ABC’s of Dog Training LLC

Actually I was pretty disappointed that no one has bothered to return my voicemail about my unruly pup. I was shopping around for someone to socialize /​train my one year old and was interested in coming to your weekend events, but I guess we’re not invited.

Mike and Joe of ABCs of Dog Training LLC are wonderful trainers and are very heavy-​duty animal lovers and advocates. We have a high energy; working line German Shepherd who is trained by them. When he was 9 months old he was terrible, to live with, destructive and starting to get aggressive. We did a Google search and called a number of local trainers. Most did not return our call and some insisted we sign up for a series of lessons. ABCs of Dog Training called us back and did not make any demands. They were straight forward about their fees and fair. They came exactly on time and evaluated our dog. They said he was a great dog, they are right. They taught us how to live with our dog. Their methods are kind and positive not harsh or mean in any way. They showed us everything that we were doing wrong with kindness and humor. They taught us commands such as Heel, Sit, Down, Come and Stay. In addition the dog loved the training sessions with Mike and Joe. We finished the formal training lessons with them after about 10 lessons. They told us the training was over. They are not money hungry guys. Our dog requires continuous training so as not to slide backwards. They suggested we attend Free Doggie Boot Camp in Astoria Park every Saturday from March until the end of October. Someone in our family brings our Shepherd every Saturday to the park for the training and we have been doing it for 3 seasons, without fail. The dog and I love that we still get to see Mike and Joe every weekend and continue training. They are very professional at the park and give all dog owners and dogs’ equal attention and help.
Did you know that they started this free training program so that people could adopt rescue dogs from shelters and be able to keep them?
3 years later and we are still regulars at Astoria Park because of Mike and Joe and also because it’s fun. Even though my dog is fully trained, the socialization with other dogs is great and it’s something that everyone should continue doing. My dog really enjoys going to Doggie Boot Camp every Saturday and greets Mike and Joe with a big kiss!
I see that there are some negative reviews on Unilocal but I don’t agree with them. I think everyone should take a chance and come to Astoria Park on a Saturday for Free Doggie Boot Camp and see for themselves.
P. S. Mike was also the Queens New Yorker of the Week on NY1 for the Free Doggie Boot Camp. You should look it up, it aired July 4^th weekend.

When I moved to Astoria six years ago, I loved the idea of a dog training group setting up in Astoria Park and was happy to see the ABC’s tent every Saturday. Now I cringe when I see it, because I’ve watched their methods and have concluded that they’re motivated entirely by profit and not enough by love of dogs. If the latter was their priority, they would advise people with off-​leash dogs to ABIDE BY THE LAW. Today I watched the two gentlemen in charge sit behind their table and visit with a man and his son who had a lab running around, NOT listening to them, and gave him not a word of suggestion or reprimand about NYC law or Astoria Park rules, which state that dogs cannot be unleashed after 9am or before 9pm (it was mid-​day). The man with the off-​leash dog clearly fancied himself a dog expert or something close to one, and continually attempted to recall his dog as it circled the trainers’ table and forced contact with on-​leash dogs. He commanded his dog by saying «NO, sit,» or «NO, come,» which are entirely mixed signals and did nothing but to confuse his dog, and he repeated those commands frantically. He was essentially doing everything wrong. Commands should be clear and singular, NOT combined with «no,» and stated once, until the dog complies. Why weren’t the «experts» intervening?
I don’t need to justify why this was wrong because the law has done that for me. It’s in place for MANY good reasons. But, since so many people choose to ignore it, it’s clearly worth mentioning that combining dogs who are on-​leash with those who are not is a BAD idea. It creates an imbalance in control on the parts of the dogs, and those who are on-​leash know that they are at a disadvantage (leash aggression is a common problem for dogs in the city who are continually pulled back from others; the restraint sends a message to them that the dog they’re trying to approach is dangerous and they should protect their owner/​s).
I’ve worked with two extremely reputable and successful dog trainers, one with Andrea Arden (who is an Animal Planet consultant) and another who’s based in Chelsea and apprenticed Cesar, and though their philosophies and methods were different (the first uses pure positive reinforcement, giving treats and using a clicker to trigger Pavlovian response, the latter trains through assertiveness, establishing the human’s role as pack leader without treats), and both condemn dog trainers who allow people with no expertise or control to have their dogs off-​leash.
I’m not militant about this law. I have no problem with the dogs who stick to the grassy knoll near the training tent, at the 23^rd Ave. entrance, and play ball or frisbee with their owners. If they aren’t approaching my dogs, I don’t see it as any of my business. But one of my dogs was attacked by an off-​leash dog in the park when he was 8 months old (sadly, he was wonderfully social with other dogs before this and never showed signs of aggression), and though I have perfect control over him after years of very hard work, I’m unable to cement a positive perception of other dogs within him because all the progress we make is undone each time he’s approached by an unruly, off-​leash dog. I’m forced to pull him to my side and perpetuate the problem every time it happens, in an effort to protect the moron in question’s dog (he is a quarter pit, and will lock and hold other dogs since he’s fearful and wants only to restrain, not to injure… but this is clearly still an awful and damaging experience for all parties involved). I’m also extremely nervous, which he feels, and there’s no amount of yoga I can do to relieve my anxiety and its negative effect on him because people with off-​leash dogs are taking my hard-​won control away from me. I carry a muzzle with me at all times, to compensate for the stupidity and laziness of others, because I love dogs deeply and don’t want to see one badly hurt.
The ABC’s owners should know and act upon all of these facts, but they don’t. As far as I can tell, they reinforce the problem. I’ve spoken with members of the Astoria Park Alliance, and they don’t even recommend this group. Not a good sign.
I also have to be a bit of a grammar elitist, as a writer, and point out that their sign says Private Lesson’s Available. If you’re going to create a permanent sign that represents your business, don’t make a plural word a possessive. It makes me doubt you.