Canine Zen

Stephanie is an informed and compassionate dog trainer. She helped my dog learn a variety of new skills and brush up on some old ones. All the learning was based on positive feedback and rewards. My dog responded especially well to this style of learning and seemed to really enjoy the process. She was eager to practice and continue learning.

Training with Stephanie is personalized. This is not one-size-fits-all dog training. Stephanie asked what I wanted to achieve and then she tailored the training as such.

Training was remote over Zoom. I was curious about how that would go at first and I am pleased to report that it was amazing. Stephanie was able to observe my dog in a variety of settings and we were able to achieve everything we set out to learn. Plus, Stephanie is quick to respond to questions between sessions. If you are hesitant about remote training, I encourage you to give it a try, too.

Training with Stephanie is fun and rewarding! I highly recommend her - would definitely work with her again. More...

I cannot tell you all the ways Stephanie has helped us train our two goldendoodles. She has offered practical, effective strategies so we can support “our babies” to be well behaved, happy dogs. We continue to use her tips on a regular basis which reinforces the great lessons she taught us. She even took us on field trips to learn some strategies around bringing the dogs to public patios. And the added bonus is that we can call her when a behavior shows up that we may need some guidance on even when we are not actively training. Stephanie is the true dog whisperer and we feel very fortunate to have her on our “team.” More...

Stephanie was really great in helping our shepherd/husky mix with confidence and impulse control- two elements that have drastically improved how he approaches different situations. It was also helpful for Stephanie to "decode" some of the signals that our dog was giving us through body language. I am confident that we can use all the skills Stephanie taught us to continue working with our dog. More...

I have a crazy neurotic puppy and Ms. Stephanie has been so patient and kind with her. My puppy has come so far and I have learned a ton from her! I highly recommend her!

When you hire Stephanie Barger, you are not getting a trainer who has a rote training program used with every dog. This is a quality dog training that is developed specifically for your dog & your family. Stephanie comes into your home and gets to know your dog, wants to know what you need help with and helps you achieve what you need and want. She thinks out of the box and knows how to be flexible to help you enjoy the training as well as develop that bond & relationship with with your dog that creates a good training team. She’s very relaxed, & very open with what she sees. She’s very supportive & if one method tried isn’t working, has creative ways to help you achieve what you want. She loves dogs & they enjoy her too. It’s totally positive training with lots of flexibility for a schedule that works best for you time wise & money wise. We learned a lot from Stephanie. She has lots of experience & is easy to work with. She helped me become more confident as well as our dogs.

We had lost 2 dogs in the last 3 yrs. since moving to New Mexico. Our 7 yr. old Australian Shepherd, who was the baby of her dog family, became extremely frightened & depressed. Being in our 70’s, we had been through the grieving with dogs left behind—but, Nika’s grief was so much worse. She was lost & we knew we needed help. Stephanie came in and assessed her heavy grief, our grief & told us we needed to wait at least 6 months before finding her a new playmate. That shocked us as we thought she needed it soon. Her confidence had always been her protector (a lg. German Shepherd, Dad) & a Golden Retriever, Mom. In their eyes, Nika could do no wrong. What Stephanie helped us do was to give Nika some confidence building & lots of quality time & fun. She enjoyed the games that we were taught, as we watched the depression fade & her confidence grew amazingly. Her relationship with us grew & she loves Stephanie.

When we started looking for a little brother, we wanted to make sure the match would be right. We found a Rescue pup about 6 or 7 months old who had been in a foster home. We had saved some of our lessons with Stephanie to help with the introduction with KC & Nika. I knew the minute I saw him that he was wonderful. He was! Nika & KC are close buddies. Nika has the confidence to tell him if he plays too rough with her. He’s one of the most loving dogs I’ve ever met. Lots of kisses and cuddling. He’s taught a lot of that to Nika which is really neat.
Our family is happy again & doing well thanks to an amazingly compassionate, skilled trainer /counselor. She was so worth the money. More...