If you have an older, reactive, anxious, poor decision making dog this review is for you. This will be a little long but for good reason. Our lives are forever changed based on the training we did with Frances at RootsK9. Here is our summed up story: Lulu was 7-1/2 when we added a corgi puppy to our family this spring. I knew we were in for a challenge because Lulu was struggling to have any type of appropriate social skills. She was reactive and down right scary around other dogs and some people. I googled dog trainers in Norman and started making calls (mind you this was in April at the beginning of the Pandemic closures). My goal was to have our Lulu be able to cohabitate with our new family member without any danger to him. Several trainers told me that would likely not happen, because dogs with this type of social problems are pretty much set. Frances however told me that it was a realistic goal with the right plan, commitment, and consistency. She gave me hope! That sealed the deal and when closures where lifted we started at home training. Now, dog training is tricky business because not only did Frances need to show up with a plan of action for Lulu, she also had to build a plan to train Lulu's human (me). We would meet every week to 2 weeks and build on the progress we made. Frances was available for questions as we worked through our set backs and challenges and she always gave me the direction I needed. I committed to Frances' plan and worked with our dogs daily. We spent 6 solid months of consistent work with my Lulu and I can't begin to tell you how much has changed for us. Lulu was a quick study and loved the structure we brought in. She has a whole new life now and honestly she is a completely different dog. She is happy, balanced, and as you can see in the pictures, she is safe around her baby brother. Living her best life for sure! If you are looking for a trainer that rights the wrongs in your older dog look no further! RootsK9 has changed our lives!

I’m not sure where we would be with our dog right now without the training and guidance from Roots K9. After yet another barking, growling, pulling, incident with her on an evening walk, we started a desperate search for help. Our whole family is so glad that we made the decision to get our dog the training we all needed. Frances worked with us to personalize a program that fit our needs and goals and guided us through the whole process. Now instead of keeping her inside the house to avoid trigger encounters and embarrassing, awkward situations with neighbors, we have a dog that is loving, happy, and enjoyable to be around. We have started traveling more with her and relaxing on our evening walks instead of always worrying about what she might do or what might happen when she encountered other dogs or people. Frances is amazing and we are so glad to have found her.

My husband and I cannot say enough good things about Frances. Her personal training was a big investment for us but our dog Avery was exhibiting seemingly aggressive behavior toward other people and dogs and we had to do something to fix it. We have done 9 total sessions with Frances and now taking Avery for a walk or an outing is a whole different experience. She pays attention and listens to us and she has learned she can be simply curious instead of anxious and aggressive. We truly could not have done this without Frances and would highly recommend her services to anyone. - Maggie Fair

I rescued my 80-lb 2-yr-old lab mix dog off a highway in Oct 2018. “Goldie” and I couldn’t get settled into life together. In fact, things were escalating the wrong direction! G thought she was in charge, whining and following me everywhere until she got what she wanted- dinner, a walk, playtime- there was never a break. I could not have friends over as she would jump on them. Going for walks was very scary as she is so strong and reacted to everything. It looked like I would have to give her away to get my life and sanity back! After 40 years of thinking i was a decent dog owner I realized I was clueless.

Last July I found Frances Whalen and sent G to her two-week boot camp. It was a miracle! Now I have an always available coach to help me be the dog trainer Goldie needs me to be. When I go away G boards at Roots K9, giving her socialization with other trained dogs and reinforcing her many new skills. My friends marvel while G waits on her “place” cot when they come to the door. We go for long walks walking next to each other. She happily comes promptly when called, no longer digs holes in the yard, can be trusted off leash, rarely barks, and really likes hanging out in her crate. Life is good! Thank you Frances for retraining me! -Holly Van Auken

I was hesitant to send our puppy to training because of the cost. I didn't want to shell out a ton of money and not have the results that we were needing. I had already gone through a 6 week puppy training class and we learned some basic commands, but it did nothing for the real problem. Our 40lb puppy would jump on everyone and I could barely walk her on a leash without her almost pulling my shoulder out of socket! We moved to town from the country and decided that we didn't have any other choice and started looking for a trainer. After looking into many trainers and programs and talking to past clients, we decided to send our puppy to Frances for a 2 week board & train. I would pay Frances her fee over and over again and again because what she did in just 2 weeks for our puppy was miraculous. No more leash pulling, ever, and when the door bell rings, she goes to her "place" and waits until she is told she can come off. My 7 year old can walk her!!!! I can take her to the park with the kids and if I have to go help them, I can tell her "down" and she will stay in that spot until she gets permission to leave it. A busy park, with lots of kids, dogs, and a busy road. Never would I have imagined that situation was possible. What Frances did for us is PRICELESS. She changed our lives and now we can all live in a happy house with a happy puppy that is more than willing to please. If you are reading this because you are looking into a dog trainer, stop looking and call Frances. It will be worth it and you will have zero regrets. -Crystal L

Frances has really done her homework on how to train dogs to make better choices. We had been training our German Shepard/lab for a year and though he was so much better, we couldn’t get over his occasional outbursts at people. We had to do something else and so we took him to Frances. She helped us understand how to tackle the root of his problem with arousal and work with that instead of just the people issue. Now that we know what to look for and have the tools and knowledge to use them, we can work on his arousal at home, continuing what she worked on for the last month. Without Frances, we would have been stuck and our boy Dart wouldn’t have been able to go all the places he can now!