We Can Train Any Dog!    Unleash Your Dog's Hidden Talents Now!

Paul Paquette & Sherry Major
Professional Dog Trainers and Canine Behaviour Specialists 

613-769-96K9 (9659) or 613-60TAILS (608-2457)  

Making a difference.....one dog at a time

(See what our clients are saying below)

Sherry and Paul share their South Ottawa home with several cats and three miniature schnauzers (their "boys"). Throughout their lives, there have always been animals sharing their homes and families. These included cats, birds, fish and especially dogs.

As a married couple, Sherry and Paul were looking for something that they could do together, something that they both loved. Their deep affection and concern for dogs and their environment led them to the Professional Dog Trainers course at the Canadian Canine Training Academy. Having graduated from the Professional Dog Trainers course in 2007 and 2008 respectively, Sherry and Paul have, to date, trained over 455 dogs.  They work together as a team to help educate dog owners on how to better understand and communicate with their dogs. They both get tremendous satisfaction from being able to improve the lives of dogs and owners alike so that both human and canine companions can live in harmony together.

Sherry says, "The dogs make my heart smile. Knowing that I can make a difference in a dog’s life and it’s owner’s life, makes it worthwhile doing everyday".

An advocate of lifelong learning, Sherry went on to complete a comprehensive study program as a dog trainer/instructor and has received a diploma with highest honors in November 2010 as a dog trainer/instructor. She is still continuing to build on her education and knowledge about dogs and their behaviours by completing other dog related programs. In addition, both she and Paul continue to improve on their knowledge and abilities through self-learning, seminars, reading books, as well as through personal interaction with dog owners and their pets. 

 What our clients are saying: 

"Hi Sherry and Paul, Tux and I both wanted to send you the biggest thank you from the bottom of our hearts.  I never thought I would ever have control over Tux's aggressive outbursts let alone find two people who truly were able to work with both Tux and I and never give up on either of us.  I got Tux when he was about 6months old and he was the most loving, cuddly little Shitzhu mix I could have ever dreamed of having.  Not even three months after getting him I was severely assaulted by a stranger while walking Tux, as I have no memory from that day we never knew what Tux saw or what happened to him but from that day on he has never been the same.  Tux has had severe aggression to strangers and anyone who would come near or approach me.  I havent been able to have people in my home as Tux would lunge, growl and nip at anyone coming into my home. We had tried three separate obedience schools/trainers and nothing worked until I met you both.  You showed me that I was lacking the confidence to gain my dogs respect since that day which made him feel that he needed to react to feel safe and to feel as though he was protecting me.  I know Tux will never be a dog that will let people pet him but since your training I can now answer my door with Tux in a down stay (which when you first showed me this I never imagined Tux would do) and he actually stays.  You have shown me the confidence I needed to control Tux's aggression and temper tantrums.  Thank you so much for giving me my dog back and giving Tux a chance to be a loving little guy again, just like i have known he always has been.  I know that if you can gain control over Tux and his aggression I would recommend you both to anyone.  No matter how small or big the trouble is neither of you ever back down and for that I thank you. Thank you, Chantelle and Tux  :)"

"Hi Sherry and Paul...... Just want to thank you both for once again digging us out of a hole in Wally's (and my) training!  I really feel like you folks give us 'the real stuff' we need for a happy and safe relationship.   It is true: Wally is having much more fun, and plays and jumps around and acts like the goof he is, even at the age of nine!!!  He will always be a rascal and a challenge for me, but that's keeping me going too!  His feet are not so rare and inflamed now, so we can get outdoors again and go thru the exercises you taught us.  It was great being re-connected with you both. Good luck in your doggy-undertaking.... you are pros at it!   Cheers, Terry and Wally"

"Hi Sherry and Paul, We were at pet smart yesterday in the grooming salon. Copper's brother was waiting to get his nails clipped. All the dogs were unruly, jumping, pulling, barking. Copper was going to start to participate. I told Copper to sit and stay. He did. You should have seen everyone's surprise at his great behaviour. (I was too). I was so proud. Copper is like a new dog. I can't thank you both enough. - Colette"

"Hi Sherry and Paul, We just want to thank you for your help training our Basenji. The “s” in Basenji stands for stubborn. When we first got him we thought we would be able to handle him but it got to a point where if we didn’t get help we would have to find another home for him. My daughter was in tears and I was very stressed. Copper ran the house. We could not control him. He would damage anything in sight if we didn’t constantly monitor him. Floors, furniture, you name it he ate it. He jumped on furniture and on people. He took us for walks. He pulled so hard. I was starting to not look forward to going home any more. He was so stubborn, it was frustrating. You came to our rescue. Boarding school was the best thing we could have done for Copper and our family. It took awhile, but Copper learned that he was not the boss. He learned to play nice with other dogs and he learned to listen to our commands. When Copper came home he was a different dog. We kept up the training you showed us and it has made a world of difference. We now take Copper for walks. Everyone is impressed at how well he walks and listens. He does not jump on people and sits nicely when we stop to talk to people. I’m proud that my dog is now the good dog and others have to control theirs. He does not destroy the house anymore. He listens to us. He is a high-energy dog and needs a lot of exercise. We take him for more walks and longer walks now that we are no longer embarrassed to be seen with him. You even taught him to run on the treadmill, which is great for him. He loves it and gets to burn a lot of energy. They say Basenji’s can’t be trained. You just need the right trainer. Thank you - Colette and family"

"Hi Paul and Sherry - All we wanted was to be able to "enjoy" having a dog however we found ourselves constantly running after Tux and becoming frustrated at his mischief!!! The first day you two arrived we knew that this was going to work. From that day on, he improved with each lesson (as did we) in becoming a respectful dog. Your techniques were simple but effective making it easy for us to work with Tux every day. Our walks have become enjoyable and we no longer have to run around after the dog wondering what he is into.  Thank you so much for all you've taught us and we look forward to joining an advanced class in the near future. It was such a pleasure to work with you two, your sense of humour certainly helped when Tux was not listening and misbehaving. As I write this, Tux is in a down stay to my left and pouting...that's Tux!!!!! Thanks - Mike & Christine V. and Tux"

"Hi Sherry and Paul, A quick note to say thanks again for the training with Kyla.  She's such a wonderful dog.  Today was a perfect example, we went to the vet and she just sat next to me in the waiting room, watching me the whole time for a sign, even if there was a noisy cat just next to us.  Later, I had to make her lay on her back for the exam and the vet was amazed on how quickly and gently Kyla responded.  The stand command came very handy too.  The vet and the technicians just love her and are amazed at how well behaved she is.  Everybody that walked in the clinic was attracted to Kyla and complimented me on the beautiful and well behaved dog.  We've come a long way since the day I called you in panic mode....Kyla is also an excellent guard dog, Herb is gone to Vancouver for the olympics ( for a whole month) and Kyla takes her job very seriously. I sleep tight every night knowing she is guarding the house.We're at the point where we take both dogs to the stable and they walk calmly with us when we come back to the house.  Next summer, we want them to be free on the property and we're going to work hard to reach our goal;) I wanted to share this with you because you contributed to this success. - Christine"  

"Hi Sherry & Paul - I would like to take this opportunity to write and say thank you for the considerable time, effort, insight and guidance you have provided over the course of the past year with my little dog Sabrina.   As Sabrina was a puppy mill rescue dog it was quite a challenge to take a very scared, unsocialized and untrained dog and turn her into a very happy, playful and confident dog.  This was made possible by your experienced training and advice that has transformed Sabrina. This process took two 8 week sessions, and many months of practice.  The first session was a slow process of indoctrinating Sabrina to the basics – housetraining, going up the stairs, going for walks and some socializing with other dogs.  The second series of training involved techniques to have Sabrina accept those people living in our house, more socializing, and basic obedience training.   This was combined with invaluable advice in how to handle certain issues such as sleeping in her own dog bed at night, staying put in the house and not following me everywhere, and being more playful and tackling tasks such as jumping into the car seat which she does readily and controlling her barking issues. There has been such tremendous progress that Sabrina is a totally different dog.   She is so happy, engaging, comfortable with other dogs and strangers to a greater degree and has become manageable and controllable both in the household, and out in public. Thank you so much for helping myself and Trudy understand the dynamics and what was required of us to help Sabrina become a stable and happy dog. Thought you would enjoy seeing a photo taken at Santa’s pet pics at Petsmart recently … you may recognize Santa (Trudy) and Sabrina was such a good dog at the photo session and comfortable with the people around her.  Bravo folks….. a job very well done.  Thank you so much.  A very Merry Christmas and best wishes from Trudy, myself and Sabrina for a happy new year. - Linda B."  

"Hi Sherry and Paul, -I thought i would just email you to say thank you for all your help over the last 3 months. Chelsy and I really appreciate all that you did for us and i know that London will be a better dog for it. We will definitely be signing him up for advanced classes next year so we hope to see you both then. Regards Gary and Chelsy"

"Logan was the type of dog that would not let anyone in the house besides the three people that he had grown accustom to (and see regularly) throughout his first eight months. He wasn’t the smallest of dogs either: a 90lbs German Sheppard, so he was fairly intimidating. It was difficult and frightening to have guests over because he was very protective over “his territory”, which was in fact my house, and then of course he believed he was the “leader” of the house. Sherry and Paul both taught me how I had to step up and show Logan that I was the leader of the house. They encouraged me to be confident with myself and have trust in Logan. Week by week, Logan began respecting me and now saw me as the leader. After the eight week program, Logan is now a new, more obedient puppy, and he no longer controls who is allowed to visit. Thank-you very much, Sherry and Paul, for helping me understand and communicate with Logan. I am truly satisfied with what you have taught me and how much of a more control dog I have. It’s been two months since Logan graduated from the Basic Obedience Program; he is the (well-trained, obedient) dog I have always wanted, thanks to your training! - Natalie L. " 

"Sherry and Paul- I wanted to give you an update on Kasha, our once crazy goldendoodle. She is now just over 1 year old and is the best dog. As you know, when I first called you I was feeling very overwhelmed with having this wild puppy and 2 small children. I was not feeling bonded to her and was considering giving her away. With your training, however, I learned how to control Kasha and taught her who was boss. After our sessions together, I had the skills I needed and I knew what to do when a new problem behavior arose. Kasha now listens incredibly well and is a joy to have around. Friends and family are constantly commenting about how well behaved she is. Thank you so much for your help!! - Laurel E."  

"Sherry & Paul: We finally had the opportunity to get a puppy and the one thing we knew for sure was that we wanted our puppy to be well behaved.  We searched for the perfect trainers to come to our home and we found them with you both. We looked forward to our weekly training sessions and were excited to see the changes in Juno.  She is a very special part of our lives and with your guidance she has become the dog of our dreams. Thank you for all your patience, persistence and sense of humor. - Julia, Joanne & Juno" 

"I wanted to comment on Argus’ progress … I can’t say enough how happy we are … how pleased we are with yours and Paul’s help on Argus’ improved behaviour. Adam & I want to thank you on how you knew he could be a different dog and we see it every day. We had a bad experience with puppy class, that trainer did not know how to help Adam. When we brought him to you, we were confident in your experience & your encouragement. So many others would have given up. He really is a sweet dog, he adores Adam … now Adam can be proud of him, and he is so much more confident on his walks. There is still some more work to be done with other dogs but at least Adam knows how to handle the situation.  - Cindy and Adam S.  

"Scooby is almost 8 years old and is Bryan's dog.  When I came into Scooby's life, we adored each other right away.  But, he also had no respect for me.  I let him control me because I'm such a softie.  One of the best decisions I have ever made was to call The Canadian Canine Training Academy.  One of the two kindest people called us almost immediately, Paul Paquette and Sherry Major.  They quickly explained to me that I was the one to be in training..not our dog....lol  I agreed!  Within a few weeks of training on a regular basis, using the humane techniques Paul and Sherry provided us, Scooby has now graduated.  He is now a happy content dog.  Scooby now respects me, listens to me and seeks for my approval along with constant rewards! He's FREEEEEEEEEEEE.  He is less stressed, well behaved, relaxed and more balanced now.   Our friends and family are really impressed with his new found behaviour.  We are sooooo proud of our boy.  They say, you can't teach an old dog news tricks.....yes you can!!! THANK YOU Paul and Sherry SO MUCH for your constant help, encouragement, and patience.  You are wonderful trainers and genuinely care about the dogs you train. You quickly explain, it's never the dogs fault, rather the owners fault, for not knowing the proper tools and techniques to teach/train your dog.  Again, thank you so VERY much....Eva, Bryan and Scooby:)" 

"Knowing that Wally needed training in many areas and that I had no idea how to teach those things to him, as I searched the Yellow Pages, I was very pleased, first of all, to find that the Canadian Canine Academy provides training in the dog's home environment. And when I met you and Paul the first time, I knew I had made the right choice of trainers to turn my lovely Corgi rascal into a happy and safe companion while living in a seniors' building. I feel more confident that I now have the tools to continue with Wally's training, and even Wally smiles more, likes his collar and leash now, and no longer rules the roost in our home.... It's much more fun!  No question: I would recommend you both because you gave us the best, and you expected the best from both Wally and myself, and we enjoyed our sessions with you.  Many thanks...Terry D" 

"We would like to thank Sherry and Paul for helping us train our Chihuahua, Roscoe. From a young age our dog has had severe fear aggression issues which were starting to heavily impact our social life. We would try to socialize him, however nothing we did would help him feel secure around other people, dogs and noises. Sherry and Paul showed us how to gain control of our dog under different circumstances and taught us how our behaviour (as people) has a big impact on how a dog will react in certain situations. We are now able to have people over without having to worry about our dog's behaviour. In addition, we have seen a big change in Roscoe's overall demeanour towards us, he is more responsive to our voices and commands. We really feel the changes we see in Roscoe, especially his new found confidence, is a direct result of having Sherry and Paul train him and us. it is nice that people can finally see why we love our dog so much. - Julie and Denis O. 

"My Trainers were Sherry and Paul….They were very knowledgeable and patient with me and the dog. They were great teachers, coaches for me - and I was given the proper advice regarding changing her food and toys. I have the Mini-golden doodle that we think was previously abused (that Randy had to call my vet about). She is doing well now… cute and loveable but pushes the envelope constantly…..but finally understanding rules and that we love her and not ever going to hurt her…..Liane D." 

"Thank you Paul and Sherry for turning “Dexter the Terrible” into “Dexter the Wonderful”. Over the course of eight weeks our dog Dexter went from a dog who had selective listening skills, accosted guests as they entered our home, and dragged us on walks into a very attentive and engaged dog. Paul and Sherry taught us to understand our dog’s need for a leader and what he was saying to us through his actions. We now have the dog we always wanted and Dexter has the owners he really needed. Sherry and Paul gave us the tools to do that. Last week a neighbor called out “what an obedient dog you have” – and for the first time I didn’t look around to see where the other dog was! I knew it was Dexter. Thanks Paul and Sherry, see you for advanced obedience! - Laura-Lee B. & Jordie J."

"Sherry - I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for your help with Skye.  We called Canadian Canine to arrange help with behaviour issues that Skye was displaying. We were impressed with your knowledge of the issue at hand as well as with the strategies you gave us. You showed us areas where we were not being consistent as well as how to regain control.  The patience you had with the humans in the household did not go unnoticed and we appreciate that too... We would be happy to recommend you to anyone that needed help with their dog and if you need a reference please give us a call. Thanks to you we have things back to normal again! - Sandra & Charlie B"

"Sherry - I just wanted to let you know that Lola is great, she responds well to commands but of course she takes full advantage if I let her! She is still her spirited self with a little more restraint! I am amazed at how much calmer and ready to listen she is. We have been taking her to the beach and she has become quite good at coming back when called and is not jumping up to chase kids and balls! - Mary & Chris T" 

"Sherry - The individual training classes which you provided proved very successful for our dog Rupert.  A very difficult dog to train. Your approach to training shows your understanding and love for dogs.  You are an excellent trainer.  You gave us a new effective approach to train our dog.  Thank you very much. - Carrole and Richard D." 

"Astra would not come when called. She would chase after people or dogs and not obey commands that she could do when in the house. We can now take Astra to the dog park, she plays with other dogs and when called will come to us. Great improvement, thanks again Sherry....Joan S."

"Mika is a German Shepherd-Akita mix and weighs about 55lbs ... aka, not little. She had a resource guarding issue that was getting worse with age to the point that I was becoming afraid of her. We were also having trouble walking her on a leash as she was becoming aggressive towards other dogs on leash and too strong to be controlled. At first, I was put off by the thought of using a pinch collar; however, Sherry did not hesitate in demonstrating on my own arm just how little discomfort the collar actually provides. Since using the collar and Sherry's training techniques, we have mostly eliminated the resource guarding in the home and are able to take peaceful family walks. Mika has now become a much happier carefree dog.  With Sherry’s help,  we have become a much more relaxed and happy family.  I would definitely recommend this training program to anyone having similar problems as we had. - Samantha F. " 

"We were very satisfied with every aspect of the training. The biggest difference between how things have changed is that Luther has gone from being nervous mixed with dominant behaviour, to acting like most family dogs. He no longer growls at us and we have learned to recognize when someone is making him nervous. The most useful part of the training was in helping us clearly understand him better. - Steve F. and Kim C." 

"We would like to thank you for helping us gain control of our Boston Terrier Mix. We were so exasperated by her out of control behaviour (jumping, barking, chewing, etc...) that we were considering bringing Daisy back to the pound or even worse, have her put down because we didn't want another family to go through what we were going through. But after working with you through the basic obedience training we have seen a dramatic improvement with Daisy. She responds well to the commands (watch, sit, stay, etc.) that have been taught to her and she has gained much needed respect for her home and the people who surround her. She no longer runs us. Quite the opposite, we are now back in control through the simple and basic techniques you have taught us. So again, many thanks for your guidance, helpful advice and recommendations. We would strongly recommend your services to anyone with any type of "problems with the canine companion. - Sincerely, Chantal D. and Family" 

Call Sherry and Paul Now or  Click here for a Free Training Evaluation

• Puppy Kindergarten
• Basic Obedience
• Advanced Obedience