Massachusetts asks a lot of a dog. A dog living off Centre Street in Jamaica Plain deals with delivery bikes, three-deckers, and a sidewalk four feet wide. A dog in Groton deals with deer, a half-mile driveway and no leash law worth speaking of. Both owners call us with what they describe as the same problem, and it never is.
Best Buddy Dog Training is Shawn Hines, working across Massachusetts in private in-home sessions and a residential board-and-train program. No treats, no shock collars. Your dog learns to take direction from you because of who you are to your dog - which is why the obedience holds on the Esplanade at rush hour and not just in the kitchen.
Where We Train in Massachusetts
- Greater Boston - Boston, Cambridge, Somerville, Brookline, Newton, Quincy, Medford, Arlington, Watertown
- MetroWest - Natick, Framingham, Ashland, Wellesley, Needham, Sudbury, Marlborough, Hopkinton
- Merrimack Valley & North Shore - North Andover, Andover, Tewksbury, Burlington, Lowell, Beverly, Salem, Danvers, Peabody
- Central Massachusetts - Worcester, Shrewsbury, Westborough, Groton, Gardner, Leominster, Sturbridge
- South Shore & South Coast - Hingham, Braintree, Weymouth, Wrentham, Attleboro, Taunton, Fall River, New Bedford
- Cape Cod - seasonal availability; call for dates
The Massachusetts Problems We Get Called About
Leash reactivity in a city that has no room
On a Somerville sidewalk or a Back Bay block, two dogs pass at three feet. There is no crossing the street, no arcing around, no maintaining distance - the strategies most trainers give you assume space you do not have. We train at the distance you actually walk at.
Recall on the Minuteman and in the Blue Hills
The Minuteman Bikeway, the Charles River paths, Middlesex Fells, Blue Hills - off-leash culture and cyclists at twenty miles an hour in the same corridor. A dog that comes back most of the time is a dog you cannot let off, and you both lose something.
Puppy training that gets ahead of it
Massachusetts owners tend to find us at eight months, after group classes. Earlier is dramatically easier. A puppy program here is about house structure, threshold manners, calm around visitors, loose-leash walking and a recall built before the adolescent brain arrives - not about sitting for a treat in a circle of other puppies.
Door manners in a three-decker
Shared hallways, neighbours on the stairs, a buzzer that sets the whole building off. Charging the door and barking at footsteps is a threshold problem, and it is one of the faster things to fix.
Suburban dogs with an invisible fence and no obedience
Common through MetroWest and the North Shore. The fence contains the dog; it does not teach the dog anything. The moment the gate is open or the collar is off, you have a dog with no recall and a lot of confidence.
Aggression and resource guarding
Growling over the couch, over food, over a person. Households manage around it for a year or two and then something happens. This is core work for us and it does not improve by being avoided.
In-Home Dog Training in Massachusetts
Massachusetts In-Home Program: $2,250
- 4 personalized in-home sessions with our head trainer
- Customized obedience and behavior modification plan for your dog
- Lifetime follow-up support in person or by phone and video, at no additional charge
- One flat price covering up to 5 dogs in the same household
- No hidden fees - if you've followed the plan and need more sessions, they're included
Board and Train for Massachusetts Dogs
Four to six weeks of residential training for dogs that need a reset rather than a weekly appointment. Your dog trains daily in real environments - parks, stores, sidewalks, public spaces - not in a kennel run between meals. We pick up and deliver so we can see your household first-hand, and the program includes three reintegration sessions at your home plus lifetime follow-up support.
Suited to aggression, resource guarding, severe leash reactivity, anxiety and fearfulness, and dogs that group classes and treat-based training have not reached. See the full board and train program →
What Massachusetts Owners Say
... Helped me transform Gabby into a confident, trusting and calm dog.
Shawn has made a believer out of me. In short, he is a super dog trainer!
I never thought we could save this pup. This was the best investment we ever made in a pet.
We tried 4 different training styles with no results. This investment has been well worth it.
Shawn's technique is simple. Who you are to your dog is everything.
We were so pleased with the strategies and tactics Shawn showed us.
I am now able to better enjoy my time and my life with Joy. Shawn at Best Buddy Dog Training changed my life for the better.
BBDT is well worth the investment! I couldn't be happier!
Common Questions from Massachusetts Owners
You're based in Rhode Island - do you actually come out here?
Yes, regularly, and the price is the same wherever you are in the state. The clients quoted above are in Boston, Natick, Shrewsbury, Burlington, Tewksbury, North Andover, Gardner and Groton.
What age should we start a puppy?
As soon as your puppy is home. There is no minimum age for structure, and the habits that become problems at ten months are being set at ten weeks.
Do you run group classes?
No. Every session is private, in your home, with your dog and your family. Group classes teach a dog to behave in a room full of dogs, which is rarely the problem anyone actually has.
Will this work on a reactive rescue?
Frequently. Most of the dogs we're called about have a history. What matters more than the history is whether the household is willing to change how it operates - we'll be direct with you about that on the phone.
Do you use an e-collar?
No.
Start with a Free Phone Consultation
Call (401) 536-7982 and tell Shawn what's actually happening with your dog. There's no facility to drive to - we come to your home, anywhere in Massachusetts, and for board-and-train we collect your dog and deliver them back. Call anytime. Leave a message if there's no answer.
No charge, no obligation. We talk before anything else happens.
Already spoke with Shawn? Enroll here.
Best Buddy Dog Training serves these cities and surrounding communities
Rhode Island: Barrington • Bristol • Coventry • Cumberland • East Greenwich • Middletown • Narragansett • Newport • Pawtucket • Providence • Smithfield • South Kingstown • Warwick • Westerly • Woonsocket
Connecticut: Bridgeport • Danbury • Greenwich • Groton • Hartford • Litchfield • Middletown • Mystic • New Canaan • New Haven • New London • Norwalk • Norwich • Stamford • Torrington • Waterbury • Westport • Windsor
Massachusetts: Attleboro • Beverly • Boston • Burlington • Cambridge • Framingham • Gardner • Groton • Hingham • Natick • New Bedford • Newton • North Andover • Quincy • Salem • Shrewsbury • Somerville • Tewksbury • Worcester • Wrentham
New Hampshire: Bedford • Concord • Derry • Dover • Durham • Exeter • Hampton • Hanover • Keene • Laconia • Lebanon • Londonderry • Manchester • Nashua • Portsmouth • Rochester • Salem • Wolfeboro
New York: Beacon • Bronxville • Brooklyn • Chappaqua • Cold Spring • Kingston • Mount Kisco • New • New • Newburgh • Nyack • Poughkeepsie • Queens • Rye • Scarsdale • White • Yonkers •
