January 20, 2009

My name is Theresa H. and I would like to tell you about my wonderful experience with Laurie Yakish.  I found Laurie’s name on one of the many support groups I belong to online.  She was offering classes to help parents that have children with autism learn to train their dogs. 

We have a very hyper, stubborn, smart Canaan/Lab puppy named Panther.  Which describes some of my son, Colton also.  Colton and Panther love each other but were ALWAYS irritating each other.  I spent my days refereeing them so they did not hurt each other.  Laurie came to our house and heard the story of Panther’s tough start to life.  We adopted him from the Humane Society and he was very happy to have a family and lots of food. 

Laurie pointed out that due to his scary start to life we were going about training him wrong.  We needed to concentrate on the positive and build his esteem back up so that he did not become aggressive from fear.  She taught us clicker training and Panther loves being rewarded with treats.  He will do anything for it! 

She also taught Colton and Panther games to play together that are constructive for both of them.  She taught us the tools we need to make a big difference in our family life with Panther.  He is happier now and so am I! 

Laurie is a loving, caring person who gave us so much good advice for our dog.  She also has a lot of compassion and understanding about the family dynamics with our special needs son.  I would highly recommend Laurie to anyone who needs support with training their dogs!