Reviews (35)

Kristi is an amazing dog trainer who helped my fiance and I with our German Shepard puppy. She was able to train our puppy extremely well and give us the proper guidance to follow through with the trainings on our own. We went from feeling completely lost to being extremely happy with the relationship we have with our puppy.

Kirsti is the very best! She is very knowledgeable, competent and professional. We worked with her for a few months before we sent Otto to stay with her for two weeks. He came back a new dog, and my daily life has improved drastically. I can now trust my dog in public places and he walks on the least beautifully. I also feel like I understand him more and know how to communicate better with him. I recommend everyone to do training with her! If I could give her ten stars, I would!

Kirsti and TJ are absolutely phenomenal! My once very reactive German Shepherd has come leaps and bounds with their helpful training and tips! He no longer lunges at cars - 90% of the time. (can't always be perfect lol) Our walks are something I look forward to daily now. I no longer dread taking him out and we are so much more in tune with each other. I can't thank them enough for helping me and my boy become better together.

Kirsti and Tj are the best! They are so easy to work with and make sure you fully understand the process. With their help my once leash reactive boy is becoming a much calmer dog and I'm becoming a calmer human. Not only has he learned a lot, but I have as well, we now work as a team and our walks are have become less stressful and more enjoyable. They are the best and I highly recommend them!

I can’t say enough good things about Ampodog Training and the amazing owner, Kristi. She came right to my house and in less than thirty minutes, had my Labrador leash trained and walking calmly beside me. It was absolutely remarkable to watch. Kristi has such a calm, confident presence that dogs instantly respond to and she explains everything in a way that’s easy to follow and repeat on your own. She is incredibly personable too! You can tell she truly cares about helping both the dog and the owner succeed. If you’re anywhere near the Scranton area and need a skilled, compassionate dog trainer, Kristi is the one to call. Highly recommend!

Kirstie and Trevor are absolutely wonderful! We took our year old puppy to them and he's great! I highly recommend. They are so caring and keep you up to date during training. I can't say enough good things about these two!

We cannot say enough about our experience with Kirsti. Leo was so leash reactive towards people and especially towards other dogs. I did so much research and talked to many dog trainers. My gut told me to trust Kirsti.. After just a few sessions, we were able to communicate so much better with Leo. We no longer dread walks!! THANK YOU for all of your help! Dog owners— look no further. This is the trainer to go with!

Ampo Dog Training has made my life 100% better. In so so many ways possible. Kirsti Smith who runs this company has taken my dog Emerson and kept up his training whenever he has stayed with her. He lays down when I say down--he heels when I say heel. Now you must remember Emerson is a wild crazy child who is so fast and WAS uncontrollable UNTIl Kirsti took him and put some wonderful manners on him! My family said "WHERE DID THIS DOG COME FROM THIS NEW EMERSON!!??" I say "AMPO DOG TRAINING OF COURSE!!" Now only did she brush up on his training she helped me when I had a problem with my collar and went out of her way to handle everything for me. Whenever I called with questions she talked me through everything I needed to know, night or day. . To say nothing of giving me nutritional advice which is super important if you love your dog as I do.I personlly would never leave Emerson with anyone else--not even my children, Emerson is my life and I trust Kirsti Smith with his life! Emerson fell in love with her and didn't want to leave! So I said "Come Emerson" and off he went with me! You simply will jump with joy when your dog comes home to you. I can take Emerson anywhere now and he has a life now has him happy every single day. Me too! I will enclose a photo of my magic boy .Kirsti also took may photo s while she had him which wa ssuper fun! Trust me when I say going to Ampo Dog Training will the best thing yoiu ever did!

Kirsti is AMAZING! She came to our house and provided us with all the information and tools we needed to turn our unruly pittbull (adopted) into a proper young lady! I have a completely different (and better) relationship with my dog … she listens and follows commands 😁. HIGHLY recommend for both training and boarding!

Kirsti at AMPODOG came to us at a very difficult time with our dog, Bennie. He had been recently rehomed to us, and we quickly realized that we were out of our depth with his behavioral challenges. We were lucky to find Kirsti and that she was able to take Bennie in right away for a three-week board and train. She was a lifesaver. While Bennie was with Kirsti, she sent us video messages, and we kept up with her Instagram page, in awe of Bennie’s training and development. When he came back to us, we couldn’t believe how he had become so much more disciplined, manageable, and, best of all, happy. He thrived under Kirsti’s leadership and with his newfound structure. Kirsti had used her magic, not in turning Bennie into a completely different dog, but a better one. The most valuable aspect of this whole process, however, was our follow-up training sessions with Kirsti. We soon realized that not only is Kirsti a master at communicating with dogs but in her communication with humans as well. She made us feel at ease, empowered, and confident that we could handle our dog going forward and continue the training and the foundation that Kirsti had already set. She repeatedly told us that we were the perfect owners for Bennie, and that has meant the world to us and helped to remove all remaining doubts. As a result, Bennie still loves to go see his best friend, Kirsti, and we continue to feel blessed to have Kirsti in our lives. She is a true professional and friend.

Kirsti is excellent!! Our Miss Pepper was a handful when we adopted her. But Kirsti came and gave us the tools we needed to help us with her. I still think she must have had a magic wand somewhere for the excellent results we have in getting her to be so obedient and happy!! She listens so well. Kirsti was a lifesaver to helping keep our dog safe!!!

Not only was our trainer Kirsti incredibly knowledgeable, she did an amazing dog training our pup. She was truly transformed by Kirsti's training and our family learned a great deal about reinforcing and strengthening good training habits. Also, she was a great person to talk to and we enjoyed our sessions very much. Highly recommend!

Kirsti has been wonderful in helping with our reactive Malinois/Dane, Billie. She gave me the tools to handle Billie in all situations and walk calmly on a leash. She helped with both our confidence. Billie is now a very sweet and happy dog. Before training with Ampo Dog, she was unpredictable and scared of everything. Thanks for believing in myself and Billie

Kirsti helped my male shepherd with his confidence and helped my female shepherd with her aggression issues. She worked diligently with my husband, myself and our two dogs (we humans needed as much training as our beasties!). We worked with the training collars and leash training. I can now walk both shepherds (about 200lbs of man's best friend) at the same time. Kirsti helped bring stability back to our dogs and our home ❤

Kirsti and Trevor are fabulous. They have guided me and trained Teddy beautifully. Teddy also had the 3 week board and train. Teddy came back a new puppy. He listens to all commands. He walks great on his leash. No jumping etc. I can't express how grateful I feel that I found Kirsti and Trevor. Most importantly they had the utmost patience with me. Honestly I thought I just couldn't handle a doggie, and they have and are helping me make a dream of mine come true.

We can’t say enough good things about Kirsti and TJ. We have seen such a huge positive change in our reactive dog through their instruction, support, and tools. In a few months time, our dog has gone from choking herself on walks and having unrelenting aggression towards dogs to being able to walk nice and calm on leash even alongside new dogs. We hope to get her off leash one day and that actually seems possible now! We have a few more lessons left and will be boarding our dog with them when we go on vacation. We will also be taking advantage of their pack walks to keep our dog socialized.

Before Kirsti I wasn’t able to walk my huge puppy without him pulling me down or the leash out of my hands thinking the leash was a game of tug a war, after three weeks board and train I just took my dog for the greatest walk by myself with no issues!! It’s amazing she really gave him the best quality of life by teaching him and I how to use the e collar now I can feel confident taking him out with my family. She also was half the price of anther company I looked into so that’s a plus. She took amazing care of my dog as well he’s my baby and when she saw he was shaking his head a lot she took him right to the vet and luckily it was just water in his ears but he got drops for them as a preventative measure. So not only is she a great trainer she really goes above and beyond for your fur baby. She sends daily updates, pics and videos we even did a video chat. I 100% recommend her if your looking for a knowledgeable, caring trainer. Thank you again!!

I left my six and a half month old labradoodle with Kirstie for 3 weeks and she came home Tuesday a brand new dog. Training with the e-collar is a very special thing and Kirsty knows how to do it right she showed us in advance just how good it was or we could save my dog's life if she ran towards the road or she took off when she didn't answer her name being a puppy. Bella came home with a new attitude and 7 months old she was there and learned everything Kirsty could probably teach her and then taught us as well with the e-collar now I know my dog is safe and we are thrilled being older people sometimes you just think you can do it and you find out you can't puppies will be puppies they're cursing knows how to train them and she's excellent in what she does besides being professional she's very courteous and kind and treated us with great respect. We are thrilled with this training my dog has gotten and Bella is a whole different dog a great dog thanks to her. Barb and Dennisthank you+ and Bella

Our two puppies changed drastically after their training! But I learned so much from Kirsti. I learned how to show the puppies that I am in charge in a stern, kind and loving way. The dogs were trained, but I think I was trained to respond to my dogs and lead my dogs in a positive direction. My house is more peaceful and I'm confident with my puppies❤️

I was so happy with the results Kirsti got after training Wilma. I realize she is still a puppy and does need more work at home but the difference in her behavior is amazing. Since I use a walker to walk her it is so important that she stays beside me and this morning it was so nice having her walk with me. A dog was barking at her from a porch and she looked and turned right back to me when I told her leave it, totally ignoring the dog. I was apprehensive about sending her but it was worth it. Kirsti sent videos of her training sessions and was always available if I asked a question. She is the best.

Kirsti was very professional with training our dog which was crazy active. I am so thankful to her for changing his bad habits and improve his behavior. So grateful! Now our dog has better life for sure ..and us😁 Highly recommend!

Kirstie & Trevor saved our family. Zelda & Venus, rambunctious danes, received board & training program. They came home totally changed. We are so grateful for their guidance. I can finally handle my puppies with ease!

I had my 8 month old German Shepherd Zeke with Kirsti for a 3 week board and train in October. I see a big difference in him. He is a different boy for sure. I highly recommend Kirsti for your training needs.

Kirsti is absolutely 100% amazing. I would not trust my moody rottie to anyone but her! I have recommended her to several people and will continue to do so! If I could give more than 5 stars I absolutely would!

Kirsti is very professional and worked wonders with our Goldendoodle. He’s a joy to be around and has made huge strides with our other dog. I highly recommend using AMPO dog training

Kirsti worked with both of my German Shepherds. Week after week, there were so many changes. Changes that I thought would never be possible. I highly recommend her for all your training needs.

Kristi and TJ have been working with our new chocolate lap puppy and we couldn’t be happier. As owners we have learned so much and our pup Millie continues to learn and grow. We look forward to the coming months and all that we still have to learn from our sessions! I highly recommend!

Ampo helped us understand our crazy and wild goldendoodle, Miles, who is almost 3. We were having dog fights, misbehavior, and the home was very unbalanced within our dog pack. Understanding our dog and his needs was key to getting the behavior under control which is exactly what Ampodog has taught us. Miles is now behaving much better, havent had a dog fight in months, and the household order is restored💕 Very grateful to them and their guidance in the 4 private sessions we have had. Thank you so much and would absolutely recommend!

Very grateful to Kristi and TJ for their help with our dog. Our dog was very reactive and impossible to walk. We are now able to take him on regular walks and even to stores with us!

Had a great experience and a lot of learning not only for my dog but for myself too. I see positive outcomes with my dog already! Highly recommend!!

I could not recommend this duo more!!! They are so in tune with the subtle actions/behaviors my two dogs exhibit and have been so informative throughout the training process!

Loves Kristi and Trev very helpful and patient trainers. Glad I found AMPODOG

Kirsti is very knowledgeable in dog behavior and psychology and gave me the confidence and skills to work with my anxious dog in our home and in new situations. I highly recommend working with her!