Behavior Issues
Behavior Consulting For a Better Best Friend
Why Work With Bark to Basics?
Expert guidance you can trust. Support when you need it most.
Are you embarrassed, anxious or overwhelmed by your dog’s behavior? Ready to leave fear and stress behind and enjoy life with your dog again? You’re not alone – and you’re in the right place.
Living with a dog who is reactive on leash, overly excited or struggling with fear, anxiety or aggression toward visitors can feel exhausting and unpredictable – and often not what you imagined when you brought your dog home. As a certified behavior consultant and trainer I have extensive experience with fear, anxiety, reactivity and aggression and provide science-backed, positive training focused on practical success where it matters most – in real life.
I specialize in helping families with clarity on what drives your dog’s behavior and provide expert guidance with practical, structured behavior programs designed to fit your goals, lifestyle and the needs of both you and your dog.
The goal is simple: to help you feel confident in what to do in real-life moments so you and your dog can move forward together.
Why Support Matters
Behavior change doesn’t follow a straight line of progress, and questions inevitably arise between sessions. Ongoing support allows us to troubleshoot challenges, adjust plans when needed, and help you keep moving in the right direction as you implement changes in everyday life at home.
Many of my clients tell me knowing they are not alone and can reach out with questions is one of the most valuable parts of the program.
Behavior consulting can help with:
Not Sure Where To Start?
Have questions about the training process or which option is right for you?
Schedule a Free 15-Minute Discovery CallPricing & Packages
Better Best Friend
$1300
What You’ll Gain:
- A Comprehensive Behavior Change Plan With Maximum Coaching and Support
The most successful behavior changes aren’t built during training sessions – they’re built in the moments of consistency between.
Better Best Friend expands on the customized behavior modification plan with additional coaching and maximum support so you’re never left wondering what to do next.
Package Includes:
- Expert guidance to gain confidence and skills to change your dog's behavior
- 6.5 hours of in-home, comprehensive coaching time
- Full consultation report
- Behavior Report/collaboration with your veterinarian (if indicated)
- Extended Support
- Two 30-minute virtual support sessions
- 12 weeks text and email support
- Access to twice-monthly Office Hours during program PLUS 1 month post-program
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Notes and homework after each session
Better Best Friend fully virtual package - $1100
Behavior & Beyond
$900
What You’ll Gain:
- A Practical Plan For Behavior Change
Behavior and Beyond is for families who need more than basic obedience.
We’ll identify why your dog’s behavior is happening, create a practical training plan tailored to your home, goals, and lifestyle.
Package Includes:
- 4.5 hours of private, in home coaching time
- One 30-minute virtual support session
- Full consultation report
- Behavior Report/collaboration with your veterinarian (if indicated)
- 8 weeks text and email support
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Access to twice-monthly virtual Office Hours during program
Behavior and Beyond fully virtual package - $700
Behavior Consultation
$300
What You’ll Gain:
- Determining the Best Path Forward
Living with a dog with behavior issues can be difficult. During this in-home consultation, we will discuss your dog’s behavior history, your goals and family’s needs, and the challenges you are experiencing to provide you with a better understanding of your options and practical, professional and realistic recommendations tailored to your situation.
Consultation Includes
- One 60-minute consultation in your home
- Full consultation report
- Behavior Report for your veterinarian (if indicated)
*If you choose to move forward with a training package the consultation will count as the first session of your package.
*A consultation is a great first step if you’re unsure where to begin, but it is not required to start a training package. If you are ready to begin coaching, you may schedule a package directly.
Virtual Behavior Assessment and Consultation - $250
Additional Dogs: $75 per in-home session. Sessions are extended by 30 minutes when working with an additional dog.
See what people are saying about Bark to Basics
Highly recommend Melissa at Bark to Basics for a personal, tailored approach to training that uses positive reinforcement. Melissa was able to help us with our 7 y/o mixed breed dog who was very reactive on leash whenever any other dog was in sight. She gave us great strategies to work with our dog, and we have seen great improvement! Brittany with Jasmine – Hillsborough Separation anxiety Highly recommend Melissa at Bark to Basics for a personal, tailored approach to training that uses positive reinforcement. Melissa was able to help us with our 7 y/o mixed breed dog who was very reactive on leash whenever any other dog was in sight. She gave us great strategies to work with our dog, and we have seen great improvement!
Highly recommend Melissa at Bark to Basics for a personal, tailored approach to training that uses positive reinforcement. Melissa was able to help us with our 7 y/o mixed breed dog who was very reactive on leash whenever any other dog was in sight. She gave us great strategies to work with our dog, and we have seen great improvement! Brittany with Jasmine – Hillsborough Separation anxiety it is in our message thread Melissa is an incredibly knowledgeable and helpful dog trainer. My dog was attacking my partner's dog at, what seemed like, complete random. Melissa helped us understand that these attacks were coming from a place of severe anxiety. In addition, she taught us how to better determine when and why these attacks could happen and how to prevent them. I am thrilled to share that after our sessions with Melissa, we are all living in one home together and are so happy with the progress that our good boy has made. Our dogs (and we) are happier and more confident thanks to Melissa! She is simply the best and can't recommend enough!
Melissa helped me with my 3-year-old pit that I adopted in Oct. She was full of energy and had no rules. After 4 weeks of training, I can say that she now listens to me and is a much calmer dog. I can now take her on walks and at home she has learned to use the doggie door all on her own. The training was the best thing I could have done for me and my dog.
More than 5 stars! Melissa is a lifesaver! Our two dogs, initially wonderful together, began to aggressively react once the younger started her heat cycle. Melissa is a consummate professional who understands dogs, people, and the behavioral dynamics of both. She has a keen eye for assessing each situation and has provided us with positive yet realistic goals and expectations. She spends time asking great questions and providing guidance in supporting our dogs in a positive-only environment and training techniques. She follows up with homework, written reports, and sends them to our vet to keep everyone updated. We don't know how we could have managed to get our dogs back together without her incredible knowledge as an animal behaviorist and trainer!
We adopted Aiyla, a 2.5-year-old, 70-pound former street dog who was extremely reactive when on a leash; if she saw or heard another dog while out walking, she would lunge, bark and snap at the leash. Reactivity is a notoriously hard behavior to break; we had already worked with two other trainers on this problem without success and were beginning to get discouraged when we called Bark to Basics. Melissa did an excellent job explaining the root of the reactivity, made practical suggestions such as a different harness and more motivational treats and came up with a clear training plan. We signed up for four training sessions over a couple of months and did a lot of homework with Aiyla in between and she has improved greatly. Melissa met us where we were and made us feel like we could succeed, she is very calm, patient and knowledgeable about dog behavior. While reactivity was the main issue, Melissa also helped us improve basic obedience skills that have made our lives much easier. She provided clear feedback and good notes after every session and reached out to reschedule when the weather looked questionable, knowing that Aiyla hates being out in the rain. While we still have work to do, thanks to Melissa we have the foundation and skills to keep making progress.
I can't speak highly enough about Melissa at Bark to Basics. She was nonjudgmental, friendly, very responsive, and highly knowledgeable about dog behavior. We had 4 sessions together, and each time she listened closely to my training goals, problem-solved with me, and provided relevant, actionable steps to work on. She also sent an email with notes after every session, which was extremely helpful to refer back to throughout the following week. With her help, my dog's location guarding and fear of the woods improved a lot, and I'm so grateful!
Calle is a very shy and timid rescue dog, approximately two years old when we adopted her one year ago. We enlisted the help of Melissa based on reviews we read online. That was the BEST decision we made for Calle AND for us! Melissa took time on the first visit to get to know Calle and customize the training, taking into consideration Calle’s fears and timid personality. Melissa did not try to fit us into five basic step training but formulated a plan based on what she observed and what we wanted to accomplish. Melissa’s knowledge of training was soon realized when we saw almost immediate progress. We worked through issues of socialization, house training, walking on a leash in a park. We could never have made such progress without the help of Melissa. Melissa was very reliable (always on time and good follow-up), professional, kind, and had such a gentle, loving manner with Calle AND with us – we received some much-needed training as well!
Behavior Consulting For a Better Best Friend
Virtual Sessions
Virtual Sessions are fully customized, one-on-one video sessions so you can get the help you need no matter where you are!
The Support you need
Ongoing support doesn't have to end when your training package does. Office Hours are included with select Bark to Basics programs and available afterward through our client-only monthly memberships.
Payment
Credit cards, checks, Venmo and cash are accepted. Packages are paid in full at the first session.
Cancellation/Refund Policy
48-hour notice is required for cancellations to reschedule the appointment. There are no refunds on packages as your commitment to working consistently with your dog is key to reaching your training goals!