Paw and Hand K9

Paw and Hand K9 We take out of control dogs and transform them into well behaved family companions.

M is for Morty! He’s going thru the “leave it” phase in his board and train program 🤓
03/25/2025

M is for Morty! He’s going thru the “leave it” phase in his board and train program 🤓

A medley of Board and Train, Doggie Day School and even one of our resident dogs. Helping dogs develop Self Discipline, ...
03/24/2025

A medley of Board and Train, Doggie Day School and even one of our resident dogs. Helping dogs develop Self Discipline, Motivation to succeed, Socialization and Confidence. Get your dog enrolled when you schedule a free meet and greet with us! 503-779-7975

Some pics from this week’s outings with some of our board and train dogs 💕
03/24/2025

Some pics from this week’s outings with some of our board and train dogs 💕

Love this photo of board and train Cody being such a good boy in the house.
03/15/2025

Love this photo of board and train Cody being such a good boy in the house.

Another good lookin group pic with a mix of board and trains and day school dogs 💪
03/15/2025

Another good lookin group pic with a mix of board and trains and day school dogs 💪

A few more Doggie Day School pics just for fun.
03/14/2025

A few more Doggie Day School pics just for fun.

Lovin these pics from one of our Doggie Day School Groups!
03/14/2025

Lovin these pics from one of our Doggie Day School Groups!

Karen the dutchie lookin good after club training.
03/13/2025

Karen the dutchie lookin good after club training.

Thank you for another wonderful review!
03/13/2025

Thank you for another wonderful review!

Let’s welcome Harley to our 8wk Behavior Mod board and train program!
03/12/2025

Let’s welcome Harley to our 8wk Behavior Mod board and train program!

Another lovely outing!
03/05/2025

Another lovely outing!

02/28/2025

Any good groomers in Carlton, OR that are open on the weekends?

Thank you so much for joining us on our Train and Play at the Park! Come tag along! Call or text and say you want on our...
02/27/2025

Thank you so much for joining us on our Train and Play at the Park!

Come tag along! Call or text and say you want on our invite list 503-779-7985 🙌🐕🐾🦴

I think we need a progress video of Cali! Who wants to see how this awesome puppy is developing?!
02/22/2025

I think we need a progress video of Cali! Who wants to see how this awesome puppy is developing?!

Please join me in congratulating Merissa Micochero of Paw and Hand K9 with her little partner “Cali” Egnyte My Flame VonOeveren ( light blue hurricane 🌀 🩵 🌪️)

We are so excited and proud of this pairing! 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Merissa was my very first IGP coach. I shared my dream of competing and breeding with her years ago. I didn’t dream big enough - it never dawned on me one of our little monsters would be in such high caliber working home. Very grateful and blessed. 🙏🏼🩵🐾

Day School, Work Weeks, Board and Train, 1 on 1 lessons, Spa Day, Classes and Workshops. We have been growing and changi...
02/22/2025

Day School, Work Weeks, Board and Train, 1 on 1 lessons, Spa Day, Classes and Workshops. We have been growing and changing since 2008! How are we going to evolve this year?!?! Drop a comment if you can guess!

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Thanks for joining us on our fun little hike yesterday! We so much enjoy getting together with our dogs and enjoying the...
02/20/2025

Thanks for joining us on our fun little hike yesterday! We so much enjoy getting together with our dogs and enjoying the day 💕

Want to join? Text us at 503-779-7985!

02/14/2025

For years, fluoxetine (Prozac) has been pushed as the answer to behavioral problems in dogs. Veterinary behaviorists and force-free advocates love to cite “science-backed” studies to justify long-term medication use. But here’s a big problem, most of these studies are flawed, biased, and rely almost entirely on owner-reported data.
Take, for example, the 2009 study on fluoxetine for compulsive disorders in dogs (Irimajiri et al., J Am Vet Med Assoc). It claimed fluoxetine helped, yet the only improvement came from owners’ OPINIONS, not actual behavioral measurements. When researchers looked at objective data the dogs’ actual behavior logs they found NO SIGNIFICANT difference between the medicated and placebo groups. But guess which result gets cited?🤫
How about the 2007 study on fluoxetine for separation anxiety (Simpson et al., Veterinary Therapeutics). The conclusion? Fluoxetine was effective … but only when paired with a structured behavior modification plan. And yet, thousands of dogs are medicated without any meaningful training, as if a pill can replace actual learning.
Sad reality is that Dogs are being drugged, not rehabilitated.
Ask any serious trainer what happens when they get a dog that’s been on fluoxetine for years. They take the dog off the meds, implement a sound training plan, and SHOCKINGLY the dog improves.
Not because fluoxetine “worked,” but because the dog finally got what it needed: clarity and proper training.
Yet, the AVSAB keeps pushing these medications while dismissing legitimate training as “aversive” or “outdated.” They’d rather chemically suppress behavior than actually address it.
The real question isn’t whether fluoxetine has some effect but why so many dogs improve when you REMOVE the drug and train them properly?!!!
Behavioral change comes from learning, not sedation. It’s time to stop pretending otherwise.
I know I am not the only one noticing that dogs on fluoxetine don’t get better - they just get dull.
The dog isn’t learning or adapting, just becoming more passive.
This can actuallY DELAY proper rehabilitation, because the dog’s emotions and responses are chemically suppressed rather than modified through learning.
Thinking about making a solo podcast to talk about the dog I have in training right now, one of the many that end up euthanized after YEARS of being on SSRI’s and the pandemic of prescribing psychotropics like flea medication

Let’s welcome Bentley to our Doggie Day School!
02/13/2025

Let’s welcome Bentley to our Doggie Day School!

Address

8892 Little Road SE
Aumsville, OR
97325

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 6pm
Tuesday 9am - 6pm
Wednesday 9am - 6pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 6pm

Telephone

+15037797985

Website

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Videos

Fixing Kaia’s fetch! Board and train Kaia LOVES to chase and catch the stick! But she had a couple areas to improve to really have an A Game when it comes to fetch. 1- no take backs 2- you gotta bring it back and give it to me before I can throw it again 3- I know you’re excited but you’ve still got to think ;) #lovelabs #labsrule #dogsgotstyle

Archie make a mistake during one of his sessions in his board and train program, what ever shall we do?! Interrupt, redirect, try again! Reward increased effort and better success. Do this as quickly and as smoothly as possible instead of dilly dallying, repositioning, asking what he did wrong or why he did it. Get the dog in the zone of “right,” asap 😘 #englishcream #ibelieveinyou #smoothisfast

Charlie is two weeks into his board and train. His obedience is developing nicely as is his ability to concentrate around perform around distractions. Really loving his progress 💕 #boardandtrain #crazydog #gettincivilized

Morning warm ups :) Can you tell which dog just got done working fetch and drop it outside? How about who needed a leash pop to settle down once I stopped recording? #whocantell #morningwarmups

Recent board and train arrival Morty is starting to get the hang of his recalls! #redheeler #acd #rescuesrock #comeback

Real sh*t. One week in and board and train Harley is no longer taking me skiing while she is explosively reacting at other dogs. She’s one week in and has been doing beautifully around so many dogs not behind a barrier. But when we walked by the “dog in a fenced yard” she started thinking about reverting to some of those old habits that she was pretty strong in not so long ago. So I quickly snagged someone to video progress for her owners and figured I would share a snippet with y’all of what it looked like while we worked thru it. #boardandtrain #rottielady #dontbeabutthead

Trainer Jesse with @woods_creek_rescue’s Kiley who is currently in our board and train program. Kiley has had a recent lightbulb for offering a down position when she gets to the bed.

What do you get when you mix up Doggie Daycare with Classes instead of just recess all day? You Get our Day School Program. It’s got recess and nap time but with plenty of thinking time too. They make friends and best friends, their teachers challenge them and encourage them, parents get regular updates and our pillars of Trust and Respect encourage better manners and relationships at home too 🫡💕🙌 Give your dog something more to do than just run around in the playground while you work. Let them learn, grow and become better family companions. Call or text right now to find out more about our Day School Program. Spots are limited. 503-779-7985

Before and after our board and train program with Ruby Rose! This lovely lady was adopted from rescue and came with a little bit of mental baggage. Thru our board and train program she developed a ton of confidence and started to truly enjoy going places and being responsive to the commands she had learned. #rescuedogsaved #bestownerever #weloveruby

After a bit more training and maturity (2wks) board and train puppy Toby John is still very happy to do the work but with much more self discipline. The video only shows some basic obedience but this puppy is no longer biting a scratching the owners skin, he’s no longer chaotic and un catchable. He can stay in an x pen (think play pen) for a few hours when unattended without accidents, barking or naughtiness. This way if mom has to go somewhere without the dog he’s not having bad practice, potty accidents or practicing nuisance behavior. He’s been to so many public outings, she can take him wherever she goes and still have a responsive well behaved lad that is focused more on her than his environment. And when it’s free time, she can get him back to her. Our programs not only educate the dog but they help your dog to grow and develop into a wonderful companion. What’s more is that we educate the owners to ensure the long term, successful results we are known for. So happy for Toby John 💕 #puppytraining #boardandtraindogtraining #salemdogtraining #puppyfun #whyishesocute

Board and Train puppy Toby John 2 weeks ago having fun playing with his trainer, Charlee! Here you can see he’s got a nice foundation being laid, and he is filled enthusiasm! Cute as it may be, he has not quite settled into the tasks at hand. “But he looks so happy!” You might say. “How could that possibly be a bad thing?” Because if a leaf blows by his face and his handler’s response time is not swift, his little puppy attention will blow away right with that leaf. 🍃 Moving forward, we want to see his joy and enthusiasm remain while becoming more settled and disciplined in his work. This way he can stay with his handler amongst fun distractions and wait for the appropriate time to go be involved with those exciting things, instead of when he is supposed to be remaining with his handler. Self discipline is something that does not happen overnight, it is worked on and developed over time. That being said, as this young dog grows and matures, he’s going to have setbacks and days where he struggles to excel. This is perfectly normal, just like people that are developing their own self discipline. It’s important that when these moments happen that you are there to support, prevent, direct, and reward the right choices instead of giving up and wondering why everything fell apart. #beresilient #puppytraining #reallife

Playing tug is an excellent way to have fun with your dog, wear them out and still work on trust and respect. Let your dog win the toy, a lot! Teaching the drop it cue is super important and should be taught once your dog really loves the tug game. Once you say the word, the toy doesn’t move and neither do you. I’m nice they finally let go, mark it with a yes! Or ok! Or whatever your word is and THEN start the game back up immediately. Show them that dropping the you make the game fire back up. Ps Douglas is the bestest 💕 #doodlesdoittoo #boardandtrain #dogtrainingtips #happysunday #outdammit #gooddog

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Professional Dog Training and Behavior Modification in Salem, OR

Merissa Micochero and Kevin Coombs offer complete dog training and behavior modification programs for you and your dog. They have the knowledge, experience and undeniable ability to train your dog and also to teach you how to maintain and continue the training once bringing them back home. From starting off 8 wk old puppies, reigning in those wild adolescents, to restructuring your adult out of control dog, they are here to help you achieve success with your dog.