take your dog to follow the k9 leader.