I joined MPFV because I had heard about the program from a friend who attended. I had a dog who turned out to be eager to learn so I thought I'd take a chance and try it. I wanted the discipline not only for my dog to make her a better pet, but I also wanted to do something for myself with other vets and after a couple of visits I knew I had found a place.

Stepping into a crowd of people and dogs you don’t know can be intimidating, but you can take comfort in the fact that it's everyone's first time at this so you're not alone. The staff and helpers are there to help and that's just what they want to do.....let them!

As I said, I have added confidence that comes in handy out in public and if you train enough, you can be ready for just about every situation. Also, the training practices include principles applicable to other things you can teach your dog. We're not just learning a bunch of repeatable tricks, we're learning how to take care of our dogs physically and mentally. Understanding why animals behave the way they do and how they tend to think is important to raising a healthy well-adjusted dog.

I have a strong sense of belonging to this group and I'm grateful I tried it. Knowing you can continue as either a helper or dropping in for a tune-up is great to have as an option and something to look forward to. 

If you have a support person (spouse, children, friend, relative) who participated in this journey with you, how has this program impacted them? My wife Linda had a great experience as well. She has benefitted from all of the training she has learned in class by watching the rest of us train and has her own dog, Charley, at home to practice with. 

Rick Lajoie USAF