Great Dog

*Update* 1−24−16
Instead of apologizing, Judi at Great Dog, just sent me a «compliment» saying that I am not in their system and I must have the wrong place.
Why not send me a message or reply to my review? Why mask it as a compliment?
Sorry Judi, talking about Great Dog, on Roosevelt, in Northgate, but nice try.
Thanks for the compliment. Great customer service, as always.
Overall disappointing.
After several «assessments» and a good chunk of change, my dog passed his evaluation and entered the day care.
I had clearly expressed verbally and in writing that my dog needs to be matched with play partners of equal size and similar play style. I was explicit and specific when I told the staff he can not be let loose in a pen with a bunch of other dogs. I understood that most likely would mean he was mostly kenneled but given an hour or so of fun time with one or two appropriate play mates. I’ve never seen my dog be aggressive to other dogs. He is a giant breed puppy with tons of energy. Unfortunately, he is too rambunctious for many older, lower energy male dogs. Several times he has been attacked and bitten by older male dogs who became agitated by his persistent invites for play.
On his third day of daycare he got kicked out. Apparently, he had attacked another dog without solicitation. Maybe he did, I wasn’t there.
Of course he was thrown into a pen with a bunch of random dogs. Whose to blame here? Who was negligent? I went out of my way to explain his special needs.
They were just careless and put my dog and other dogs at risk. Laziness? Incompetence? Yes and yes.
To add insult to injury, the staff then proceeded to act as if I had done something wrong.
Did I lie and say my dog is perfect and has never has had a problem with older male dogs? No.
Did I bite that other dog? No.
They tried to blame their own incompetence on me. Sorry guys. I can follow simple instructions.
Before any of this happened I was already thinking about going elsewhere because of the extremely rude reception guy.
Why are you so mad dude?
He yelled at me once because I «jumped the gun» and came into the shop before they were open. He was 10 minutes late to arrive to open the shop. He didn’t lock the door behind himself and turned all the lights on. Yes, clearly I’m the problem.
How do you still have a job? Really though?

Avoid this place! It has both quality and safety concerns. A sloppy cut will grow out, but I witnessed a groomer leave a standard poodle on the grooming table with a neck loop on. The dog stepped off the table and hung from its neck! I told the owner and she blew me off. I told her not only what I saw, but that I hated my dogs cuts. She offered to have her «experienced groomer» recut my dogs. I said no thanks due to safety concerns, but I would like to show you what my dogs look like. She told me she «was done here «and «I could find another groomer». I was floored. I was never rude, I called her directly to share my experience. I believed the owner would want to know. I learned she did not. I would highly recommend not taking your dogs here. If you do use them, ask what their safety procedures are. Another groomer said leaving a dog unattended with a neck loop on is inexcusable.

Great Dog is an amazing resource for training for dogs of all ages but especially unique in offering so many puppy classes and socialization opportunities and private training sessions. We have taken classes here and received private lessons and have learned so much. Also, for grooming the staff here are professionals who know what they are doing and the shop here offers great food, treats, and toys.

Walk-​in and immediate nail trims for $ 10!
This is pretty great. I don’t know if I can blame my neuroses for this, but it is so annoying to have my dog click her nails across the hardwood in the house. My attempt to remedy the situation basically had me getting punched in the face by her, so to Great Dog I went!
The gals here were great with a first-​timer, friendly and professional. The furry one had her nails trimmed, with plenty of treats, in less than a few minutes.
I made an appt for a full groom (you think I would do WHAT to her rear end??) in several weeks so I could quite possibly bumped it up to a full 5 star! Stay tuned!

Grooming:
This is the second place I went to in Seattle and having my first dog, I wanted the best care. He is a rescue and has some anxiety, especially when it comes to being away from his mommy. Amy helped my dog the first time and did such an amazing job! She has been so kind to continue to groom my boy and he will not see anyone else but her due to how great she is with him. Thank you, Amy, for all you do! I would highly recommend Amy for grooming.
Training:
My dog went here for basic obedience training and at first wasn’t sure what to make of it. At the end, he did really well and the trainer took her time to help each dog and owner individually. I will be taking him back for another training! My only feedback would be more focused on our dogs and less on talking about hers and the shows they do. While it is helpful, it can wake away from class time training. Overall, she is a great trainer and knows what she is doing.
Reason for rating:
My dog unfortunately had one bad experience that got him super anxious when we go here now. (I agreed not to go into details about it with the owner.) In waiting for him to get done with his grooming with Amy, I got to witness this lady with another dog and will not trust her to handle my boy. She brought another dog to the coffee place next door for her to talk and get food while leaving the other dog outside. No wonder my boy was anxious. She also does not seems to smile, at least when I see her, and does not come across friendly. I even went in to check on my boy and over heard her telling another dog «stop it, I didn’t do anything.»
Amy, the trainer, and the owner make up for it though in how friendly they are and how they treat their customers! If you have an unpleasant experience, I highly recommend talking with the owner. She is amazing and makes sure the dogs and owners get the best care possible!

I have only been dissatisfied once in several years with the service I received here and they more than made it up to me. Every six or so weeks Great Dog groomers transform my five-​year-​old golden retriever from a stinky, disgusting beast to a gorgeous, fluffy creature who gets compliments from every passerby. My dog seems genuinely relaxed there and I’m grateful to have found a groomer I can trust with his health and happiness.

This review is for their daycare and boarding services. I’m adding to the heaps of happy reviewers, I can’t say enough good things about this place! Ultimately what matters is that my dog is happy and well taken care of and that is clearly the case. He is always excited when he gets there and happy and tired when he leaves. He’s also gone to boarding a few times and we always get a nice note when we pick him up about how the it went.
The people who work there are very friendly and efficient, but more than anything they are really helpful! Quigley now goes twice a week and he clearly LOVES daycare.

I have two miniature schnauzer, Tillie and Theodore. Theodore is not crazy about being groomed and a total nervous nelly, my previous groomer required me to give him a sedative before they would work on him. When I found Lisa at Great Dog the world of grooming changed for both theodore and myself. She is SO great with him and was determined to make the grooming experience a more pleasant time and drug free! He is still a nervous little guy but is improving, thanks to Lisa! It is so nice to chat with her at the end of the groom and feel like he is normal (ish) and not a devil dog. Also, tillie, who is fine with grooming, has never looked more cute! Schnauzer mustache, eyebrows and all she still can look like a little girl not a grumpy old man! If I could give Lisa more than 5 stars I would!

We started Bunsen, our Frenchie, with quick weekend puppy play sessions and, as we grew more comfortable with Great Dog, progressed to daycare and boarding for up to two weeks. We couldn’t be happier with the level of care our pup has received. I was initially nervous about leaving my dog behind for several days, especially times I’ve left the country, but now I’m confident that Great Dog is the best place for him to be. Bunsen is ridiculously adorable, but equally as high maintenance. He’s pretty much allergic to everything and requires daily medications and a more involved raw food diet. The staff doesn’t mind the little bit of extra work at all. They just seem genuinely excited whenever he stops by to hang out.
The staff at Great Dog truly went above and beyond when, while in their care, Bunsen had an incident that required veterinary treatment and eventual surgery (which was in NO WAY Great Dog’s fault or a result of him being there). They notified us promptly and kept him comfortable until we were able to pick him up. Post-​surgery, they followed up with us for updates and offered respite care for him. He was able to recuperate comfortably while the staff could keep an eye out for any post-​surgery complications and prevent him from pulling out his stitches – a lifesaver for days we had to be away at work!
On top of all that, Bunsen REALLY loves it here. As soon as we get out of the car, he barrels through the doors and heads straight for the playroom, not looking back once. When we get home, he’s all tuckered out from a full day of romping around with his pals.
We’re so lucky to have found a doggie daycare that’s both safe and fun for our dog. Great Dog also offers obedience classes and grooming. I highly recommend them for any of their services.

We’ve been taking our medium sized 2 year old dog here for about 2 years for doggie daycare. We’ve been told by several dog trainers that our lab/​shephard/​possibly coyote mix, named Shira, is one of the more difficult dogs they’ve ever had.
We take her here to doggie daycare 3 times a week because she has so much energy she would otherwise terrorize us and our older dog. Also one of those days she does Adventure Park where they bus dogs to some property they own and they get to run around and bark at llamas… Somehow they cut her nails, which we do for our older lab but this little monster won’t let us.
Our dog Shira loves this place. The employees are very attentive to the special needs of our dog. Johanna specifically rocks but all the employees are great.
They also sell toys and treats, do grooming, overnight boarding…

I enrolled my rescue pup in the Puppy Express class + Puppy Play at 5 months old.
In our first session, I learned how to teach him come/​sit/​stand/​name recognition (which he would practice over the next few days). He also met a mentor dog which clearly calmed him and the other puppies down. Before the end of the week, Forrest could come/​sit/​stand, and it was all thanks to the clear instruction from the class. Name recognition took an extra week of practice. There were only 3 other dogs in our class. They were all SUPER CUTE!
I also learned what normal puppy play behavior is, how and when to correct him, and most importantly I became comfortable with socializing him with other dogs. Because of this valuable experience, I was happy to let him meet any/​every dog at the park, and now he is a gentle and loving adult dog.
Because of my work schedule, we weren’t able to attend the included 2^nd and 3^rd sessions before my puppy turned 6 months old (that’s the age limit for Puppy Express). However, he was able to learn the basics that I was expecting from the 3-​class series, all in the first session. Prior to this, I had read puppy books and knew generally how I «should» train him. I’m so glad that I took the classes though, because the instructors really know what they’re doing and are totally worth the money.
I would definitely go back to Great Dog for more training, and I have recommended their classes to others.

Went here for the training classes — highly recommend Judy who worked wonders with our scared, neurotic, adult, puppy-​mill rescue dogs and with teaching us how to work with them.
Training style is all about positive reinforcement and the dogs love going to see Judy!
They also do boarding, grooming and sell quality, organic dog and cat food, as well as various accessories.
Oh, and they sell Anti-​Icky-​Poo which can be hard to find.

This is the BEST place and you can totally trust them. While I was on vacation my dog developed a situation where she needed to urgently go to the vet. They recognized the issue and took her and contacted me ASAP. They are always courteous and very professional.

This review is based off of the Wee Ones class. I’ve really enjoyed my last three visits there. The person supervising the class is always open for tips and helping you out. I have a new puppy who is very shy and the women takes the time to talk about ways of helping train him.
Highly recommend this puppy play time!

We had been taking our mini Schnauzer to a «big Box» groomer but I was getting fed up with them claiming she had fleas when I knew she did not and using that as an excuse to add on services that left her smelling like a popsicle.
Someone we knew recommended Great Dog and we have not been disappointed! It does take a while to get an appointment, but it is worth the wait. They do a beautiful job on our mini schnauzer and she seems more relaxed. They also never ask me if I want to add on some «good smelling» stuff which impresses me because I think that stuff probably is overwhelming to the dogs. She always comes back looking beautiful and has a cute bandana to show off! I also like that they don’t stick her in a crate. They let her be in a little penned area so she can be near other dogs and socialize a bit, PLUS, they take her for a walk if it’s going to be a while before I can pick her up.
Definitely a good place to go!

Within the first private consult session we noticed changes in our old rescue dog!
This place has everything you need, delivered with positivity and love.
I can’t wait to take the upcoming class to learn better ways to communicate with Sydney!
Our first walk after coming to Great Dog was much improved and the Wonder Walker harness purchased at the Great Dog store was an excellent suggestion!
They offer drop in grooming services and puppy socialization and local organic products and more! Great location!

We rescued a loveable but a little wild adolescent yellow lab pup and have taken him to several of their classes, including the drop in Saturday classes. Initially the Sat classes were just a play group and now they are related to a specific training topic. All of them have been great and my dog is so excited when we get close to the building. We are also attending the adolescent class. Both my dog and I have learned so much from all the staff at Great Dog. All the staff are true dog lovers. There are so many staff at each class that both the dog and I learn a lot. My dog is totally transformed, much better socialized and way better self-​control. I really would recommend this place. I have also gone to Canine Behavior Center classes but I far prefer Great Dog. I think that Great Dog has great methods that really work

We took our newly adopted pit mix in for a self-​control series of one-​on-​one training with Judi, and cannot say enough good things about her, and Great Dog. The training coordinator, Christine, was wonderful about returning my messages and getting us scheduled with Judi, our perfectly-​matched trainer. Judi is kind and gentle, and made us feel great about our spazzy little pup from our first meeting. She recognized Lucy’s needs and coached us on perfect positive techniques to use with her. We saw a difference immediately, and just three weeks later, Lucy has so much more self-​control, and the self-​confidence that comes with it. We are so impressed with Judi and others we’ve met at Great Dog, and are already signed up for the Adolescent Dog series to keep working on great behavior.
Thank you Great Dog!

I left a message for Great Dog on Thursday evening to ask about rates and availability for a haircut for my cavalier/​bichon mix, Izzy. They called me back on Friday to answer all my questions and were able to fit me in on Sunday. Bonus points for their quick response and availability!
We usually trim Izzy at home, but she had quite a few knots close to her skin so we felt it was best to be done professionally. She hadn’t been to a groomer in years so we were nervous that she would make a lot of trouble for our groomer, Priscilla. However, when we dropped Izzy off and met with Priscilla to discuss what we wanted, all my hesitations went away and I had peace of mind knowing I left Izzy with a professional and knowledgeable groomer.
I really like that they don’t leave the dogs in tiny kennels, but in their own secure gated spaces. They also said they would take Izzy for a walk so she could potty! Not sure what other places do, but I’m all for my dog being walked. I’m very pleased with Izzy’s results too. She smells great from the bath, got her nails clipped, her haircut is adorable and she even came home with a cute little bow.
Thanks Great Dog & Priscilla!

I took my two dogs in for grooming. They were nearly an hour and a half late from the time they told me they would be ready, and did not call to notify me.
They then charged my card the wrong amount and made me come back to pay more. They were generally very rude, unapologetic, and unprofessional about the whole situation.