Michael Hill at home with his dogs

Training Dogs | Empowering Owners

Michael is your partner in training, working to help both you and your dog grow together as a team built on reciprocal trust and understanding. His first priority is always going beyond commands and tricks to establish a foundational connection that is free of confusion. Michael has personally worked with over 1000 dogs across the United States and abroad, including Canada, United Kingdom, Italy, Germany, Denmark, Mexico, Costa Rica, India and Malaysia.

Michael is based in Los Angeles, but also works regularly in New York and Washington DC, and has traveled to clients in most major US cities. He offers training assistance for his client via private sessions (both in person and virtual), board and train programs, and just released an online video series.

Whether training a service dog to perform a medically necessary task for its owner, an actor dog to be the star of a production, or a new addition to become a perfect family companion, Michael’s goal is to present concepts and strategies in a way that is sensible, repeatable and as enjoyable as possible.  Realistic expectations and understanding how to prioritize the needs of all the dogs and humans in a household helps create a stable learning foundation so that we can quickly move past problem management and embrace a sustainable life routine for everyone involved.  Progress is much easier for both dogs and humans when you feel motivated and enjoy working together.  After all, you got your dog to add to your life—not take away from it.

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Michael's Approach to Training

Communication

Minimizing confusion to unlock a thriving relationship between you and your dog.

Behavior

Mitigating and preventing unwanted habits, then creating positive reinforcement methods and effective management strategies..

Enrichment

Employing approaches designed to fulfill breed-specific drive and appreciating your dog's full potential.

Communication

The foundation of a relationship between you and your dog.

Just like with humans, effective communication is the essential cornerstone for a relationship with your dog.  Coaching proper leadership skills with positive reinforcement training psychology is combined with pragmatic management solutions derived from real-world applications that encourage beneficial habits for both the owner and the dog.  The best solution for problem behaviors is to prevent them from ever occurring!

Behavior

Mitigating the unwanted habits and reinforcing healthy and desirable behaviors.

Positive reinforcement methods and effective strategy tools combine to produce lasting improvement.  All modification approaches are designed to minimize pressure on both the dog and handler - we prevent and interrupt unwanted behaviors in order to give them the least amount of attention.  Shifting our attention and focus on what we do want allows us to replace those problem behaviors with desirable habits.

Enrichment

All species find peace in having a purpose.

We all find meaning in the work we do with our unique talents and so do our dogs. Specialized guidance can take the human-animal bond to the next level by understanding your dog's innate abilities and creatively finding ways to incorporate your dog into more areas of your life.  Enrichment opportunities include socialization for composure in challenging environments, and preparation training for entertainment and television, therapy work, agility, or conformation competition. Breaking complex goals into simpler manageable steps makes training plans logical and repeatable for the entire family.

I can't say enough positive things about Michael! He has turned little Harper into a rockstar. Michael started training Harper when she was just 4 months old. Honestly the training started with me first! As a first time per owner he really calmed my fears and walked me through the ideology that Harper needed to adjust to my life not the other way around. We worked through so many common behavioral problems that puppies go through and after her week of board and train she literally learned all the fundamentals. We recently moved to Florida and Michael has popped down in person and on FaceTime to keep our progress going. Harper is now 10 months and loves her sessions with Michael this will be a life long relationship!

~Marti H.

Michael is a wonderful dog trainer.  Our dogs have learned so much from Michael, and he has also done a great job of training us how to teach our dogs effectively. He's especially kind and gentle with our dogs, while simultaneously giving us concrete and definitive instructions on how to work out whatever problematic behaviors our dogs have. He breaks the training down into manageable parts that build into the result we are seeking. We love that he is focused on positive reinforcement and we still use what we learned and continue to learn from him every day. We would highly recommend Michael to anyone!

~Yao M.

We had the absolute pleasure of having Michael train and board our 7 month puppy this past week.  She used to be extremely hyper, ADD and always on "squirrel mode".  Michael is hands down the best.  His philosophy and approach to training is deeply rooted in behavioral psychology and promotes long term, lasting outcomes.  He is  an expert in his field, extremely professional, responsive and helpful.  Forever grateful to have met Michael and will always have him around for our puppy Butter.

~Vanessa L.

I can't start to thank Michael enough!!! I had just got a 3 month year old puppy and was complete lost and overwhelmed. He help put me at ease and guide me through tools and tips to train my puppy. He was so fast and efficient with all his knowledge on training.She was potty trained in a week! He's beyond educated in all areas and has your pets best interest at heart. I only trust his advice! He really cares about your pup and you. Thank you Michael so much. Luca and I love you!!!

~Tina C.

Michael is a phenomenal dog trainer! He is truly in tuned with a dog and their needs. I've learn more about dog anxiety and mental health. My dog is happier and better behaved because of Michael's help! Now, she is a service dog ready to Jet set! Thank you again Michael!

~Sireh B.

Check out Michael’s new “Life with Dogs” foundations course:

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Connect with Michael to learn more about how he can help both you and your dog!

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