Good Sit

We are so grateful to have found Good Sit! Steph is simply incredible. Her unique expertise and the work she put in to help our dog-reactive older rescue learn how to socialize has completely changed his confidence and joy around other dogs, as well as ours. Steph’s specialties for us have been in 1) teaching us how to read our dog’s often-perplexing body language, and 2) teaching him how to greet potential dog friends politely to have positive interactions. For #1: When interacting with other dogs, his body language didn’t seem to neatly fit the signs other trainers and resources told us to look for, and despite years of behavior work we honestly couldn’t tell what he was feeling! Steph was able to pick up on tons of subtle body language cues he was giving, and now after a few months we understand our dog *so* much better and are comfortable bringing him into different doggy situations because we know how to read him. For #2: There aren’t many ways to socialize our socially inept dog. He comes in way too hot and gets overwhelmed, annoying any potential playmates. Steph enlisted her helpful rotating crew of canine volunteers* and guided him (and us) progressively through parallel walking and leashed 1-on-1 meetups, teaching him how to manage his overarousal. Later, we built up to meeting off-leash in a private yard. He’s now learning to play politely in a group of multiple dogs of different sizes and personalities—which *BLOWS OUR MIND* considering that this is a dog who used to flip out seeing a dog a football field away. The best part is the confidence Steph’s training has given him (and us). He looks *so proud* of himself after calmly disengaging from another dog and trotting back to us. 🥲 Steph is also remarkably gifted at building communities, and it shows in how much her other clients trust her. Atticus made a ton of progress because he got to meet exactly the right dogs as he/we got more experience. It completely exceeded our expectations, and it’s all thanks to Steph’s incredible abilities as a trainer of both dogs and humans!

Steph did wonders with my one year old reactive pup Baelor. Before training with her, I often felt frustrated, but she quickly changed that. I never once felt like the 'problem' was me. Her training is all about giving you the tools and vocabulary to effectively guide your dog, making the process feel collaborative and positive for both you and your pet.

Steph has been such a knowledgeable, delightful dog trainer to work with. What stood out most was how observant Steph was, how she taught us to understand behaviors we hadn’t noticed before, and how non-judgmental she was during training. We hired Steph to help train our rescue black lab. Our sweet dog was acting protective when dogs or new people approached our baby, and barked / lunged so much on walks that she was starting to earn a reputation in our neighborhood. Steph took the time to understand our family environment, the changes that had escalated this behavior, and the subtle triggers that would stress our dog out. She taught us how to read our dog’s body language and used gentle, loving techniques to teach her to relax in these situations. She also gave us great “escape strategies” for difficult encounters, and was very patient with us when our roles as new parents made it hard to train as consistently as we should have. 10/10 would recommend Steph and hire her again!