Welcome to Killian's K9 Academy

My name is Rudy Montalvo. Along with my wife Sheri, we have opened Killian's K9 Academy, LLC to help teach your pet how to be part of the family. I have trained dogs for over 30 years. Originally from upstate New York, my family and I moved to North Carolina in 2011. We have 3 dogs of our own. We rescued our oldest, American Staffordshire Terrier -Levi, American Pitbull Terrier - Brenneke, and our newest addition, Amstaff/American Pit/Boxer - Fritz, from Johnston County Animal Protection League, to whom we are very supportive of! We love the feeling of adopting instead of shopping as there are so many wonderful dogs/puppies in need of a forever home. You can see it in their eyes! After adopting Levi, that had some pretty bad resource guarding issues along with various other problems, we had a moment of regret. Bringing him into our then well-balanced pack was not working out to be the best choice. But there was something special about this dog. Besides the fact that he wasn't that “cute little puppy”, he was a 2.5 year old, male American Staffordshire Terrier, and nobody wanted him. Sheri was concerned that we could never make this work. I said to her, "Honey, I have trained many dogs with many personalities, I KNOW I can do this!!" So, it was then that we made a 100% commitment to do whatever we could and put in the required hours it took to get this sweet boy to come around. We took him everywhere we went, and took one day at a time to closely monitor what triggered him or made him uncomfortable and worked with him on his triggers. We worked on slowly introducing him to be able to understand that our other dogs did not see him as a threat and he did not have to see them as one. This was a very slow and long process. 12 months later, he was an absolute gem! And now that we have got past the long time it took of building that loving and trusting bond, training continues. He loves everyone, he loves all dogs, big and small; people can't wait to see him when we go places that we visit regularly. As he started to transform people observed the change in him and suggested that we reopen a dog training business down here therefore, Killian's K9 Academy was born. My wife and I saw the need and want of private lessons for dog owners with lessons that can be adjusted to the needs of the clients and their dogs. We both have other full-time jobs outside of the dog world, but we wanted owners to be able to get the most out of bringing a dog into the family and to help avoid the possibility of the pup being sent to the shelter when the owner is completely frustrated and gives up. Dogs give unconditional love, they also want love and affection in return. First, as a responsible dog owner you must teach them how to be part of the family and we are here to help do just that!

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Why We Don’t Recommend Shock/Static Collar

Unfortunately, we have had to go fix many side issues stemming from the use of shock/static collars. We are strong advocates against their use for the following reasons:

• They cause pain

• They cause stress

• They can cause aggression

• They can cause side issues such as marking/soiling, fearfulness, etc.

• There are alternative humane methods so why not use them?

• They can cause burns

• They are often misused

Shock collars are banned in many countries so why would we find it acceptable ourselves?
Yes, I’ve been told many times “but I tried it and it was just a tap.” However, what level will be used on your dog? In order to have the dog perform the wanted behavior, the electric shock must be high enough, thus painful enough, to get the wanted result.

As world-known veterinary behaviorist Dr. Karen Overall says: “To understand people’s willingness to shock their dogs and cats (and sometimes horses), one important association needs to be acknowledged: people reach for tools such as shock when they feel helpless to address their pet’s behavioral concerns and when they feel that this is the only way that they can keep their pet safe and alive. Unfortunately, companies that make and market shock collars prey on these concerns, claiming that their products keep pets safe and save lives. There is no published evidence to support these claims, but there is now considerable evidence published in the peer-reviewed literature that refutes them.”

For more details, here is a great article with scientific back up on why using a shock/static collar is a very bad idea and not necessary: https://www.greenacreskennel.com/dog-behavior-and-training/the-unintended-consequences-of-shock-collars.html
Choose kindness, choose education, choose positive reinforcement and methods that make sense to your dog’s nature.

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