Testimonials

“When I first contacted Amanda I was considering rehoming my dog due to his unmanageable behaviour. I thought there would never be anyone who could help us. After our first session I saw so many improvements and started to see there may be some hope.”

When I first contacted Amanda I was considering rehoming my dog due to his unmanageable behaviour. I thought there would never be anyone who could help us. After our first session I saw so many improvements and started to see there may be some hope. Amanda is so responsive, willing to answer questions via text between sessions, and always willing to help come up with a solution to help us. A few months later, I feel like Theo has turned into a brand new dog, and we can go on so many adventures together thanks to his training. Amanda helped me regain my confidence as a leader for Theo, while helping Theo develop confidence. I will never be able to thank Amanda enough for helping Theo and I learn how to function as a team, and help Theo become my best friend again.

— Laura and Theo

“You can definitely tell that Amanda is passionate about her work with our pups and my dog has shown so much improvement that she's a completely different dog with very little reactivity and learning good manners very quickly”

Amanda is absolutely amazing!! I was struggling with a very reactive unmanageable dog who also constantly pulled on the leash when going for walks. In just 6 sessions she has changed my dog's behaviour and the way I manage her behaviour completely. She takes the time to get to know you & your dog and to understand where their behaviour is coming from. I rescued my dog from Mexico approximately 2 years ago. She was a street dog who probably had to fight for her food and she was very reactive to other dogs and had no manners what so ever. Walks with Kallie were very stressful, unpredictable and not enjoyable at all. Working with Amanda has changed all that. She has given me the tools and skills to know what my dog needs from me and a better command of my dog so our walks can be successful and enjoyable. Amanda came to my house and various places around our area so she could get a real understanding of why Kallie behaved the way she did and offered many training tips and exercises to practice with Kallie which I worked on every week in between our lessons. You can definitely tell that Amanda is passionate about her work with our pups and my dog has shown so much improvement that she's a completely different dog with very little reactivity and learning good manners very quickly. Now Kallie & I have a great, loving relationship. I can't thank Amanda enough!! I highly recommend Amanda & Loving Leaders Dog Training, she is the Absolute Best!!

— Kathy and Kallie

“She really takes the time to get to know you and your dog and move through your concerns, struggles, and questions with a hands-on approach.”

I highly recommend Amanda. I was struggling with anxious and reactive behaviours with my dog Walter. He struggled to relax in the house; often going out of control barking and jumping on guests. He pulled and yanked me on the leash on our walks, and lunged at anything going by.

Amanda really helped me understand Walter and what he needed from me. She not only gave me MANY exercises and tips to do with Walter in all aspects of his day but changed my mindset as well. Having been to previous trainers in the past, all I knew was shoving treats at the problem to try and distract him into doing what I wanted. What Amanda helped me see is that what he needed from me is to be a strong and confident leader, that implements boundaries and expectations. She really takes the time to get to know you and your dog and move through your concerns, struggles, and questions with a hands-on approach. Each time I left feeling confident that I could follow through and practice everything she had shown me. After my time with Amanda, I feel I have way more confidence in myself and an understanding of what Walter needs. I have seen huge improvements in his behaviour. He can successfully complete loose leash walks, calmly greets guests, and understands when it is time to be calm in the house. I was also able to use some of her behaviour training techniques to help him co-exist with my backyard chickens without chasing or even bothering with them at all.

If you are struggling with your pup and are feeling like you don't know what to do next, reach out to Amanda. You won't regret it!

— Becka and Walter

“She takes the time to understand your goal for your dog’s behavior.”

Amanda’s approach to dog training is excellent! Really the training is less about training your dog than it is about training the “owner”. Consistency is fundamental to success. She takes the time to understand your goal for your dog’s behavior.  She provides the pros and cons of how we interact as owners and lets us decide if the resulting behavior in Charley is acceptable to us or not. In the end, we are the ones who may need to change to get the desired result. She is patient and supportive and Charley loves her!

— MJ and Charley

“The difference has been incredible! Oby has responded so well to Amanda’s kind, loving but firm approach. Walking has now become enjoyable and Oby is much better behaved.”

Amanda has been working with our one year old Maltese, Oby, for a couple of months now. We were struggling with some difficult behaviours such as ankle biting, door dodging and problems with walking (pulling, growling at other dogs etc).

The difference has been incredible! Oby has responded so well to Amanda’s kind, loving but firm approach. Walking has now become enjoyable and Oby is much better behaved.

Amanda’s flexibility to do “in home” and individual sessions helped us target exact behaviours and learn the skills in the environment that the problems were occurring.

I would highly recommend Amanda to anyone needing some help! Thanks so much for all you have done.

— Jenna and Oby

“Amanda is a very knowledgeable trainer who is also professional, reliable and great to work with. ”

I purchased a package of 6 sessions with Loving Leader Dog Training spring of 2023 and found it to be a great investment to learn how to get the best behaviour from my dog. Amanda is a very knowledgeable trainer who is also professional, reliable and great to work with. She is also excellent with written follow up communication to reinforce things to work on as as introduced in sessions. A very positive experience and the skills I have learned have strengthened my relationship with my 3 year old lab border mix. Thanks Amanda :-)

— Brian and Mila

“In about four weeks' time, Amanda gave me an almost completely different little dog. She solved my problem!”

I adopted a puppy just before we went into lock down back in October. Even though I had a dog before the had never raised a puppy before. As time went by it became increasingly difficult for me to walk him because of his incessant pulling on the leash.

I hired Amanda Derks as a dog trainer because I knew that I didn't just have a puppy problem, I had a handler problem, ME.

She came to my house and worked with my doggie and then she worked with me to get my skills up to snuff. Within just about 4 weeks it was like I had a completely different dog.

I'm so grateful to her because I was literally at my wits end because I thought if I couldn't get the problem under control, I would have no other option than to return him to the breeder.

In about four weeks' time, Amanda gave me an almost completely different little dog. She solved my problem!

Thank you so much, Amanda, you're a life saver!

— D’vorah and Pooch

“She takes a loving attentive approach to training and is amazing with my German Shepherd! ”

Amanda is fabulous!!  She takes a loving attentive approach to training and is amazing with my German Shepherd! She's helped me gain more confidence and helped me take Dakota to the next level of training passed the basic training I had already achieved. Her sweet, kind approach has won over my dog. He loves her and is eager to please her when she arrives for training. And then I follow through with the lessons until I see her again. I highly recommend her for your dog training needs, she truly is the best!

— Tammy and Dakota

“Amanda and her skills have changed everything for me about walking my dogs. She trained both myself and my dogs.”

Amanda and I met in the forest one day when my dogs were “behaving badly” .. her dog was being perfect! My dogs had become reactive to other dogs when on a leash. Amanda and her skills have changed everything for me about walking my dogs. She trained both myself and my dogs. I now have the tools and skill set to confidently walk my dogs. The training does not stop…we practise it every walk we take...and it works better all the time. I do highly recommend Amanda - Loving Leader Dog Training.

— Nancy and Arlo

“I highly recommend, Amanda is hands down the best! She is passionate about what she does and it shows!”

I highly recommend, Amanda is hands down the best! She is passionate about what she does and it shows! We had a trouble with our little guy and she helped turn him around, we can’t believe how well behaved and obedient he is now! It truly is night and day. She worked with us on scheduling and even came to us. She is respectful, responsive, and caring. For anyone that is having trouble with their pups or just wants some additional training there is with out a doubt in my mind no one better for the job! Thank you so much we will be sending everyone we know straight to you if they are looking for training!

“With some wonderful guidance and understanding, he has come a very long way with his reactivity and we can finally go on walks every day. ”

Amanda is very professional and took the time to come to our house and really address our concerns with our dog. With some wonderful guidance and understanding, he has come a very long way with his reactivity and we can finally go on walks every day. She is very accommodating and willing to help train with her own dog involved as well. Amanda's ideas work and we are having great success with all of her training tools. We highly recommend Loving Leader Dog Training and will continue working together.

— Nita and Dixon

“Once we started working with Amanda we saw results immediately. She helped us address our own behaviour that was contributing to the issues and gave us the tools to build a better relationship with our dog. ”

Amanda has been life changing! We had a highly anxious and leash reactive pug, walks were embarrassing and stressful. We felt like we couldn’t leave the house. We wanted a second pug but knew we couldn’t add to our family until the first one was well trained. Once we started working with Amanda we saw results immediately. She helped us address our own behaviour that was contributing to the issues and gave us the tools to build a better relationship with our dog. Within 3 months our pug was so well behaved that we were getting compliments about what a good dog she was and were able to bring her in stores and around other dogs without any stress! After 4 months we were able to adopt another pug and this time we are working with Amanda from the start! I wish I’d hired her sooner and would recommend anyone with a dog to start and continue training.

— Carrie and Meadow & Maple

“If you think that all is lost and there is no hope for your adopted dog, email Amanda first. You will not regret it.”

Where do I even start?...I first reached out to Amanda when I was at my most desperate. When I first met Amanda not only did she have this calming presence about her but she was not scared by my large Shepheard mix dog barking at her. Within the first session she gave me tools to stop one of the horrible behavior of biting my arm whenever we were going a direction that he didn't want that my dog developed. As always it's nearly always the human's issue that triggers the dog and not the dog himself. Then she checked in a week later to make sure that I didn't have any questions/concerns and to see how it was going. I was so lost and she helped me. I can not recommend her enough. She's given me confidence, she's given my dog confidence, and she responded back to my first panic email within 24 hours. If you think that all is lost and there is no hope for your adopted dog, email Amanda first. You will not regret it.

— Cailyn and Aries

“The results have been immediate. People around our neighbourhood always comment on how responsive and well-behaved my pup is now. ”

Training with Amanda has been transformational for my pup. I started out in a group-training class where the advice I got was to just bribe good behaviour at every stage (effectively just throwing treats at the dog anytime he exhibited either good or bad behaviour). I wasn't getting results, and after reading Amanda's story on her website I started working with her instead. The results have been immediate. People around our neighbourhood always comment on how responsive and well-behaved my pup is now. Would definitely, definitely recommend people give Loving Leader Dog Training a try.

— Amrit and Zephyr

“She packs our sessions full of practical advice and exercises that have helped me integrate my dog into my lifestyle, which has ultimately led to a much happier household.”

My puppy absolutely loves training with Amanda and can’t wait to see her every week!! She packs our sessions full of practical advice and exercises that have helped me integrate my dog into my lifestyle, which has ultimately led to a much happier household. As a first time dog owner she has been great at explaining the fundamentals and is always available to answer any questions or concerns that have come up. Amanda is creative at practicing every day scenarios that may be challenging which has made me feel confident in my ability to bring my puppy into new situations and environments. It also feels great to have neighbours compliment my on how well behaved my dog is! Looking forward to continuing our training!

— Amanda and Zephyr