Testimonials
I learn so much from each and every individual who puts trust in me. Special thanks to my generous clients who have offered to share their stories.
“When I brought my terrier puppy home at 9 weeks of age, I had 2 goals that I wanted to accomplish: good behavior and good socialization. Emma has such insight into the terrier brain and how they perceive things. Having had a Welsh Terrier before, it has been an exciting experience to see Tory’s responsiveness to the training. Whatever she learns seems to become imprinted very quickly into her brain.”
Jeannette
NY, USA
"Emma is the best. I have found the lessons very helpful. Meghan, our four-legged child was very difficult; to handle. Without her help we would not have been able to deal with her. Our dog, Meghan, was impossible to walk. She was wild. I could not go half a block. She is a pleasure to be with now. She has responded to Emma’s techniques very well. She would not respond to traditional methods. To anyone thinking about working with Emma I say JUST DO IT"
Ben
GA, USA
"A past trainer used coercive training techniques. The dog and I both disliked the class. The trainer did not seem to know the dog or care about anything but her own techniques. She did not give the dog the desire to comply. Training sessions with Emma are enjoyable. She addresses our specific concerns and issues rather than just a standard list of topics. Emma let’s us set the pace with our questions and needs. Emma has helped with training, feeding, housebreaking, and keeping both Stella and our furniture safe. I had some doubts about online training, but it has been very easy. We can watch Emma demonstrate with Miles and then Emma can watch us work with Stella."
BT & JR
IN, USA
"Emma is approachable, supportive, positive, and a great problem solver! We have appreciated working with her to help us help Puck! It was great to have a specific plan to focus on each week, and know that we would review again the following session, and Emma would help correct and fine tune our training. I think we have more respect for how hard Puck is working and trying to learn and please us. It feels more natural for us to focus on good behavior than focusing on “no” and negative reinforcement. He is so smart, and Emma’s training has helped us see that! We think this is a great investment in helping us all live together happily!"
Doug & Elizabeth
NC, USA
"I hired Emma because I had a large adolescent terrier and an older small dog in a small space. Emmas help was clear and concise. I loved having the tailored homework, it was helpful and not overwhelming. Anyone can benefit from Emmas education and training. I am grateful to her for her hard work and help! Our dogs get along!!"
Monica
CA, USA
“She has found her calling in life. There are not very many people that you can say, you were made for that. Emma has found her calling for sure. Without exception, every lesson that we finished up, I felt better than when we started. Even if we hadn’t done our homework perfectly, after our meetings, I always felt more enthused and just more upbeat. I can’t imagine raising our terrier puppy without the basis that Emma gave us.”
Debbie & Wayne
IN, USA
"Emma is incredibly knowledgeable, but very laid back. The investment of both time and money is so worth it when your terrorist becomes the sweet terrier you were hoping for! During Harvey’s puppy years, Emma helped us create a plan for him so we get things done and live normally. She set us up for success in his adult years with him coming when we call, releasing potentially harmful objects on command and knowing how to manage him when we have guests. She also was key in resolving his allergy problems. Our Harvey will come when called, he’ll run to his bed and lay down on command, and thanks to Emma he has stopped itching!'
Yohonna
OH, USA
"Working with Emma has been nothing but amazing! We are finally able to connect with our puppy and enjoy him. He is so much calmer and relaxed."
R & M
MA, USA
“Learning how to create a connection with your pup through love, fun, positivity and mutual respect; I was pleasantly surprised to see how well the 1:1 Face Time sessions worked so that the training could be personalized to how Griffin was responding. It also helped to see Miles demonstrating some of the training methods. Emma – you know I love all you’ve done to make our special pup Griffin such a joy. You are so much more than a terrier trainer.”
Kim
FL, USA
"Life with a welsh terrier is not always easy, but with Emma’s help we have learned it can be very rewarding. And whenever I have doubts about something, need advice, or have successes to share, Emma is still the one I turn to first."
D & A
Canada
"Emma is exceptional. Her methods are easy to follow and I now have a turbo-charged but well behaved Welsh Terrier. I found Emma’s methods gentle, dog-intuitive and the results incredible. I enthusiastically recommend her! I would like to say that Emma’s training of me and my Welsh Terrier has enriched both of our lives immensely. She guided both me and my puppy through extremely challenging times. Her expert training produced a relaxed and happy owner and a relaxed and well behaved terrier. Thank you for such a gift."
Sue
NM, USA
"It’s amazing over the last couple of weeks how many people have said that Roscoe is very calm for a puppy! I think your lessons are doing the job!"
Aimee
WA, USA
"I truly enjoyed getting to know Emma as a person as well as a highly qualified trainer! I like her style!! She takes the time to listen to the problem/question and gives a complete and understandable answer! Very down to earth, upbeat, and positive! The documentation provided is a very nice touch! It reinforces everything that was covered during the session. This especially helps me not forget certain aspects of the lesson. I can relate different aspects of what our two terriers are doing to the training we’ve received. For instance now I can spot things the dogs are doing and say to myself “Emma would suggest this…… “!"
Pamela
NC, USA
New stories are added frequently, feel free to check back soon!
Emma is amazing and we will sing her praises until the end of time.
We have two Welsh terriers. Our older male wasn’t the easiest to train but with LOTS of practice he got high praise from trainers, groomers, and vets alike that he was the best Welsh Terrier they had ever met.
We introduced Momo, a female Welsh puppy, to our household over New Years and we noticed she was having some behavioral issues including guarding her food, the couch and the bed plus biting. She bit my husband and my brother multiple times, drawing blood, and my husband even had to go on antibiotics. At the very same time she was incredibly loving, sweet, and smart and every single time we thought about rehoming we would look at her, cuddled up in our laps and think that we absolutely could not do that. We wanted to work to get her to integrate into our family.
We were so distraught and considering all of our options and reached out to a Welsh Terrier group online. Some of the members there recommended Emma. We figured why not and contacted her.
She was incredibly understanding, supportive, and helpful. The beginning was overwhelming as we had to change almost our entire lifestyle and schedule to accommodate the recommended changes BUT we fully bought in and after only 2 weeks we saw MASSIVE improvement. We finished up with our behavioral program with zero more blood drawing bites even until today! She does occasionally bite at us but it is very gentle. Her guarding has improved so much. Now she can even snap herself out of it sometimes.
We will continue to work with her but it no longer feels insurmountable and we no longer feel alone. We will be taking more training classes with Emma and would recommend them to anyone feeling alone, afraid of their dog, and at their wit’s end.
Emma has given us our daughter back, there are no words that could ever convey how grateful we feel. Thank you, Emma, thank you so much.
We are so happy to have had Emma and Miles take us through Advanced Foundations. Our bond with Griffin has been accelerated through the training and games that have become a part of every day life now. A greater understanding of dog behaviors builds that bond, makes life easier and makes our love for Griffin greater. It’s been an amazing first 5 months, looking forward to that same enjoyment for years to come. Thank you.
I enrolled myself and our Welsh Terrier, Obi, in this personalized program several months ago. Obi is a fantastic little guy, but he has challenges, like the rest of us. He was struggling reactivity to all sorts of random sounds. It was nearly impossible to walk him on a busy day unless it was super early or very late. It was nearly impossible to watch TV because he couldn’t handle anything he saw on it. He also enjoyed running up behind me, jumping, and playfully nipping at my hands or rear end. He wasn’t doing it aggressively; he just clearly thought it was fun.
Emma provided strategies to reduce all these behaviors and she was able to determine that Obi needed something more than behavior modification to conquer the extreme sensitivity to many sounds. She gave me some documentation to aid my vet in feeling confident about prescribing something for Obi.
Now, with months having passed, I was thinking about the progress we’ve made and how much better Obi is doing – and undoubtedly feeling about sounds. Our family is very grateful for the assistance Emma provided and WHOLEHEARTEDLY RECOMMEND HER FOR HER SKILLS AND PATIENCE IN DEALING WITH THESE MORE CHALLENGING BEHAVIORS.
Obi has graduated from several of Emma’s programs and they’ve all offered us valuable skills – even tricks! – but this one was probably the one that made the biggest impact on Obi and his humans.
If your terrier is struggling with challenges that seem impossible to deal with, give Emma a try. You’ll be amazed and what she can help you accomplish.
My spouse and I are lifetime dog people, and previously raised a Welsh Terrier from puppy-hood through to old age. He was the most challenging (and special!) dog I had ever known. After he passed, he left a enormous hole in our lives, but we did not feel totally up to the task of raising another Welsh. We also have a senior Wire Fox Terrier, and we were concerned about how she might adjust to having a puppy in the house.
That’s when I found Emma’s blog and her Terrier Academy. I contacted her with the intent of maybe adopting a puppy, and she was so enormously kind and helpful. We started talking about a year before we even adopted. She worked with our Wire Fox to prepare her for puppy life, and put us in touch with an amazing WT breeder. Contacting her in advance (before our puppy was even whelped!) set us up for total success, and was the best thing we could have done.
We had so many issues with our previous WT that we raised on our own (including digestive, potty training, and behavioral); Emma is well aware of all of these, and has detailed plans for how to *prevent* them (prevention is key!). We aren’t experiencing ANY of these issues with our new puppy.
Puppy-hood is never easy, but with Emma on your side, you can learn to truly understand your developing pup and build important habits that will carry on into adulthood. If you’re considering adopting a terrier, especially a Welsh Terrier, don’t hesitate to reach out to Emma in advance; I am so, SO glad that we did. She is truly the Terrier Oracle, and we cannot recommend her more highly. Thank you so much, Emma and Miles!
We are so pleased and fortunate to be working with Emma Kesler (and Miles 🐾). We have always had a dog but in the past failed to get serious about training. This time around, with Griffin, our Welsh Terrier puppy, we are learning so much more about a dog’s behavior as well as our own behavior towards dogs. Emma shares insights that make so much sense, that are so logical from a dog’s perspective it only makes the lessons that much more enjoyable for ourselves and Griffin. Emma has helped us realize just how smart Griffin is and the potential she has. We truly understand how important this short period of time we have, during Griffin’s time as a puppy, to shape her behaviors and skills. Emma has provided us the knowledge and guidance to be successful in training and bonding with Griffin. A true joy and rewarding adventure Emma has embarked us on.