Once upon a time there were these two adorable, fluffy King Charles Cavalier mixes. Princess Waffles and Lady Caviar. They ruled their palaces and did as their royal asses pleased. They were so spunky and cute!
Until they weren’t.
Even the most well intentioned dog owners can get overwhelmed and that precious puppy becomes a huge nuisance if there isn’t a solid plan in place. We had no plan aside from potty training with the fun little potty training bells and teaching them to sit and hopefully stay.
What went wrong?
Waffles bolted out the door one day and she is world record setting style fast. I tried to grab her, but she was cutting on a dime like it was the freakin’ NFL combine. She was run over by a car on a busy street by my house. I spatula-ed her body off the street. Blood was all over my hands, I felt bad for her, but I was also pissed at the whole situation. How did it get to this?! She had no respect, life was a big playground and it had now become a huge safety issue.
She was diagnosed with a scrape. Dodged a bullet there, didn’t you Waffles?! This was the last straw and something had to change.
Cavi was having accidents daily, chewing shoes, jumping up on people and basically having zero respect for us. She thought she was top dog, and she wasn’t far off.
Waffles and Cavi had no manners, no self control and no boundaries.
Enter: Brad Bevill. Coming in clutch.
We asked around for recommendations and searched the internet. Bevill was the only one that kept coming up over and over. A few things stood out right away about Brad and his team that made them different. They didn’t look like your usual dog training crew, they looked a little more, um, relatable. Less ponytail and fanny pack, more swagger and fun.
We could tell they knew their stuff and put major effort into their website, sometimes a terrible website is a deal breaker and shows a lack of being with it. As a small business owner myself, I know how a really well done website sets the tone for the whole experience. Their tone was exactly what we were looking for.
How did we decide what we wanted to do?
After a bit of research we decided that The Littles Boot Camp was what we were the most interested in. This is a behavioral basics, socialization and in-home behavior three week retreat for dogs under 20 lbs! Well that sounds just about perfect, after we watched this video though…
weeeeeee were sooooooold.
We reached out through their website and got our evaluation booked right away. Our puppies were 5 months old at the time we contacted them in May. With such a great reputation, comes a waitlist. Waffles and Cavi wouldn’t be able to get in until the end of august. Worth the wait for sure.
The Evaluation
At the evaluation, we showed up with literally THE most annoying hyperactive dogs in Texas, maybe the Northern Hemisphere IDK. After sitting down with Brad for about an hour, not only did we feel like our dogs would be in the best hands, we left feeling like we made a friend! When you meet with him and see how he handles your obnoxious dog, you just open your wallet, make it rain and frisbee your credit cards at him because you just want a well behaved, polite dog. And you know he can do it.
Take a look at how awful our dogs were at the evaluation. Waffles was stubborn and hyper and Cavi was a disconnected dope.
Training day couldn’t get here fast enough.
We shamefully dropped them off as sweet but psycho lunatics…
(not pictured: Irish coffee)
…and we still aren’t sure who we picked up a month later, because it wasn’t Waffles and Cavi. No way they are this easy now.
A big standing ovation for these 3 and the work they do! A 2.5 hour go home learning session and we were ready to carry on the good works of the Dogfather Brad, Robbie and Mari. We couldn’t be happier with Waffles and Cavi 2.0 and we couldn’t be happier that we found y’all! Thank you!!!
FAQs:
Will they take any dog for training? Yes. Any size, any age over 6 months, any problem, any breed. Must be spayed/neutered and vaccinated. They have other great options if you don’t have a spayed/neutered dog.
Is there a guarantee? What happens if my dog gets home and is terrible? Yes, they guarantee results if the owners put in the required work and if problems arise, they will continue working with you until you are happy. Keep in mind, these are animals and they will need total leadership from you. The trainers will do in home visits and continue to be in contact with you, they don’t leave you hanging. We have had our dogs home for 2 days and Brad has already checked in on us twice and offered suggestions.
Other trainers didn’t work, why will this one? They have a different approach focusing on the human-dog relationship and not negotiating using treats or food. These people are dog psychology experts and Brad told us at the first visit, “you don’t want your dog coming to you because you have food, you want your dog coming to you because it respects you.”
Do they train using e-collars? Depending on the dog’s needs, they use slip leashes, transitional leashes, prong collars, e-collars, bark collars, head halters, body language, their bodies, space, crates, food and structured socialization. Food is only used to accomplish something challenging for particular dogs.
Brad on e-collars:
What is the daily dog routine? A sample day for your dog when they return home is this:
- 6 am – wake up for potty break
- 6:15 am – 45-60 minute walk or treadmill
- 7 am – breakfast in crate
- 7:10 am – practice impulse control on cot while humans get ready for work
- 7:50 am – potty
- 8 am – crate while family is at work and school
- 12 pm – potty break and structured play (fetch, tug, etc)
- 12:45 pm – back in crate
- 5 pm – potty break
- 5:15 pm – 45 minute walk or treadmill
- 6 pm – space exercises (making dog stay in certain areas with invisible boundaries, not going in the kitchen, staying on one side of a threshold, etc)
- 6:20 pm – dinner in crate
- 6:30 pm – practice calm impulse control on a cot while humans eat
- 8:45 pm – structured play
- 9:45 pm – potty
- 10 pm – go to bed in crate
What commands do you give the dog? They taught us to use non verbal commands. No sit, stay, come, heel stuff.
How do I get my dog to QUIT barking? Answer coming soon from Brad, himself.
Answer has arrived.
How do I keep my dogs off the damn couch? Follow the three simple steps in the video below haha! Let it be known, Waffles is still attempting to get on the bed since she is back in her normal environment. I am having to use these techniques too so she knows what’s up!
How many weeks long was the program that you did? Our dogs did the 3 week program, but Brad thought they needed to be separated and have one final week to make sure they got it. He doesn’t charge extra if your dog needs to stay longer than the original plan.
What is the price? The Little Boot Camp was $2795, we paid half to book it, and then the other half when it was over. I will never own another dog without factoring training price into the total new dog ownership costs. Here are the other services they offer and prices:
- 3 week boot camp $2795
- 4 week boot camp $3695
- 5 week boot camp $4595
- aggression rehab $7995
- private consultation $495 (different from initial evaluation)
- structured boarding is available for dogs that have completed a boot camp and is $60 a night (100% taking advantage of this!!)
Are the dogs happy now and their true selves or are they suppressed? Channeling my inner Brad here, what does happy even mean? An excited dog is not happy, they are in an aroused state. Dogs get excited when they are doing positive and negative things, so seeing the excited reaction doesn’t necessarily mean happy. A happy dog is a balanced, content and peaceful one. A happy dog is not anxious, fearful or hyper. Dogs are so different from humans and it’s easy to think they have similar emotional needs. Waffles seems much more calm, she looks to me for guidance now and is really content. It’s not the same hyper, frantic personality she had, but that was precisely what brought me to take her to training in the first place. So both I guess? Ha!
What does Brad have to say about that?
Have the dogs lost their personalities? This goes with the question above and not at all! They just have boundaries and are respectful now instead of totally out of control. They are still very much have the same personality, but being able to calm down and take direction is a huge upgrade.
I have a 9 week old puppy, did they give you any basic training tips? I really really want her to behave like a Bevill dog! Follow @bevilldogbehavior on instagram and check out the highlights, lots of good info!
Do they still play? They’re very chill. They do! We are playing with the dogs more than ever! It’s structured, it’s planned and it’s still fun! No longer are they shredding paper under the bed and running wild through the house jumping on furniture, but I promise they are still having a great day and we are all happier! A few thoughts on structured play and the semi controversial subject that it is below.
What is the purpose of them working out on the treadmill? Physical exercise fulfills a dog’s instincts and works their body. Since it isn’t always realistic to take your dog on two 45-60 minute walks a day, it’s ok to do the treadmill for one of those so that they can get the amount of exercise that is recommended.
Do they accept Corgis from California? If you can get them there, he will make your short legged buddies the best, most well mannered Corgis that they can be.
Do you let your pup sleep in the bed with you? We both did. Now we both do not. It was easier to just stick them in bed with us when they were puppies so they would sleep and stay quiet. The instructions in our go home info said to keep them off the furniture. Space is huge for dogs. We as their humans are supposed to dictate where and when they can be in a certain space. If they can get on our bed whenever, then they see it as their space and there are no limits. A dog should have to be invited to come into any space. They can’t just claim your bed and you still have control. Eventually, if we decide we want to, we can invite the dog onto our bed.
Do you think Brad sleeps with dogs in his bed? Let’s find out…
How long did it take for your puppy to be completely potty trained? Probably about 4-6 weeks. However, months later, if Waffles could sneak upstairs and not be found out, she would take a dump somewhere.
My dog is obsessed with me. How do I keep him from being so needy?
Tell us Brad.
What are we using now that they are home to continue the training?
- Bed: When we entered Brads house for the go home session his 3 pups just laid there the entire time on these. They didn’t get up, bark or even care we were there. They knew to stay where they were told and that was in this cozy little bed.
- Treadmill: Used when walks are not an option. The morning walk is hard for me to fit in with the rush to get kids to school. Treadmill walk while I’m making breakfast works great. They are always supervised.
- Slip Lead: These are used for walks and also to tether to cot while working on impulse control. We use the figure 8 method on walks for now but as they get more used to us and know that we mean business we can give them more rope…or leash.
- Toys: A rope, balls for fetch or a flirt stick…playtime stays simple.The toys must be presented by the owner. They are not just out for the dog to enjoy as they please.
- Cot: Their home base. Used for impulse control training.
- Crate: They eat and sleep in a here. It will also be where they stay during any times that they are unsupervised.
Want to see Waffles and Cavi’s journey from wild puppies with no boundaries to well balanced doggies? The video shows them from the beginning all the way up until now, the first time Brad met them and other fun stuff.
They are adorable, but im glad i have cats. They are as lazy as me.
I havent cHanged my name…. its still linda
I do love me a lazy cat! This dog thing is a lot of work!!!
Ladies, you continue to impress me. You are fun, informative, thorough, real, and just downright awesome! Love that you and Brad answered my question. I even got a video answer…eep!!!!
You are the best! Thank you for your feedback!!!!
I just am so FASCINATED by this whole thing!! It almost makes me want to get a puppy. almost.
dooooo it! actually probably do not do it. I know we tend to take on an overload of things, but I currently feel like I have a baby in the house with this training stuff!
Brad had asked for me to elaborate on my question . . .
So, whenever i take my dog outside she barks like a crazy girl at other people & dogs.
(this also happens with a knock on the door). It pulls away her focus away to do her thing outside.
advice would be sooo appreciated! #SOfrusterated!
I will pass on this info and hopefully he has some wise words!
Thanks PaIge! 😉
Btw both of YoUr pups Look like Such sweeties! 😍