See what my clients & Their dogs say
Kali
My puppy is five and a half months old and we will be completing seven weeks of training tomorrow.
My goal when starting training with Shawna was for our pup to follow basic commands sit, down, come, and stay. Ultimately I told Shawna it was important to me that our dog had manners and that I’d like to work towards off-leash commands with distractions.
Shawna met with us weekly and it was something we really looked forward to. Shawna listened to how we were doing from week to week and helped us with more than just basic commands. We chose to work with Shawna’s individual lessons and it was amazing to be able to cover so much in one lesson. Shawna has the ability to make you a good handler and the dog listen all while having fun. She approaches each lesson with focus and a goal and I’m happy to say we have achieved those goals and surpassed what I thought we’d accomplish in seven weeks.
I would highly recommend Shawna as a fun, dedicated and compassionate dog lover who happens to also be an amazing teacher.
Sincerely,
Lori Wright
Shawna is highly skilled, patient, caring, friendly, she has great training methods, and so much to offer anyone with a dog of any age.
I wanted to take a moment to express my gratitude for your dedication and guidance in helping me achieve my goals with our incredible dog Mars. I have known Shawna Gower for 2 years.
Shawna came highly recommended to me when I was looking for a dog trainer. Shawna was the best thing that happened to Mars, our beautiful German Wired Haired Pointer puppy and me. Shawna is highly skilled, patient, caring, friendly, she has great training methods, and so much to offer anyone with a dog of any age. Shawna has a deep understanding of dog behavior, psychology, and learning theories, she enables owners to adopt effective training methods to take home and live in harmony with their loved pets. I had the pleasure of working with Shawna in her puppy classes and then into her adult classes. Most importantly Mars who was scared to even get into a car, was always excited about all her classes and Loves Shawna dearly. Mars and I miss Shawna and would be back in her classes immediately if she was back on the West Coast. You and your fur baby will have a great experience working with Shawna. I highly recommend Shawna to anyone. If you need a refresher, beginning stages or a challenge, what ever it may be Shawna is the trainer for you.
Sincerely, Shellie Balliet
MARS
Dakota
Shawna took our dog from embarrassingly poorly behaved on her walks to a dog we feel comfortable taking most places with us.
Still work to do but so happy with the results she's achieved even now. A wonderful person who clearly loves what she does and loves the animals she works with. We wish her great success in her venture.
Rick Tossell
Moki
Shawna has been walking Moki (aka Trouble) for about 4 months now.
She sure has saved my relationship. I’m the only one who wanted a dog. I invested quickly into a dog walker to help alleviate some extra energy while I work out of town during the day.
Shawna has helped Moki learn some tricks and basic behaviour cues. He’s a young pup, so he can be trouble. Since day one, Moki (and I) have enjoyed Shawna’s business and he looks forward to seeing her every day.
If you need a dog walker/trainer, I highly recommend Shawna. She goes above and beyond. Sometimes, I didn’t even ask.
Kassie
We mastered all the basics quickly and even practiced some off-leash in the park!
Kassie started the Puppy Right Start training when she was 6 months old, and I was mostly just looking to advance her commands and come out with a well-mannered dog. Like most puppies, Kassie is easily excitable, and distracted by anything that moves! Right away we learned the "look at me" command which works wonders when fighting to get Kassie's attention! And when that doesn't work we learned other ways to get her focus and make her calm down. I have found this handy for keeping her under control both on walks & in the house.
We mastered all the basics quickly and even practiced some off-leash in the park! We got to move on to learn some tricks and inhibition control at the dog park by the end, which was great training and will be super useful for encounters with animals and people in the future!
Kassie absolutely loves Shawna and we both had so much fun in our training that we were sad when it was over!
I would highly recommend Shawna for training & walks and will definitely go again when we get another pup!
K.Smart
Ragnar
Pup fundamentals are so important.
It's the best money you'll spend towards really enjoying your pup. Now and well into the future. I not only gained a more well-behaved family member (I wish they were all this easily trained...lol) but also gained a good friend in Shawna. I recommend all new puppy owners to the Right Start Puppy Program. Thanks again Shawna
K.Roos
Gracie
I highly recommend Shawna as a dog trainer.
She is very knowledgeable and supportive. She patiently teaches how dogs think and learn. I learned so much from her and am very grateful to her for giving my lab pup, Gracie, and I such a good start
Jane S.
Nova
Thank you so much, Nova and I had a blast learning new tricks and learning how to use her manners.
Our favourite trick we learnt is sitting still while toys get thrown all around, she’s definitely mastered it. We had so much fun and we wouldn’t be where we were today without Shawna. Nova's progress and improvement has amazed us and others. I highly recommend hiring Shawna if needed 😊❤️
Preslie H.
Murphy
Shawna is the best, we would highly recommend her.
Our puppy Murphy just graduated from puppy school. She is very accommodating and easy-going.
We loved that she did the training at our home. We watched a lot of puppy training videos online, but having someone there to correct or provide alternatives to make the training more productive to yourself and your dog is invaluable. We learnt a lot that we would not have figured out on our own, especially regarding our body language and tone of voice.
The added benefit of puppy socialization bi-weekly, until our dog is one, is a huge benefit. I would suggest to anyone to invest in themselves and their dog's future by investing in Shawna.
Chelsea M.
lexi
Shawna is the absolute best!
We joke that she is a "dog whisperer". We did her puppy training program with our Viszla, and we, and our puppy learned so much. Her techniques are very reward based, and she has a way about her that the dogs love and respond to. We and our puppy felt comfortable with her from the moment we met her. Having her come to the our house for the training sessions was so convenient, and her puppy play group every 2 weeks is so beneficial for socializing our pup with various dogs. It was worth every penny! We would highly recommend her for all of her services!
Karen and Bill Howie
Your one-on-one training, expertise and patience has paid off huge dividends.
I just wanted to thank you again for all you did for Libby in the Right Puppy Start Program. Although we had managed to come quite far on our own in our training, it became obvious to all that expert help was needed. I am so grateful that we crossed paths at a time when I was really in despair about how to make my 85 pound lab not pull me off my feet or bowl everyone over with her exuberance, even though she knew how to sit and stay.
I started with two main goals: 1. to have her NOT bowl over anyone entering my house and 2. to being able to walk with her without being pulled off my feet.
Your one-on one training, expertise and patience has paid off huge dividends. Libby is choosing to sit on her mat when people come near the front door even before they ring the door bell. She is waiting to be released before greeting them. The look on my guests faces as she does this is such a great reward for me. We are finally getting to walk every day, currently at 30 minutes where before I would last about 10 minutes before both of us would be totally stressed. We are both enjoying our walks now.
Not only have you helped Libby on her way to being a wonderful Canine Citizen but you have helped me immensely to learn how to work with her specific super smart personality. It also helped to know that you had dealt with this with one of your labs and it gave me hope. I have noticed my bond with Libby has deepened as we have gone through your training
I particularly appreciated how you tailored the training to fit the challenges I was having and also how you suggested different venues so Libby could get exposure with doing her training in public areas, and I could regain confidence with her.
I feel Libby and I are both well on our way to enjoying each other and our lives together and we look forward to our next level training time with you. I could never have done this without you!
Thanks so much!
Kind regards,
Karen and Libby
We thank you very much...
Thank you Shawna for your patience, your skills, your dedication and your sense of humour in training us to help Thomas become the dog that we now know he can be. The improvement over the last 6 weeks of training is incredible and I want to say almost unbelievable! You’ve taught us how to work with the stubbornness of the breed, and shown us some of the tricks and games of dealing with a high-energy puppy. You’ve instilled in us the tools to work with him for continual improvement. We thank you very much.
Sincerely,
Kathy and Gord Courage.
Libby
thomas
Maisy
Moto-Vated Dog Training
The Right Start Puppy Program
Before we started a training program with our new puppy Maisy, we searched a lot of programs in the Duncan area and loved what Moto-Vated Dog Training was offering
Our first meet and greet with Shawna showed just how much of a way with dogs she has – our puppy was a little timid at first but by the end of our meet up she was gladly accepting treats,
This turned into a great relationship… Puppy, and treat giver (trainer) – Maisy, our puppy, absolutely loved Shawna and would listen and do everything she asked of her to my Husband and I’s awe – with somethings we
would struggle with, Shawna would get her to do it first try and every time there after.
Shawna taught Todd and I just how to have the “right start” as Puppy parents and give Maisy the best chances of using her brain in a productive way. We are so very happy with everything - most of all we loved the private sessions to really work with us and know we had the concept and not a group of people all at the same time which was a great benefit of choosing Moto-Vated Dog Training.
We had 6 sessions and a session to see what Maisy learnt as well are invited to puppy playtimes on alternating Sundays for her to get some socialization – Shawna has really thought of everything to give your puppy the best start. I can honestly say if you are looking for training stop now – you won’t be disappointed with the investment in your puppy’s future with getting educated from Shawna and Moto-Vated Dog Training.
Thanks for everything Shawna –
Todd, Julie, and Maisy 😊
Frankie
Frankie absolutely loves you
Shawna, We want to thank you for the great work and time you put in to training Frankie. The whole process was really great and you were very patient and helpful to both Frankie and us. Frankie absolutely loves you and responds very well to your instructions and the Sunday socializing are the best fun for the puppies and you can tell they love it. Thank you again. Stephanie and Jim Yeats.
Winston
Positive: Professionalism, Quality, Reliability, Responsiveness, Value
I cannot recommend Shawna and Moto-Vated dog training enough!! I started the Puppy training program when my pup, Winston was 12 weeks old. As someone who has never owned a dog and has no experience, I can't believe how far we have both come since starting the training. Shawna not only taught my dog about listening and communication, she taught me as well, all the while prioritizing Winston's safety. We had our final "exam" today, and I was so proud of how well Winston and I worked together to go through all the commands. The safe and socialization playdates that are offered are also great and really helped Winston when playing with other dogs and training while being distracted. You can tell that Shawna is very passionate about her job and has a great love for dogs, and Winston loves her so much. 10/10 recommend Moto-Vated !
Raja
Shawna has been so helpful with our puppy Raja...
My partner said she must have sprinkled some magic powder on him during our first class because we saw such a change in him right away. He went from being an overly excited (and sometimes aggressive) pup to a more confident and well mannered pup. I also greatly appreciate the puppy socialization classes mixed with Shawna’s private training as it has helped our puppy come a long way being around other dogs and people. Thank you Shawna and Sprocket for all your work with u
Kevin
Shawna has been amazing!
Before we started she came out to meet us and let us choose if this is what we were looking for, a little meet and greet.
I started Kevin’s training at 3 months with one on one classes and also attended puppy socializing classes every second Sunday. Kevin LOVED these classes. Shawna always asked and made sure we worked on something we needed, that Kevin might have been struggling with. Classes at different locations to set your dog up for all distractions and she makes house calls. We want to say a big thank you for all your help in teaching Kevin and me to have a fun life! Very much appreciated for all your time🦮
Tanya Bailey and Kevin
