“Every moment offers the potential for constructive learning and adaptation or the reverse, especially in the case of an impressionable puppy,”
Steven R. Lindsay


Welcome to Responsible Dog & Cat located in Sarasota Florida! We offer a variety of services including specially designed behavior wellness programs promoting pet friendly dog and cat training methods. All of our services are designed to enhance your pets overall welfare and their relationship within your family.

We specialize in understanding natural behavior for dogs and cats and consider your pet’s behavioral wellness a priority in maintaining their status not only within their family but in your community as well.
Our pet friendly proactive training methods are effective in solving common behavior problems i.e. jumping, barking, chewing, digging, housetraining and more complex behavior problems such as aggression, anxieties, fears and phobias.

It is our job as professional behavior consultants to not only help owners resolve behavior problems but educate the public.  Those dedicated professionals such as me not only provide options to modify behavior that enhances our relationship with our pets, but also strive to provide state of the art methods using proven behavioral science.  Read “Help! My Companion Animal Has a Behavior Problem.”

We also offer dog boarding and dog daycare with an emphasis on behavior in keeping with your pet’s emotional wellness.

To learn more about the owner, Joyce Kesling, click here. To learn more about our services click here. To see what clients say about us click here. Test your pet-human relationship by taking our behavior quiz. Take the quiz now!

Why is our relationship with our pets so important?

All intimate relationships include a desire for harmony, togetherness and friendship, to love and be loved, to understand and be understood according to Suzanne Clothier (2002). In pet training, building relationships doesn’t mean using standard recipes for training and getting desired behavior because each animal needs to be evaluated as an individual along with their environment. We teach you how to construct your relationship using trust as an underlying motivation along with introductory training skills and behavior management strategies applicable to your specific situation and expectations. Building this type of foundation encourages a cooperative pet-human relationship. We guide you how to prevent undesirable behavior, while providing your pet with skills that enhance their ability to adapt to environmental change and enhanced learning ability. These are not always small challenges or things one should take lightly.

If you think some areas of your pet’s behavior might be of concern, try our phone consultation Telephone Consultation (preliminary) . We can help you decide on a course of action that might help resolve any current behavior conflicts and help get your pet-human relationship back on course.

Dogs are not furry little human surrogates; they are dogs, another species called Canis lupis familiaris and appreciating this unique difference, enhances our relationship with them. Understanding, their uniqueness increases our ability to work more effectively with them in both training and developing their behavior so it meets with our expectations.

The choice is entirely up to you, we only encourage you to take responsibility for the pet you chose by seeking appropriate help and avoiding inappropriate punishment, isolation, mismanagement and worse euthanasia!

Testimonial 1

"Joyce is a tenacious learner, knowledgeable and skilled! Joyce's extensive experience and education put her above and beyond many others because she is held to the highest academic standards."

- James O'Heare, CABC
Certified Animal Behavior Consultant
Doctoral Post-Graduate Certificate in Comparative Psychology
www.JamesOHeare.com
james@jamesoheare.com

Director, International Institute for Applied Companion Animal Behavior http://www.iiacab.com
Owner, DogPsych Publishing http://www.DogPsych.com
President, Cynology College http://www.CynologyCollege.com
Owner, Applied Companion Animal Behavior Network http://www.ACABN.com
Co-Managing Editor, Dog Trainer's Journal http://www.DogTrainersJournal.com
Certified Member, International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants, #009 exp. 12/2007
Member, Association of Pet Dog Trainers #69207 exp. 12/2007

Testimonial 2

Dear Joyce

As I have often alluded to, you achieved wonders during the few weeks' training you gave our Beagle, Sam, at the important stage of his life as a puppy.  Everything you taught him -- and me! -- has put us in such good stead ever since --with neighbours always commenting on how well behaved he is.  But on this occasion, I wanted to thank you again for coming over straightaway last week to correct the "new" problem Sam unwittingly inherited as a result of being bitten.  Since then, both he -- and I! --  have improved our walk tremendously.  Whilst I'm very lucky that he responds so well to your -- quite exceptional -- training, loving you to bits no doubt helps, too! 
 
Your dedication to the job is to be commended.  Indeed, those of us living in the Sarasota area are very fortunate to have access to such a professional. 
 
Best wishes
 
Niki Newall (03.03.06)

Testimonial 3

Joyce Kesling helped me tame my wild little Norwegian Elkhound puppy. She has a broad knowledge base and lots of experience, and is easily able to teach commands to the animals. She helped me to build a foundation for positive and consistent on-going training. Joyce obviously enjoys the animals she works with. She shows kindness at all times, and also advocates fun and the enjoyment of life.

Leila Newcomb Wolf, client

Testimonial 4

My Jack Russell, Russ, enjoys to be in the care of Ms Kesling. He always comes back cheerful and full of enthusiasm. He never comes back dirty or injured. When Ms Kesling arrives at the door he greets her with love and kisses. She looks after his nail care or any other needs while at her house. I feel very secure when he is with her.

Felicia Liban

Testimonial 5

As much as I wanted another dog since moving to Florida, I was reluctant to get into it because I had no one to provide care when I was away. I never felt comfortable with traditional dog boarding in a kennel setting and leaving a pet with a neighbor wasn't an option.

Against my better judgment, I adopted a small dog from a rescue group not knowing what I was going to do when the holidays arrived. I had already purchased airline tickets. One of the volunteers from the rescue group told me about Joyce Kesling in Sarasota who might be able to help me. I contacted her and she agreed to take care of "Sugar" for the time I was gone. I had no idea what I was going to find when I dropped my dog off at her house. I was completely blown away by the fact that it was sparkling clean, the dogs she was caring for were happy and healthy and the fenced in yard was immaculate. Joyce herself was quite personable, easy to talk with and made me feel comfortable.

Joyce cared for Sugar not only for the time we had agreed upon, but longer. I became ill while away and returned still feeling really bad. Joyce kept Sugar until I felt better, even delivering her to my home so I wouldn't need to drive and pick her up.

During this period of time, Joyce worked with her on some behavior problems and my little dog returned home like she had spent two weeks in a doggie spa. She realizes when we are getting close to Joyce's home and she is just overcome with excitement and anticipation to see both Joyce and the furry friends she has made. I can contact her about behavior problems and she is more than willing to provide insight and help.

I can't say enough good things; I would recommend Joyce to anyone looking for both a boarding and behavior facility.

Shirley Catemis
Additional comment from Shirley Catemis

Joyce,

I checked out your website, very impressive. You have quite a background, Sugar is a lucky pup to be spending the holidays at your house!  I learned more from you today than from any "supposed" animal expert I have spoken with thus far. I have much to learn. We are looking forward to meeting you.

Shirley Catemis & Sugar – Canine Castaways Adopter
Fri 12/16/2005 12:08 AM

Testimonial 6

Joyce has been taking care of our dog Hunter for two years. We travel frequently, and don’t know what we would do without her. She provides a safe and secure home environment for our dog, and he comes back to us relaxed, well behaved, healthy, and happy. It is a piece of mind to know that Joyce is always available, and so capable of providing such outstanding service and care.

-Nelle S. Miller

Nelle S. Miller
BizTank, LLC
941-922-6255

Testimonial 7

Joyce is a wonderful trainer and a great sitter for Maggie.  Maggie loves her as much as she does me. Our Maggie is a Jack Russell and can be a handful at times.  Joyce has a lot of training and knows a lot about animals and she has worked so well for Maggie and myself.

Nancy Howard

© 2006 Joyce Kesling, Responsible Dog and Cat Training ~ Behavior.

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