Q. How many dogs do you have at a time?
A. I only take 1 - 3 dogs at a time so that I can pay attention to all the details in the comprehensive training programs.
Q. Does my dog come stay with you?
A. Yes, he does, and at the end you come down and train with me in the system the dog has been taught.
Q. Do you do pick up of the dogs?
A. I can arrange pick up of Tucson dogs at your home. For my Phoenix (and other more distant) clients, I typically pick the dogs up on the northwest side of Tucson, meeting clients at the training yard for www.kennelcomfort.com. Dogs who are flown in are picked up at the Tucson airport.
Q. Do you provide the food?
A. Here at the ranch, clients provide the food during training, but I will only feed a 5 or 6 star formula (or the equivalent) as defined by one of the rating sites such as www.dogfoodadvisor.com; www.dogfoodanalysis.com; or www.whole-dog-journal.com . I go over the nutrition program with every dog that enters training to help build a healthy body and a willing brain in an age and breed appropriate way. I am well familiar with raw food feeding as well so that is not an obstacle here at the ranch as there is a dedicated freezer for raw canine foods. Again, we take a look at the nutritional program to make sure it is a balanced one, as well as assisting with practical approaches to feeding raw.
The ultimate goal is a collaboration between owner, trainer and veterinary support to create the very best program for each individual dog. The nutritional needs of a fifteen pound 2year old maltese with teeth issues are not the same as a 75lb 7 month old Labrador.
Q. Where do my dogs stay?
A. They have a generous, size appropriate crate in my living room, in and amongst my dogs, with access to a chain link fenced back yard for their potty/play area throughout the day. The ranch is 45 acres, so there are both wooded trails and open areas where the dogs are worked.
Q. What can I expect my dog to learn at boarding school?
A. Typically, household manners, all their basic obedience commands, (please contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for a list of commands taught) an offleash recall and offleash responsiveness to the obedience commands, and the ability to do all that in public under distraction.
Q. How often do you work with the dogs during the day.
A. There are typically three major working sessions during the day, but since the dogs live in my living room, they are handled from 6 am (first potty) to 9 pm (last potty) throughout the day, with consistency of handling being a prime component of creating, a balanced, reliable dog.
Q. Do you do behavioral rehabilitation?
A. Yes. Work here is pretty much split between starting young pups between 4 - 8 months, starting young dogs between 8 months and a 1.5 year old, and retraining, training, or rehabbing older dogs.
Q. How does the scheduling work?
A. Programs are set at your convenience. The important detail is when you have a day and a half free so that you can participate in the owner transfer training at the end of the program. Some of my clients work on weekends, so we schedule their program to end on the week days they are free. The ten day program typically starts on a Wednesday or Thursday and ends on the 2nd Saturday/Sunday with owner training. Two week programs typically run Saturday to Saturday.
Q. What's "owner training" or "transfer training?"
A. Board and train is a serious investment in your dog's wellbeing and your family's healthy functioning relationship with this dog. It is critically important to me, that the training the dog has experienced here at the ranch goes home with the dog and that the dog doesn't just work nicely for me. To that end, ADDR has one of the most comprehensive owner training components in the nation, a full day and a half at the end of the program, with unlimited follow-up as needed. Owners learn a plethora of skills that will enable them to simply and easily maintain the level of training and language their dog now knows. Training includes handling tips, nutrition, management, practice with all the dog's vocabulary, pack walk, offleash work here at the ranch, leash work and distraction training in town, and time allowing, an offleash expedition to a nearby scenic area.
Q. Do you guarantee your training?
A. There is a lifetime guarantee of availability for the life of your dog. This is very important to me, and I stay in touch with clients by email or phone. During cool weather we have monthly pack walks at various locations in the So. Az area. And clients are always welcome to come down for a tune up at no additional charge.
Q. Do you do just boarding? A. I only board dogs I have trained, on a space available basis. Boarding rates are $50.00 a day, and include 2 works a day of tune up training.
Q. Do you take aggressive dogs for rehab or training?
A. Depends on the breed and the age. As the years spin by, I now have some breed and weight limitations on the kind of dogs I will take in rehab. Younger and smaller are better..... That being said, there are a number of larger breeds (GSD, GR, Lab amongst others) for which I am a specialist in rehab, so circumstances vary. If your dog is a dog who I am not currently taking, I will however, refer you to a competent trainer who is, so please feel free to call.
Q. What's the best age to train my dog?
A. The sooner the better. I love getting the babies at 4 or 5 months of age. Some breeds need to grow up a bit more, but those are great ages to think about serious training. At those ages, I'm laying down fresh tracks rather than undoing bad habits. As a result, training is typically faster, easier, and less stressful for the dog. Undoing incorrect patterned behaviors is always harder. Just like kids, they're very plastic at young ages, and enthralled with the world. On the other end, the oldest dog I ever trained was an 11 year old lab who needed much tighter obedience to go back and forth to his owner's summer home. So just because a dog is older doesn't mean they can't be trained...it's just way harder, and physical complications of disease or arthritis or simple aging may enter into the picture to affect whether out of home training is appropriate for an older dog. All things being equal -- younger is better!!
Maryna Ozuna (Ma-ree-nah O-zoo-nah), nee Sheryl Studley, is the owner and director of training for Arizona Doggy Dude Ranch and the founder of the Kinaesthetics system of bodycare for humans, horses, and dogs. She also consults in movement cases with the Animal Care Center of Green Valley, AZ.
Arizona Doggy Dude Ranch is one of the Southwest's premier Dog training and Puppy training programs. Through our holistic, ForceFree Method™ approach that engages the dogs body, mind and spirit you end up with a dog that can go with you anywhere. Your dog becomes the valued family member you've always wanted him to be!
Imagine life with a trained dog!
Hi there -
The girls were so good in the car and also at the rest stop....
Maryna has an amazing touch with both dogs and people. Rarely does one dog trainer ever permit another to work with his dogs. Dog trainers are very particular about how their pets are handled. Maryna has worked with my own dogs at my request.
Just a note to let you know that Emma (and I !!) are doing very well....we walk every day and she does a great job in sitting and staying...and quite well at heeling....
Call us to talk about what we can do to help you with your dog!