About Us
About Good Dog Boston
Enriching Lives Using Reward-Based Teaching Methods
Good Dog Boston exists to enrich the lives of dogs and the people who love them. Every method we use is reward-based, so training is something your dog genuinely enjoys — and every program flexes to fit your dog, whatever their age or behavior level.
Our Training Director
Meet Jeff
More than 20 years of training dogs — and still learning something from every one of them.
Jeff’s passion for dogs started at twelve, when a neighbor — a police K9 handler — introduced him to formal training and he taught his Rottweiler, Sasha, her first commands. Basics turned into tracking and scent work, and into the discovery that has shaped his training ever since: a dog and a handler working together as a team.
Since then, Jeff has spent two years rehabilitating fearful shelter dogs for adoption, taught group classes built on AKC Canine Good Citizen guidelines, and trained breeds from Cocker Spaniels to Mastiffs. He trained his own dogs — Spider, Danny, and King — as working bed-bug detection dogs, and he competes and titles in IGP (Schutzhund) with his German Shepherd. At Good Dog Boston, Jeff specializes in leash-reactive dogs — the dog who is wonderful at home and a handful on the sidewalk.
Dog training is a science that keeps moving, and Jeff keeps the rule he started with: always be learning. His goal with every client is the same — strengthen the bond between you and your dog, and make training customized to your lifestyle, simple, and stress-free.
Credentials & highlights
- 20+ years training pet dogs, from Cocker Spaniels to Mastiffs
- AKC Canine Good Citizen (CGC) evaluator
- IGP (Schutzhund) competitor — BH working title earned, IGP 1 in progress
- Second place, 2019 USCA National Sieger Show (non-titled division, 9–12 months)
- Trained and handled working bed-bug detection dogs
- Two years rehabilitating fearful shelter dogs for adoption
- Teaches scent work, group classes, and one-on-one sessions
- Specialty: leash-reactive dogs
The Four Principles of Positive Dog Training
Principle #1
Repetition
Repetition is important — but so is balance. When the lights go on in your dog’s eyes and the behavior clicks, run three to five more successful repetitions, then stop before frustration sets in. End every session on a high note: several wins in a row, with your dog still motivated to do more.
Principle #2
Consistency
Without consistency, your dog simply never learns when you “mean it.” If you ask for a sit and don’t get one, wait — patiently, without repeating the command — until your dog does as you ask. That is operant conditioning at work, and it teaches your dog that a request isn’t optional.
Principle #3
Timing
A reward or correction only works within about one second of the behavior — any later and your dog cannot connect the two. That is why we respond to what is happening, not what already happened: dragging a dog back to an accident he made an hour ago teaches him nothing, because that is not how a dog’s brain works.
Principle #4
Reward
The reward is what sets a behavior and tells your dog he got it right. Small, soft treats work best — a quick hit of dopamine with no lost momentum, straight into the next repetition. A dog’s brain responds the same to small food as to big, so small rewards at high frequency win: better for your dog’s health, better for the training.
I would recommend Good Dog Boston to anyone! Our trainer Jeff was patient, kind, and extremely helpful when working with us and our dog Miley. Miley struggles with reactivity triggered by other dogs and living in downtown Boston makes avoiding other dogs nearly impossible. Jeff provided a tiered program which laid the ground work for Miley’s basic obedience and built up to working through her reactivity issues. We have already seen huge improvement in Miley’s behavior and all thanks goes to Good Dog Boston! Also shoutout to Jeff’s furry assistants: Danny, Halo, & Doctor for being the good-est boys and helping their friend Miley with her manners! Truly a 5 star experience!
We couldn’t be happier with our experience working with Jeff and his training program. We enrolled our labradoodle puppy in the puppy program at 5 months old, and it made a world of difference. Jeff helped us navigate and correct those early, unwanted puppy behaviors while building a solid foundation of training that’s stuck with our pup ever since. Jeff is not only incredibly knowledgeable, but he’s also clearly passionate about what he does. His approach is effective, thoughtful, and tailored—and the results speak for themselves. Our puppy is now a well-behaved city dog we’re proud to take anywhere. On top of that, Jeff is responsive, flexible, and genuinely a pleasure to work with.
We were having trouble training our adolescent spitz, who was quickly becoming quite reactive/aggressively territorial on regular walks around the neighborhood. We’re so grateful that we had the chance to work with Jeff at Good Dog Boston — though we’d read a handful of books and watched a few videos about how to work with reactive dogs, there’s nothing quite like having someone with a great deal of experience point out to you the specific tools to use and nuanced cues in your specific dog’s behavior to watch out for. Jeff was wonderful — worked with our busy schedules (and the weather), clearly excellent/fond of dogs, highly results-driven, and he gave us customized “homework” to do. Walking him is now pleasant instead of embarrassing and stressful.
Do you want YOUR dog to be a GOOD dog?
Schedule an evaluation call and speak with one of our trainers today.