Training Philosophy

Metamorphosis Pet Training uses positive reinforcement based techniques to create a fun and rewarding training experience. While positive training has been used with marine mammals since the 1960s, it wasn't adopted by pet trainers until the 1990s. Historically, dog trainers taught their students to reward good behavior and to use corrections when their dogs didn't comply with their commands. Studies indicate that during a six week course the number of corrections given does not significantly decrease. This means that corrections do very little to change behavior. When dog trainers switched to positive reinforcement based training they discovered that not only is it more fun, it's more effective too.

Positive training shouldn't be confused with permissiveness. A large part of my training philosophy involves setting limits. By improving your line of communication with your pet, being consistent, and learning to act preemptively you will become the benevolent leader your pet deserves.

I don't teach students to use corrections because:

Often times a leash correction will become the signal for the behavior we want. Instead of seeing the correction as something negative, some dogs will wait for the "signal" before offering the behavior. Through positive training you will learn better ways to communicate with your dog so you can develop reliable off-leash behavior.
Corrections can cause sensitive dogs to stop offering their owners new behaviors out of fear of getting it wrong. Positive training will actively engage your dog in the training process and he will work hard to figure out what you want.
Corrections can cause new problems to occur and they can hurt the owner/pet relationship. Positive training will help you build a stronger relationship with your pets.