About

In 2014, married couple Andrew and Mallory Richards began fostering and rehabilitating dogs. Their mutual love and respect for dogs led them into wanting to do more in their efforts to help others help their own dogs. Andrew enrolled in the Animal Behaviour College and soon after Good Hound Training was born. It wasn’t long until this wasn’t enough as they wanted to offer more and so Mallory became a Walks n Wags Pet First Aid instructor in 2016. The couple was happy that Good Hound Training could offer private training, group training and pet first aid courses, but still something was missing- Daycare! In the spring of 2017, their dream was realized when they found their space in Ladner, in Trenant Park Plaza. Being born and raised in Tsawwassen, finding a place in the neighbouring community was almost too good to be true! Now they are so proud to offer dog daycare, dog training and pet first aid in the only store front training and daycare facility in Ladner and Tsawwassen! In 2021, during the height of the pandemic Mallory and Andrew expanded Good Hound into boarding with the addition of a second location Ladner- Good Hound Country! Andrew and Mallory  are now able to offer dog and cat boarding along with training and daycare. Is this the limit for them? No way! Andrew and Mallory are continually looking for ways to grow, expand and help those in our doggy community.

Mallory and Andrew are certified dog trainers through the Animal Behaviour College based in California and was mentored under the knowledgeable Shelagh Begg of Dizine Canine. They both practice and believe in Positive Reinforcement Training. Positive Reinforcement Training is science based, force free and makes use of treats, praise and the clicker to mark and reward behavior.  While Andrew trains dogs of all ages and stages of training, he specializes in behavior modification in reactive and fearful dogs. Whereas Mallory’s heart lies with the training of puppies and basic obedience.

Mallory is also certified in Pet First Aid and is also a Pet First Aid Instructor with Walks n Wags Pet First Aid. Mallory has certified a number of daycares and shelter staff throughout Vancouver and the lower mainland in Pet First Aid and is passionate about bringing that knowledge and safety to Good Hound Training and Daycare.

Very simply, Positive Reinforcement Training is training your dog to do a behavior by rewarding desired behaviours and ignoring or redirecting undesired behaviours. Positive Reinforcement Training is force free, pain free and intimidation free. This means no choke chains, prong collars, shock collars, yelling, hitting or any other forms of punishment. Instead Positive Reinforcement Training using the clicker, treats, praise and anything else your dog views as a reward when he does the desired behaviour. The result? Your dog begins to do a behavior because he wants to, not out of fear of the consequences if he doesn’t. This creates a lasting positive behavior. It’s the same with people; think about how much more likely you are to do something you want to as opposed to something that you ‘should’ do because someone else has told you to.Positive Reinforcement Training has proven to be so much more effective than other aversive methods that even the BC Guide Dog Association as started using it!