Checking our work
Can I talk to past clients before booking board and train?
Wanting to hear from another family before you hand over your dog for two or three weeks is sensible, and a trainer who bristles at the question is telling you something. Here is what to ask for, what to ask a past client if you speak to one, and what else proves the work.
Last reviewed September 29, 2026 · by the Best Dog University Team
The short answer
Ask on the call; in the meantime, the public evidence is already there to check.
A reference is only one person's experience, and it is chosen by the business, so it is worth less than it feels. Reviews on Google are harder to curate and easier to read in bulk. Ours sit at 5.0, and the testimonials page shows real reviews in full, including families who did a one-week program, a two-week program and a private lesson.
The most direct evidence is the work itself. Families can visit the training home in Cypress, meet the dogs that are there and watch a session, in person or on a video call for families across the metro. Once a stay starts, photo and video updates arrive every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, so you see your own dog working rather than someone else's story.
- Ask our team on the call about speaking with a graduate family
- Read the Google reviews, not only the highlights
- See the training home and watch a session
- Expect updates three times a week once the stay starts
Reading reviews well
Specific reviews are worth ten generic ones; look for the details a real family would mention.
A review that mentions the updates, the go-home session, the dog's actual problem and what happened after pick-up describes a real experience. A review that says only great trainer, highly recommend could be about anyone. The most common thing families mention in our reviews is the communication: updates three times a week and quick replies to texts in between.
Look for the kind of dog you have. A family with a reactive shepherd learns more from a review about a dog that lunged than from one about a puppy that learned sit. Look at dates too, since a program's recent reviews say more about it than old ones. Read the lower-rated reviews of any trainer you consider as closely as the glowing ones.
- Mentions of the updates and the handover
- A dog with a problem like yours
- What happened weeks after pick-up
- Recent dates
If you speak to a past client
Ask about the weeks after pick-up, because that is where programs succeed or fail.
Anyone will tell you the videos were lovely. The useful questions are about home. What did the first week back look like? Did the go-home session teach you the handling, or just show you the dog? Did you use the follow-up lessons, and were they easy to book? What slipped, and what did the team do about it?
Ask about the dog, too. A family whose Lab needed manners had a different experience from one whose rescue was afraid of strangers. And ask practical things that matter in Houston: how the summer schedule worked, how long the drive to Cypress was, whether they used the $250 transport service and how the handover went at their own front door.
Ask what the dog was like before and what it was brought in for
Ask what the first week at home looked like
Ask whether the go-home session taught them the handling
Ask whether they used the follow-up lessons
Ask what slipped and how the team responded
Ask how the summer schedule or the drive worked for them
Other ways to check us
Published prices, a written method and a founder you can read about are all checkable.
Every program price is on the pricing page: Silver $1,500, Gold $2,500, Platinum $3,750 and VIP $10,000, with private lessons at $160 in Cypress or $220 at home. The training methods page explains what we use and what we never do. The about page covers our founder and head trainer's 16-plus years and more than 900 dogs trained. None of that needs a reference to confirm.
Texas does not license dog trainers, so the checks that matter are the ones you can do yourself: see where the dogs live, watch a trainer work, read the method, ask what happens when a dog gets it wrong. Apply every one of those to us before paying the $250 deposit. A program that is confident in its work will not mind the checking.
What we do at Best Dog University
Start with the free call, check anything you want, then reserve.
The free phone consultation is a direct call with our team about your dog, and it is the right place to ask about talking to a graduate family, seeing the training home or watching a session. Most families end up choosing between Gold, two weeks at $2,500, for manners, and Platinum, three weeks at $3,750 and our most popular program, for behavior problems.
The honest fit: we would rather you checked us properly and booked late than booked quickly and worried for three weeks. Take your time, ask the hard questions and read the reviews. When you are comfortable, the $250 reservation deposit holds your dates and comes off the program price. Families in Katy, Spring or the Heights can also add the $250 transport service at that point.
The programs
Programs you can check before booking.
Published prices, public reviews and a training home you can see before you pay anything.
Asked and answered
Questions people ask about this.
Why don't you publish a list of references?
Because graduate families' contact details belong to them, and a list chosen by the business says less than reviews anyone can read. Ask our team on the free phone consultation about speaking with a family whose dog was like yours, and read the Google reviews and the testimonials page in the meantime.
Are your reviews real?
Yes. The testimonials page republishes real Google reviews word for word, and nothing is edited or invented. Read them on Google directly as well, where you can see every review rather than a selection. Look for specifics about the updates, the handover and the dog's problem.
Can I see the training home before I book?
Yes. Families are welcome to see where the dogs live in Cypress, meet the dogs that are there and watch our trainers work, in person or on a video call. Ask our team to arrange it on the free phone consultation. Visits in the middle of your own dog's stay are a different matter.
What if I want to talk to someone whose dog was reactive?
Say so on the call. Our team can tell you what it can arrange, and in the meantime explain how reactive dogs are handled in Platinum: distance first, behavior modification, field trips and unlimited private lessons afterward. Read the reviews for families describing a similar dog.
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Want to check us before you book?
Ask our team anything on the free phone consultation, including a visit to the training home. When you are ready, a $250 deposit holds your dates.