EXCELLENTTrustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. After getting a Doberman puppy, we realized that the puppy classes at Petsmart were not going to be enough to help with changing some of her behaviors. Our daily walks were horrendous with her constant pulling. Feeding times were a disaster as Greta would jump on me. We knew that as she got larger, there would be more issues. We are so happy that we found Confetti Dogs. Not only does he provide all necessary equipment, including leashes and collars, but through his app, we send weekly videos of our “homework” documenting our progress. John comes prepared with weekly lessons geared to what we want to work on. His background in education shows through on how to change behaviors of our pet. After working with us, our lives have changed to the point that I’m now walking Greta 3 miles a day. Feedings are pleasant for us. I would highly recommend John and Confetti Dogs.Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. We had a great experience working with John and our pup, Silvie. John’s calm approach was exactly what we needed to help us with our training of our very active pup. John provided us with practical tools and exercises that proved valuable to us in guiding our pup towards good choices and behaviors. We highly recommend John if you are looking for a trainer for your pup.Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. My family and I were really impressed with the program John created for us and our 5 year old shiba inu, Jasper. Previous to our few weeks with John, Jasper wouldn't allow anything to fall on the floor without playing keep away, or let anyone move through the house without nipping at their feet. John devised a very personalized and effective set of drills and homework that really, really made a difference. We used to be afraid to have our daughter's toys downstairs or invite guests over only to have them bitten on the way to the bathroom. Not anymore. We were really impressed with Jasper's progress over the sessions and are more comfortable in our home thanks to Confetti Dogs.Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. We cannot recommend John enough. He has helped us immensely with our dog’s reactivity toward other dogs. We learn so much each session and our dog clearly loves learning from and working with John. Beyond the wonderful training, John has also taught us to have a better understanding of our dog’s behavior so we can predict when he is feeling reactive better and recorrect his behavior before he has an outburst. Highly recommend!Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. We highly recommend John Tomassoni and Confetti Dogs for your training needs. John recently worked with us and our two dogs to address some behavior problems. He initially met with us and the dogs to evaluate our situation and then developed a training plan tailored for each dog. John is great at communicating the training goals and the purpose of each training session exercise and gave us encouraging feedback as we continued to work with our dogs on the exercises. John interacted with the dogs is a low-key manner and the dogs responded well to this approach. John was flexible in scheduling our training sessions to meet our availability. We are very satisfied with the outcome of the training provided by John/Confetti Dog.Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. We adopted our Envigo beagle when she was 7 months old, and after working with her for a couple of months, we realized we needed help. Our dog was very reactive to other dogs and people, and crazy on walks where she pulled on the leash almost choking herself. We reached out to John and working with him has been a very pleasant and positive experience. He has been extremely thorough, detail oriented and hands-on from the very first session. We worked through several of our dogs issues and tried various approaches to her reactivity and leash skills, and finally identified that using a prong collar combined with positive reinforcement training helped her tremendously. She was no longer choking herself on walks, and with a lower energy level, showed almost no reactivity to people and significantly less reactivity to dogs. We are very grateful to John for going above and beyond for helping us understand and handle our dog in any situation. Will highly recommend his services.Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. When we adopted our second dog, Cap, he inutially got along pretty well with our other dog, Bagel. However, within the first couple of days they got into a couple of fights and we had difficulty understanding why they began. In order to keep both of our dogs safe they were not allowed to be out in the same area at the same time. We contacted Confetti Dogs and met with John in hopes of developing a plan and working with the dogs in order for them to be out at the same time. John came over to see how the dogs interacted separately and together and talked through what were reasonable goals that they could both work on. John's amount of knowledge was incredible and he always brought us along with the rationale of what different things we would try and why. We really appreciated John's approach of working on foundational skills first and the accountability of sending videos to ensure we are practicing throughout the week really helped us out to ensure that dogs were getting enough practice to make progress. Through the multiple work months we worked with John, we tried multiple different strategies to see what would work best for our dogs. Having goals as well as strategies specific to that particular dog and what they already knew how to do and what they needed to work on was really important to us. John was very flexible in scheduling the training sessions and also ensuring the sessions were specified to meet the goals for that week. At the end of each session, John would give us 2-4 things to work on that week and which things to take videos of. After the months of working together with John, our dogs were able to be out together with muzzles on for safety, then they were able to be out together for short periods of time without muzzles on. Now they are able to be out together at all times, they cuddle with each other, run around the yard together, and respect each other's spaces as well as have been safe around each other. My partner and I are so amazed at the progress both of our dogs have made and they have far surpassed the initial goals John and we had set for them. We are looking forward to the years to come of our dogs being able to spend time together and play together. We are immeasurably thankful to John and Confetti Dogs!Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. We are so thankful for John and Confetti Dogs! We have had our greyhound, Norman, for 6 years. He has always been such a sweet and well behaved boy. When we brought home our first baby last summer, Norman started to bark and act up more than he ever has in the past. From the second that I spoke with John, it was obvious that he is incredibly knowledgeable in his field. After an in person consultation and meeting Norman, he created a custom plan based on our concerns. After a few short sessions, we can already see a huge change in Norman’s behavior. John also provided us with wonderful tools moving forward and is available if we have concerns in the future. We are so thankful to John and Confetti Dogs for helping us and our boy Norman!Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. John is truly a master of his craft. We have an incredibly high energy, large dog that has a heart of gold, but is a bit on the crazy side. Taking him for walks was tough because he pulled the entire time, having guests come over was tough because he would jump on them, and just in general we didn’t know how to train him effectively. John not only had our pup walking well and not jumping on guests, but he has him so well behaved that we are actually proud to take him out in public when we used to be a bit embarrassed because of his behavior. I can’t recommend John enough because he meets you where you are in training your dog. (For us it was square one) Not only that, you can tell he truly cares and understands how dogs think. If you decide to go with John and Confetti Dogs to train your dog, you will not be disappointed!Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. My 6 year old rough around edges yet lovable rescue dog just needed more training. Worried he was too old for dog school, from day 1, John's masterful 1 - 1 training incredible to witness our dog's transformation - with a few reps, he became way more manageable (in specific situations). Much of it is training holistically the entire family (hard to win over on the process, esp the kids) but given time and reps with guided practice & HW, our dog has dramatically improved behavior on walks, transitions, etc. Absolute game changer - and part of that simply is John being observant of the dog in the context of what's happening in the dog's home environment. I don't write reviews often, but I highly recommend John and Confetti Dogs for dog training in the DMV, particularly if you live near Frederick MD.
Marianne
Can an older dog learn new tricks? -yes – if the trainer is John from Confetti Dogs. We have a 7 year old female bichon mix who is a wonderful dog if you are not walking her outside. Since the day we got her 3 years ago (she is a rescue) when I walked her in our neighborhood she barked at every car, person, dog and birds. I could not talk to any of my neighbors because of her non-stop barking. She also constantly pulled me and lunged at cars. This 12 pound terror had been through training with someone who suggested that once she was spayed she would calm down (she didn’t), a citronella collar, an e-collar (it didn’t stop her barking at any intensity), a barking specialist (she only didn’t bark for him), a behavior vet who wanted her sedated before every walk…..we failed with everything. Then one day I saw the Confetti Dog van that described my dog. We set up a phone call, then an in home evaluation and then started working with John. He is so calm and pleasant. Using his method of food claiming, a deterrent to unwanted behavior (a spray bottle with water), treats for good behavior, walking when not hyper, a micro prong collar etc. after 5 weeks of twice weekly classes, Toni is not pulling, not barking at cars, dogs, people, bikes. The best part is all the training was done in my house and neighborhood where all my walking problems occur. I have been able to stop and talk to people for the first time in 3 years with my dog. John trains the person as much as your dog. We even had classes in Baker Park, a place I was afraid to go with Toni since she had barked at every person and dog there in the past; it was a pleasant experience after all the training John had done with Toni. I now look forward to my walks-what a difference 6 weeks has made in my life and Toni’s. John and Confetti Dogs have had such a positive effect on us. THANK YOU!!!
Nala
“Before Nala started her training with John she used to jump to people and to my grandkids when they came to visit, jumped on the sofa, and pulled very hard those who walk her during her walkings. This was the main reason why I contacted John. Also she wasn’t able to calm down when I received visits and used to get very close to them when eating time arrived forcing us to put her in her cage. She was able to follow the command sit and stay but not for long and wasn’t able to follow other commands such as place, down, stay, etc like she does now. Now Nala is able to follow more than those commands, stay for long periods of time, people can eat around her without her touching their plates. Not jumping in people as much as she used to, and the pulling has improved way better. She even understand the concept of place and does it automatically. She is now able to stay around my visitors without being such a space invader. John was always willing to answer all our questions, gave us homework to practice during the week for the next session, very patient with Nala and would check in on Nala during the week to see how she was doing at home. The results of these training sessions exceed my expectations and I would recommend him 100%. Thank you John for everything you did for Nala and our family!”
-Waleska
Carol
“In September of 2021, my dog Carol and I were fortunate to meet John of Confetti Dogs and our lives are much better for it. Since the first meeting in western Maryland my anxiety around not being the best dog parent that I could be melted away. Johns’s approach is compassionate and Carol warmed up to him right away. I say this first because in the past Carol has been really afraid of men due to past trauma. She wasn’t jumping all over him so to speak but he knew what to do and gave me proper advice on how to handle our first meeting. Not only is john good with our furry children he is gentle and firm with us humans. That is really what needs to happen to start with us to allow space to grow with confidence so our dogs can feel that within themselves. Carol and I always had trouble walking in parks around people and other dogs and now with the e collar and prong (both things I never wanted to do but now see how wonderfully safe they are), we can easily be in any situation that unfolds. Also, I have complete confidence in myself and in Carol and this has created an even stronger bond between us. John also has dedicated time to talk with me and spend alone time with Carol so we tighten all the curriculum for her to be safe and confident at our home on a farm and within other spaces ( we travel around a lot and this has been a godsend). Confetti Dogs has created an opportunity here in Maryland for people to have a safe and comfortable training experience. Deep gratitude for the guidance, support, and compassion that Confetti Dogs has shown us.”
-Jan
Ray
“Our dog, Ray, is a good boy, but he had a few bad habits. Prior to training, he would bark excessively at passersby, become aggressive toward other dogs, and pull intensely on our walks. John, with Confetti Dogs, helped us correct those habits. He gave us insight as to why the behaviors were there. Now, there is so much less stress in our household. We enjoy walking Ray; we can allow him to socialize with other dogs without fear and he no longer feels the need to bark excessively. I highly recommend Confetti Dogs. Confetti Dogs helps you become a better dog owner. Their training allows you to love your dog well and set healthy boundaries within your house, which allows your dog so much more freedom.”
-Josh