More owners claim local trainer scammed them, returned dogs sick and injured

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Two households claim they gave a local pet dog coach, Lisa Berry, thousands of dollars for months of training that did not come about.

The families declare it took begging, threats, even police intervention, to return the canine months after she was scheduled to – untrained, malnourished, and in some conditions, wounded.

The tale obtained hundreds of remarks on social media, and we bought dozens of email messages from men and women boasting Berry took benefit of them in the identical way.

Lisa Berry, also identified as Rene, began dodging families’ phone calls and putting off a go-home-date, expressing she was unwell, out of city, or dealing with a family members emergency. And the worst similarity concerning all these families’ stories? The problem of their dogs when they ultimately bought them back.

Carl McBride has a specific bond with his buddy, Bandit.

“I am a veteran, and he’s you know he’s my bud, he gets me by some tough occasions,” said McBride. 

But this is not the very same Bandit he handed around for education in October.

“Spent about $3,700. A few months and I get this,” explained McBride. 

His greatest bud lost 15 pounds, has cuts all in excess of his paws and entire body, and demonstrates no indicators of any training.

“This, this is not suitable. It’s legal, it is prison,” McBride explained. 

He trusted Berry with Duke Metropolis Canine Academy to coach Bandit to welcome a new pet dog into their household. But when the training deadline arrived so did the excuses.

“She kept stating that the deadline’s pushed out for the reason that she’s ill, and the vacations, and one justification after yet another, I hardly ever bought any images,” explained McBride. 

Linda Davis got the same established of excuses.

“Rene was ill, ‘we’re so sorry Rene,’ you know, the final thing was Rene’s grandfather’s in the ICU, and she has to go to California,” mentioned Davis. 

She followed a suggestion and paid out $5,000 in September for Berry to teach her Australian Shepherd Matilda.

“I was a very little nervous about it, but in essence I believed ‘six months she’ll be these types of a superior pet dog, it’ll be safer to walk her with out pulling us down like they do,’” Davis mentioned. 

Matilda didn’t drop her loving spirit, but dropped a great deal of pounds in Berry’s treatment.

“You can feel every solitary rib on her, she’s not a skinny pet, I imply, we’re fortunate she’s in this sort of good spirits,” reported Davis. 

Other responses have poured in considering that Sunday from persons with the exact claims, alongside with problem from other reliable dog trainers in Albuquerque.

“Dog instruction at the moment in the United States is an unregulated field, and what that means from the viewpoint of a guardian, is that basically any individual can say ‘I’m a pet trainer’ and start off charging you cash for it,” mentioned Ellen Schmidt with Quest Companion Canine Coaching. 

They say there are quite a few pink flags to glimpse out for when you’re looking to use a coach.

“Trainers want to be qualified and need to have to be pursuing continuing instruction, and they need to be utilizing solutions that do minimum damage, restricted fear, minimal force with the pet. And if they are approaching you with an simple option that involves scaring or hurting your pet dog, it’s time to switch absent,” mentioned Schmidt. 

Some thing these families hope Berry does – with pet coaching.

“It’s not correct she requirements to be stopped. She wants to be stopped,” explained McBride.

“She needs to be stopped. She’s harm so many puppies and so numerous people,” stated Davis.

The Luv N Treatment Boarding facility she was working in went up for sale Friday, the exact same day Animal Control went in to examine the ailments. And, as of Saturday, Duke Metropolis Doggy Academy is marked as forever shut.

According to the courtroom process, Berry surrendered Tuesday on the failure to surface warrant out for her. That warrant was in connection to an uncleanliness of property and an intact animal demand from Oct.

Berry is scheduled to be back again in court docket for that case subsequent thirty day period.