Scott T.
Austin TX

Our journey to great dog training culminated when we found Troy and Sit Means Sit. We visited and interviewed a few (8) other board and train facilities, who woulda thunk that Austin would have a few…dozen?

During my conversation with Troy he outlined how the program worked and supplied me with his background and general philosophy behind dog training. I was very impressed with the way he handled the conversation to say the least. He was not trying to sell me anything, he stated what they could offer and told me, “If this is a good fit for you and Bernie then we can move forward when you like.”

We did and have not looked back!

Bernie, our 1.5 year old Boxer had aggression issues and needed help with walking on a leash, off leash recall and general obedience. We had an initial visit at Sit means Sit and Troy evaluated Bernie and we sat down and discussed his future training needs. We decided on a 2 week board and train, with that we also got 2 personal training sessions and a lifetime of group classes. How Awesome is that?!

He stayed at the Belton location with Wes, when I say with Wes that means he stayed at his house. Other board and trains place the dogs in kennels at night and during the day. Bernie was able to socialize during the day with a few other dogs and got personal attention during the day as well. AWESOME

After he returned:
Bernie showed great improvement with his off leash recall, staying on his “place” until released, Sit, Place (similiar to stay), and has a desire to learn. Before he was a 9 year old child pumped up on cotton candy and soda that needed ADD medicine , true story people.

thank you Troy and Wes!

Scott, Stacey and Bernie

Nicole ‎ – Mar 5, 2012
Sit Means Sit has transformed our little monster into not quite a little angel, but well on the way. We have been working with them for about six months now and it has been hard, but rewarding. It really has been about training us so we can better handle our dog. Our confidence in taking her in public has increased and our frustration has decreased. Shelly & Troy are awesome and really care about all the dogs they work with!! Thanks guys!!

Judy ‎ – Mar 22, 2012
Newman and I both have loved every minute of training with Troy and Shelly. Newman loves the classes and is very eager to go each time. He has learned a great deal. He is a really big boxer and loves the attention, and loves to learn. I highly recommend this team to any and all dog owners. Wish my neighbor would get into this training with her nervous,scared,noisy boxer! This is great training! Sit Means Sit is it! It will make your pet the best it can be.Thanks much to this team from Newman and me.

Cindy ‎ – Apr 3, 2012

I adopted our dog, Tank, about four months ago, at the age of three. He had never gotten much exercise, and his hind legs were underdeveloped. Due to his lack of exercise and the outside world, he had quite an overzealousness whenever I did take him for a walk – huge leash puller. I got him in SMS training about a week after getting him. Within two lessons there was a huge difference in his pulling. His ability to understand commands and follow them was astounding within two weeks. Within a month, we were off leash on nature trails and the hike and bike trail leash-free area, and I thought that would take a year! Troy and Shelly are wonderful trainers, and truly care about the animals, regardless of their issues. A HUGE thumbs up!

Joanne ‎ – Mar 24, 2012After losing our beloved Westie at age 13, my fiance and I adopted a Scottish Terrier / Giant Schnauzer mix, we named Stanley. Stanley came to us considered “unadoptable”, hyper and at first, even aggressive towards us. We had thought that maybe we took on more than we could handle. After meeting Shelly at the Pecan St festival, seeing her well behaved dogs and hearing about her program, we signed Stanley up. Stanley has come a very very long way, since we began the process in December, Shelly and Troy have been fantastic to work with and though Stanley is still ironing out all of his wrinkles, and we continuously work with him, he has become a very special part of our family, and very sweet with my fiance and myself. Thanks for everything Sit Means Sit!!

Jody ‎ – Mar 26, 2012
I have nothing but good things to say about Sit Means Sit Austin. I researched various dog training approaches, read the comments and reviewed photos in Sit Means Sit Austin’s Facebook page and took advantage of their free consultation. Troy and Shelly run a first class business, and it’s obvious at the heart of it all is their love of dogs. One of the very best things is that you have an option to sign up for lifetime group lessons. In our case, our little mini-Aussie needs exactly that–she is fearful aggressive with strangers and her group lessons are slowly but surely bringing her around. I love dogs and consider them part of the family and am so happy to have found Sit Means Sit. Highly recommend!

off22thepark ‎ – Mar 23, 2012
Troy and Shelly understand dogs plain and simple. They use positive techniques to help the dogs learn what the owner wants them to do. I didn’t think I would be able to handle my 2 Great Danes at over 150lbs each but with a few private sessions and fun group classes we are off on walks and hikes all the time now with no issues. Its a joy knowing that whatever situation arises my dogs are well trained and able to handle it. I can’t recommend SitMeansSit enough. Totally worth it and fantastic customer service.

by chase0617 at Citysearch 07/03/2011

Sit Means Sit is amazing! The work they’ve done with my pit bull, Bandit, has been miraculous. Before Bandit started training with Troy, he was shy and fearful of other dogs. He also had anxiety problems when I would leave the room and would start chewing into anything, including the dry wall. His anxiety didn’t stop there. We couldn’t even take him outside without him being anxious and fearful of leaving his “home”.

With the four training sessions that Bandit has undergone, he’s had a complete 180 turn around. He’s able to go on the balcony without going crazy; barking, trying to jump over the balcony or trying to attack dogs that walk too close to the balcony.

His anxiety is still present, but we’re all able to leave the house without worrying about anything being chewed up. It’s a work in progress with him, but we are happy with his progress because we can take him on walks with leashes, we can let him roam on our balcony and we can let him be around other dogs.

max t.’s Review
Austin, TX
5.0 star rating
12/20/2011

We just enrolled our active 5 month old puppy just a few weeks ago with Troy at Sit Means Sit. We have only had three sessions with the trainer (really training us how to train our dog properly) and our dog, Rivers, is a new part of our family. He actually loves his training sessions because it uses his mind and gives him a positive outlet for all his energy. Other dogs/people can come up or walk by and our dog listens for our commands. It is amazing! Before, Rivers would be jumping on guests to our home and not paying attention to our instructions/commands at all and now Rivers looks at us and pays attention. Not to say that it all happened overnight, but within just a few weeks, we can already see major benefits. Now the rest of the work is just up to us to continue to be consistent with our commands. Troy and his wife have been so helpful! I would recommend this program to anyone (and already have).

"Max"

by Destini78 at Citysearch

My 9 month old Boxer puppy and I were really butting heads, I wanted him to listen and he didn’t want to. He was really pushing the bounderies with me and I didn’t know how to control it. We signed up with Sit means Sit about 2 months ago and I could tell a difference after the first lesson. My puppy is still a goofy fun puppy but with manners! He is better trained than all of my friends older dogs that should know better by now. Life is easier and more peaceful with a well trained dog. Every penny spent was well worth it and I’ll do it again if I get another dog. Thanks so much Sit Means Sit for helping me “like” my dog even more!

"Lexi"

by Amy Lou via Citysearch

I decided to try Sit Means Sit when I bought my first dog. My husband and I initially tried PetSmart puppy classes, but decided that it wasn’t as effective as we wanted. We wanted to be able to take Lexi anywhere with us and have her not be a nuisance around other people or dogs. Before Sit Means Sit, I would literally have to drag Lexi on walks. She didn’t listen very well, and obeyed when and if she wanted to! After Sit Means Sit, Lexi is a great listener. She is such a pleasure and great on walks. At only 7 months old, she is so much more well behaved than any of my friends’ dogs who are much older! Thank you, Troy and Shelly!!!!

Check out George’s post from Google Places…

“Thank you for helping turn our dog into the AWESOME dog we’ve always wanted him to be. Our dog could NEVER be off-leash for a moment without turning into a wild sprinting cheetah. We did a Board & Train/Jumpstart program with Sit Means Sit. Within days of picking him up, we could consistently walk our dog off-leash. Our friends (and us!) have been amazed at the difference. But above anything we wanted for our dog, the most important difference was seeing how much happier our dog is whenever we take him out in public. He is happy, well-behaved, and is able to have fun without getting intro trouble. Proof positive that you can teach an old dog (seven years old!) new tricks. THANK YOU, Sit Means Sit! You’ve given us much more wonderful quality time with our dog.”

Since this video was made, George has been working / playing with Max and is able to work with him off leash. Great job George and Max!