Brain Training For Dogs Review – Dear my fellow dog lovers,

Have you heard that owning a dog can actually make you a better person?

It wasn’t without reason,

In fact, Barkbox study shows 93% of dog owners can easily name at least one thing their dogs had made them a better person; owning a dog can also make them look noticeably more patient and affectionate.

Another study conducted in Australia and the US in 2015 states that owning a dog can increase social circles and interactions. What a treat for someone who is socially awkward, don’t you think?

Doesn’t end there,

What’s even more interesting is a survey done by Purina. It shows 54% of dog owners testify that their dogs open up a chance to find love.

Source: Pexels.com

Isn’t it great to use our dogs to break the ice and start a friendly conversation with someone we’re interested in?

Thanks to our dogs for that!

But, the question now is:

After all of those kind acts that our dogs can offer to make us a better human; have we done anything to make our dogs a better dog?

Or are we just letting them lie around; well-fed but bored?

Do you know that the majority of dogs’ misbehaviors are the result of their boredom?

Therefore, if your dog misbehaved; it is you to blame!

Alright, that’s probably too harsh, don’t blame yourself.

And if you happened to experience this with your dog, there still ways to make amends; to reverse your dog’s wrongdoings; as well as to rectify you and your dog’s bonding.

How?

Could be in many things, but in today’s opportunity, as a guilty owner myself; let me present to you an online program called BRAIN TRAINING FOR DOGS. My dog and I have tried it for 3 weeks and noticed some changes.

Was it good or bad changes?

Stay tuned, for I have everything taped.

By the end of this post, I will also tempt to address the burning question in regards to buying and practicing this so to speak “online dog training”:

“Can you really train your dog through an online course; and how effective can this course be if compared to the conventional dog training camp?”

But before that, let us begin by getting to know the person behind the craft:

Adrienne Farricelli; Who Is She?

The good thing about Adrienne Farricelli is you can easily find her on almost every internet platform. She has a YouTube channel under the name of Brain Training For Dogs where she uploads some of her training too. So if you want to see how she handle her job you can definitely check that out.

You can also find her featured in both online publications like Daily Puppy, Nest Pets, Paw Nation, eHow; and print publications like USA Today, and Everydog Magazine.

Furthermore, she recently contributed to write a chapter in the book Puppy Socialization created by Caryl Wolff (a well-known dog training author and the only dog trainer certified by five dog-trainer-organizations).

Quite remarkable I’d say, but what is her background really? And why should we trust her?

Well, let me begin by saying that Adrienne Farricelli is a dog lover; she began her career working in an animal hospital and volunteered at the local shelter where she fostered and trained pets.

And even though being a dog lover should be the most important reason to become a dog trainer; calling her just that would be an understatement.

So let me get it right,

Despite the fact that she is a dog lover or having her writings featured in prestigious publications, making the Brain Training for Dogs program is totally a different story; in this case, Adrienne needs years to attain professional qualifications.

And she did it, she got two professional certifications. The first one started in 2010. After undergoing 200+ hours of apprenticeship under a master dog trainer, she earned certification from the Italian Association for Dog Trainers and Canine Consultants.

Her second professional certification is CPDT-KA (Certified Professional Dog Trainer-Knowledge Assessed), issued by the well-known organization CCPDT (Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers).

This organization apparently labeled as the most trusted dog training certification in the US. Therefore, in order to get the CCPDT certification, a trainer must meet strict requirements including:

• having broad knowledge in ethology (animal behavior) as well as dog training techniques,
• a minimum of 300-hour experience in dog training,
• providing a reference from a vet,
• a rigorous exam of 180 questions,
• and for the cherry on top, as a CPDT-KA, she must participate in continuous training and keep up with the latest developments of dog training to retain her credential.

Certainly not as easy as it seems, and this is all show that she is a dedicated and capable dog trainer.

So I think we’re in good hands.

What Is Brain Training for Dogs?

When it comes to dog training, it’s important for us, dog owners, to know what method the training is built upon.

Many trainers use different kinds of methods. Some may utilize the famous celebrity trainer’s method called the dominance-based; some use punishment-based method; some use electronic training, using electric collar; some use the positive-reinforcement; or science-based training method.

Even though no one makes a claim which of those methods are right or wrong; science shows that some methods are better than the others.

Psychology Today, for instance, quoting Dr. Sara Dubois, the chief scientific officer for the British Columbia Society and University of British Columbia Adjunct Professor; stated that positive-reinforcement training works best; it’s more effective and better for your dog.

So what is positive-reinforcement training really?

Source: Pixabay.com

The idea of positive training is quite straightforward; dogs will repeat good behavior when it’s followed by a reward. One can say that the science behind this training is stemmed from research done by a scientist, Ivan Pavlov, who found that desired behavior could be achieved through a consistent, conditioned marker.

The conditioned marker can be anything (positive or negative), but if we’re talking about positive reinforcement, the markers used are (obviously) positive. Trainers will use rewards such as treats, verbal cues e.g. “good boy”, or a tool called clicker to produce a more stabilized tone to attain desired behavior.

So, that pretty much explains what this program is about.

Brain Training for Dogs is an online-based training that aims to increase your dog’s intelligence and reversing its bad behaviors by using a science-based method focusing on positive reinforcement training.

And since it’s online, we, the users, are the ones in charge to decide the success of our dogs, so it’s important to know how this program would help us to do that.

This is how…

Brain Training for Dogs serves its material mostly in written form. So in most cases, the scenario will be similar to read instructions. Even so, don’t be discouraged because the instructions you’ll get here are easy to follow and comprehensive.

By comprehensive, I mean it’s accompanied by related illustrations and a tooltip for every technical term (so you won’t be left alone, wondering). Moreover, in every section of the training material, there will troubleshoot the common problem that we might experience.

Doesn’t end there,

Even though most of them are written, this program still leaves some space for the videos. And this can be a very helpful supplement to help us succeed.

To know more about what Brain training for Dogs offers, here…

What Comes on Your Lap

A snapshot inside the member site

Brain Training for Dogs has quite dense contents served in two types of data: written articles and videos.

When I first got into the member site, my first impression was it was nice and clean. However, a few minutes after, I gotta say that the display doesn’t actually look as it seems. I think they have a problem with compartmentalizing their content.

Here I give you one of the instances:

As you can see above, they made the exact same thing in two different menus.

Furthermore, I’ve read many reviews, and apparently, none of them gave the exact content that this program actually offers. Some wrote A, B, C the other missed the A or adding D and E. I think, just like me, they got confused too.

Well, It's not a big deal actually, but it’s just unfortunate, with such good content they have, they could’ve made it much better if they could manage it in a more punctual way.

So, in this post, I’m going to try to make it clearer, so that you know what exactly is on the package.

The program can be simplified into four major parts: main course, archives, bonuses, and an additional feature.

First stop let’s see what’s inside:

MAIN COURSE: Brain Training for Dogs

You’ll have 5 modules inside:

Module #1: Getting Started

This is the part when you’ll get to know the author’s profile, introduction to the course, the course’s structure, and some things you need to prepare before doing the training e.g treats and a clicker.

Module #2: Obedience Training 101

This part is essential – a warm-up before you and your dog going into the more advanced phases ahead (especially if you never had your dog trained before).

Those essential things are:

• Using the lure
• Sit
• Lie down
• Take/ leave it
• Drop it
• Stay/ recall
• Heeling & attention heeling

Module #3: Polishing Up Training

One flaw that positive-reinforcement training seems to have is; it only makes your dog do it when you have the “bribes”. And what happens if you don’t? Cold rejection.

To save us from that, this program has prepared a do-able and easy to follow technique to slowly fading the food lures. This phase of training will have your dog into a much higher level of obedience.

Module #4

Once you and your dog have mastered modules 2 and 3, you both are ready for this so-called “school” phase. Because it’s indeed set up in a school-like structure.

PS: This module has 21 brain games in total.

1. Preschool

This is where you train your dog to put its attention to you by looking into your eyes. Dogs can easily get distracted sometimes and by practicing this, you can magically stop them from any distraction and focus on you- your eyes.

You can attain those by doing these 3 brain games:

• Target train
• Look into my eyes
• The airplane game

2. Elementary

This section is designed to develop your dog motor skills. And be able to use its nose, jaws, and paws to complete tasks.

3 games included to train this skill are:

• The treasure hunt
• The muffin game
• The ball pit

3. High School

If your dog has an intense fear of water, you can utilize this section to change it. This section also will train your dog to learn impulse control through these 3 games:

• Jazz up and settle down
• The bottle game
• Bobbing for treats

4. College

Here you’ll get the extra emphasis on the elementary tricks; further, develop your dog’s motor skill as well as its senses and ability to concentrate.

3 games included in this college stage are:

• The shell game (the classical 3 cups game)
• Open sesame
• The magic carpet

5. University

This stage is a good exercise if you have an extra clingy dog, you’ll train them how to brave and confident. It also teaches the dog’s impulse control by creating a positive association with the triggers. You as the trainer will also increase your training ability; becoming more observant and improving your timing.

3 games to develop those goals are:

• Hide and seek
• Look at that
• Hot and cold

6. Graduation

Source: Pexels.com

In this section, your dog will learn those intelligent dog’s shows; weaving between your legs.

Moreover, this section will also cultivate your dog’s language ability by learning to differentiate things from its names.

There are 3 games to bring those abilities out of your dog:

• Leg weaving
• Serpentines & spiral
• Name discrimination

7. Einstein

You’ve arrived at the top of the stage. Here you and your dog can probably sign up for the Got Talents show. At this stage your dog will be able to tidy up toys, even play the piano!

• The tidy up game
• Ring stacker
• Play the piano

Module #5: Closing Words

Here you’ll get:

• Beyond brain training; Einstein challenges. After your training completion, you and your dog are officially challenged to beat Adrienne’s dog, Einstein, records.
• Glossary

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BRAIN TRAINING FOR DOGS

ARCHIVES: Articles

Adrienne’s archives will be your most complete dog-related information you’ve ever gotten yourself into.

These archives seem to address every dog owner’s problem with a total of 152 articles. Everything you need to know from the puppy phase to the senior dogs, they have it all stored.

What else do you wanna ask?

Dog’s psychological problem e.g. anxiety and phobias; you can find it here.

BONUSES

This program has 3 BONUSES available for you:

Bonus #1: Video archives

Other than the written archives, you can also access the extra bonus of 13 videos:

• 2 videos of behavior modification
• 8 videos of trick training
• And, 3 videos of useful behaviors

Bonus #2: Case Studies

Here you’ll get to watch the process of Adrienne handling three cases of three dogs’ bad behaviors:

• Saddie: curing its winning, pacing, and constantly going to the door problem
• Maggie: curing its Jumping up problem
• And, Homer: curing its lunging and barking at other dogs problem

Bonus #3: Bonus course; Behavior Training for Dogs

Similar to the main course, this bonus course also divided into several modules (but not as much):

You’ll only get 3 modules from here:

Module #1: Getting Started

You’ll get information about the author (again), and an introduction of the behavior training for dogs.

Module #2: Behavior Training for Dogs

This module addressing 5 common behavioral problems that dogs have:

• Whining
• Digging
• Barking
• Chewing
• Jumping

Module #3: Closing Words

The glossary

ADDITIONAL FEATURE: Forum

If you happen to have difficulty with your training process, you can use this additional feature to find a solution. Either you want to scroll on the already asked questions or you can directly ask Adrienne by dropping a message on the forum.

You can also attach pictures or videos to your post so that Adrienne can make a better judgment to troubleshoot your problem.

Alright, that’s all of the contents, so many right?

But do they work?

Here are what Brain Training for Dogs users say about it:

Analysis of Brain Training for Dogs User Reviews and Complaints

Just like many other programs on the market, Brain Training for Dogs, unexceptionally, also have two types of customer reviews: the PROs and the CONs.

But which one is higher?

After spending enough time scrolling over the internet, reading (almost) every user’s testimonials and reviews, I found that the pros are (much) higher than the cons.

As to make it fair, I’m going to share both points of view:

Let’s start by addressing the CONs:

So far, I only found one, and it says:

“Not what its made out to be. Unless you want to read over and over again to see a vet behaviouralist or an actual professional over and over again do not invest in this sham of a program…”*

–Morgan Hodgson

Well, I was warned enough by this testimonial before getting into the program, but now since I’ve tried it myself, I’d say that this matter didn’t happen to me (not on the modules nor the customer help).

In fact, I had a good conversation with Adrienne Farricelli in the customer’s forum without once suggesting me to seek vet help or another professional. Conversely, she helped me troubleshoot my dog-training problem in a pleasant way (I include the screenshot of our conversation further below).

However, I don’t want to make any claims to ensure that this program will never suggest any user to seek professional help. Because I certainly spotted a post on the customer’s forum where Adrienne indeed suggesting a user to a vet check-up for his recently rescued puppy since the puppy is not food driven. And in my opinion, what Adrienne did is reasonable; it’s for the user’s own good.

Okay now, let’s see the PROs,

Many reviewers noted that their dogs showed improvements in their behaviors, here’s one of them:

“…It would chew on things that it shouldn’t or jump up and down out of the blue. Whenever I put on the leash, it would pull on it. Whenever it was out of the house, it would continue digging on the ground… All the things it did left me feeling depressed as if I failed it monumentally. But since I discovered Brain Training for Dogs and applied the system offered, it now behaves the way a beautiful dog I always expect of.”*

– Hannah Tomes

The positive feedbacks of this program come from varied backgrounds, they’re not just seasoned pro-dog owners or newbies, it also comes from a professional dog trainer, Tiara Nixon; and a k-9 unit police officer:

“My final verdict is that I would highly recommend this course to anyone seeking to train their dog in a fun, meaningful, and easy way…”*

– Tiara Nixon

“… As you know, the K9 unit is a special unit that usually works with animals, in general cases, dogs… we should make them as obedient and disciplined partners as possible. And when we knew there were this module and the things contained in it, this made us a little helped about how to understand the dogs.”*

– John Jaspert

What I say about Brain Training for Dogs; 3-Week Experience

Through some ups and downs, I’d say that this program doesn’t fail me. I notice good changes that my dog makes.

Please kindly note that we’re working slowly, so far we’re still on module 2 and just recently stepping onto the beginning of module 3.

Patience is highly required here, just like what Adrienne said:

“If you have a new dog or a dog who has never been trained before, consider that it may take some time for him to learn to fluidly perform the behaviors”

But before we got to the results and the progress videos, I think it’s important to give you a tiny bit of background information so we can clearly measure how far the progress goes:

My baby, Panda, knows nothing else but one trick called “shake-hand”; an obsolete trick taught by her former “parents” before I adopted her.

Me, on the other hand, as a “more laid back parent”, I never told her to do anything. In fact, I’ve spoiled her in some ways until I realized that it wasn’t going well either.

Therefore, I changed the rule and tried this claimed to be a fun and no-force program called Brain Training for Dogs.

And to be honest with you, I was a skeptic myself, questioning: “can this online program be as good as attending a dog training class?”

But after considering some aspects, I think this program will suit me well.

How‘s that so?

Well, first of all, it’s hard for me to let someone or let’s say a stranger train my baby.

Second, I want to deepen our bonding, deepen her trust and love towards me, as well as to enjoy every process and progress that my baby makes organically. Whereas, dropping her off at training camp won’t have me this kind of luxury.

Third, the cost. This program costs much cheaper. The conventional dog training camp will cost a minimum of $30 per meeting and there’s no way my dog can magically turn smart after just one meeting.

Finally yet importantly, this program has a fair amount of positive feedbacks.

So yeah, I give it a go!

Source: Pixabay.com

What I specifically want to achieve with the help of this program:

• Eliminate her jumping up behavior to get food (she can be really impatient if she knows I’m making something that smells appetizing to her)
• Listen to my call (she barely listen to me, especially if she’s playing outside)
• Diminishing her excessive barking

Have these bad behaviors successfully reversed?

Here is the detailed report as well as the result of our 3 weeks training:

Dog Training Week One:

How did it go?

Simply a mess.

As the program suggests, we began with the very basic: Module 2, Obedience 101. Here, we have the basic skills, such as giving the lures, adding the cues, and proofing our dogs to respond to it.

If you and your dog are newbies, I suggest you not to skip this part.

This module looks simple but I clearly underestimated it. We spent literally one full week in this section just to learn simple obedience tricks like sit and lie down.

Here’s footage of how Panda reacted to my “sit” cue:

I’m sure it has nothing to do with the “dumb” factor, even though I’ve read literature by a canine psychologist, Stanley Coren, that Chihuahuas are below average for working and obedience intelligence; the list shows that this breed is ranked 125 out of 138.

Well, I gotta say that his research is not necessarily true since the real reason why we spent a week just to learn to sit and lie down was that we never done this before plus my baby is a finicky eater. I need three attempts to buy the right lures before finding the one that she wants.

What does this mean?

We’re slowing down indeed; the first treats (dental sticks; the one that she used to like) she rejected after few attempts, the second and third were not any better (2 variations of high-value kibbles were coldly rejected). Until the fourth try, a liver flavor meat jerky won her attention. For sure, things turned much easier right after.

However, since I still have this fear that at some point in the future she may get bored of it, I decided to utilize the program’s FORUM to seek help.

I thought the forum was just an “additional” feature to make the program looks “denser”, but I was wrong. In fact, it is so beneficial and helpful; they troubleshoot users’ problems very seriously. And by them, I mean Adrienne herself.

What’s even more heartwarming is it doesn’t take too long; it requires less than 24 hours.

In case you’re wondering how our conversation goes, here they are:

After I wrote her the needed response, it shooked me how she replied in such a personal, deliberate, and thorough way:

This text actually still continue further below, but to save up time, I’m gonna stop right here.

Long story short, I do what she advises and recommends; it works nicely.

Now, sitting or lying down is an easy task to do.

Dog Training Week Two:

Week 2 is where everything ran smoothly. Here are some videos I compiled when my baby performed some obedience tricks; sit, lie down, take it/leave it, as well as stay/ recall.

I was amazed to see that my baby can finally contain herself to wait and listen to my call; she has never been able to do this before.

Dog Training Week Three:

Since I don’t want to rush, I used this week 3 to keep training her obedience tricks (module 2), until it becomes her second nature.

Even so, I added up more challenges like doing the training in front of people or doing it outside the house. I also slowly modify the training by fading the lures (like it told in module 3).

This program is not lying when they said they had the techniques to make your dog willingly perform even you don’t have treats to offer. 

Our training result is still not 100% perfect though, but I’m happy to notice that my baby can show such significant progress!

The overall result:

I have to admit that these 3 weeks of training have pretty much given good contributions to diminish some of my dog’s bad behaviors:

Two out of three bad behaviors have noticeably reversed*.

First, I noticed that she has figured out that sitting or lying down quietly will get her a reward but jumping on food does not, so now every time I got appetizing food in hands, she is chill.

Here’s a pic of her lying patiently when I’m preparing her favorite meal.

The same thing happened with problem number two where she won’t listen to my call. Through some trials and errors, I can say that she starts to fully embark the cues and embody this new good behavior as her second nature.

And the best thing is, we’ve arrived at the part where we can do this particular training in the wilderness (with or without the lures).

Don’t believe me?

Here’s the proof (I use no treats, only the clicker, and verbal cues):

Unfortunately for the third problem: ‘excessive barking’, we still need time to work on it. Since barking is a natural behavior of dogs, it will be quite difficult to maintain. But with the proven progress that I’ve seen with the help of this program, I believe that the barking problem will wither sooner or later.

So… that is it of our testimonial.

In case, you and your dog have the same problems like ours and interested to try this program; you certainly can do it with more ease.

Brain Training for Dogs’ Cost and Guarantee

If compares with other programs that have equal values with Brain training for Dogs, I’d say this program wins.

How so?

Well, to get comprehensive training, behavior training, puppy training, as well as videos, you need to pay at least $60 (since those values are sold individually for $15- $20).

While here you’ll only need to spend $47 (all in one package) includes the extra; a bunch of informative articles.

What’s more?

Brain Training for Dogs knows exactly about our insecurities when it comes to money.

Therefore, every purchase will be secured with a 60-day money-back guarantee. That’s why I said earlier that you can try out this program with more ease. And if by any chance you’re not satisfied with the service, this guarantee will save you from misery.

CLICK HERE FOR SECURE PURCHASE

Conclusion and Verdict

Now, we have arrived at the end of our destination; it is time to answer our burning questions:

• Can you really train your dog through an online course?

Based on the experience we have and the progress that my dog made so far, I’d say; yes, why not?

With enough dedication, I’m sure the goal is achievable.

Furthermore, this program instructions are easy to follow, accompanied by related illustrations, further discussion of common problems, as well as the videos; I think all of these things play significant roles to make me (or everyone else) a good “trainer”.

• How effective can this course be if compared to the conventional dog training camp?

Well, I’m not the best person to actually answer this question since I’ve never tried the conventional one before. But if I have to answer this question, I’d say that it depends on what extent you’re looking for. If you’re looking for something easy, no sweat (but pay higher), you can pick the conventional ones.

Conversely, if you want to learn something new, train your dog yourself, and create deeper bonding, then Brain Training for Dogs can perfectly suit you.

Try Brain Training for Dogs Now

Disclaimer

Brain Training for Dogs as with any dog-training program doesn’t hold a guarantee to every user’s success.

The result may vary due to many factors, such as; the amount of time dedicated to training, the dog’s breed, the dog’s age, health, and the handler skill.

The content written on this post is subjectively made from the writer’s very own experience after using the Brain Training for Dogs program and it can’t be overgeneralized to any other user.