Daniel - Charlie
Friday, June 13, 2025
I contacted Michael regarding working with my Beagle, Charlie. My wife and I were about to have our first child and were worried about how our dog was so high energy and would constantly run all over the place including our furniture. We were worried that once our child came along, Charlie could possibly hurt our baby due to his high level of energy. Michael came to our home and started working with Charlie within a few minutes. By the end of the first session, my dog started to calm down and Michael taught me about the root of some of Charlie’s problem behaviors in addition to some of the triggers for the unwanted behaviors. Michael addressed quite a few of my dog’s bad behaviors during the lessons I purchased and it was like Charlie became a new Beagle that I can trust around my baby.
As a learning and development consultant with a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology, I spend quite a bit of time creating training courses that target desired human behaviors. Michael was able to help bridge the gap between my understanding of human learning behavior and apply it to my dog’s behaviors so I understood why Charlie was acting so aggressively. I now have a better understanding of my dog’s behaviors and why he acts a certain way.
I found Michael to be very prompt in his communication, on time with his scheduled visits to my home, and very professional with his demeanor. I still will occassionally contact Michael with questions regarding my dog’s behavior which he promptly replies to without charging additional fees. It is apparent to me that Michael loves working with dogs and loves his craft. I highly recommend working with Michael if you have a dog with behavior issues.
Houston, Tx
Jillian - Kobe
Wednesday, June 4, 2025
I had such an issue with my 18 month pit/lab calming down. After the first two sessions I could see a tremendous improvement! Doing the simple exercises everyday and integrating them in my route really instills calming behavior. Of course it will always be a work in progress to keep it up but these training sessions have made things so much easier!
Thanks so much Michael!
Houston, Tx
Michelle - Harley
Sunday, February 16, 2026
This is the story of our Welsh Corgi, Harley, who is 3 1/2 years old. We brought Harley home from a pet store to live with our Shih Tzu and two house cats. We first noticed Harley guarding the cat and dog food. He also would fence war with the neighbor’s dog. As time went on, we found that Harley could not be around any dog other than our Shih Tzu without a fight ensuing. One year ago, we moved to Houston from another state and noticed that Harley seemed to not be acclimating to his new surroundings. Things had gotten so bad that he had attacked both of our cats on separate occasions. Thankfully there were no injuries. I had researched different training techniques and had other trainers visit for a consultation for suggestions on how to help Harley. We were lost and didn’t know where to begin. I made a very emotional phone call to Michael and told him the complete story of Harley. Michael talked to me for over half an hour on the phone that day. I told him if he couldn’t help us with this situation, I would have to start looking into another home or a rescue group for Harley. I couldn’t take a chance that another attack might happen to one of our other pets. Harley was a nervous, uptight mess the first time Michael visited us. Michael took the time to explain how he thought we should proceed, gave us suggestions of tools to use and items to purchase to help with the training. I could call, text or email Michael at anytime with any questions or concerns and he was always very prompt in helping me. Dog training looks easier that it is. There were exercises that Michael showed us to try, and there were times I would not be able to complete due to my inconsistency or incorrect usage. I would text Michael, ask for help, and he was always more than willing to help however he could. We started this journey on December 10, 2013, and now two months later, Harley is like a new dog who is happy and loves his time with his humans. The problem wasn’t Harley, the problem was his humans who didn’t know how to interact with his personality. Words cannot say how pleased and happy I am with Michael and his program. YOU, as a dog owner, have to commit to work hard and follow Michael’s instructions for the training to work. I would recommend Michael and Houston Dog Behavior to anyone who has a dog from a puppy to a mature dog. I cannot thank Michael enough for what he has done for us, and for Harley! I would give him 20 stars if Yelp would let me!
Tomball, Tx
Pam - Murphy
Saturday, 18 September 2025
Michael Curran is an awesome dog trainer!! We brought our Chocolate Lab puppy, Murphy, home on a Saturday and Michael came to our home to begin Murphy’s training the following Tuesday. Michael immediately won Murphy’s trust and friendship; I was truly amazed that our little 7 week old puppy could be taught to “touch”, “sit” and “down” in the first hour!! Those things became our go to routine many times each day, particularly when Murphy had a case of the zoomies! The foundation that Michael taught us to lay with Murphy has made our puppy experience a positive one for all the humans as well as the puppy in our home. We have a positive, loving puppy that enjoys learning new things and meeting new humans and dogs! This doesn’t mean that we don’t have our share of puppy antics but it does mean that we are better equipped to handle them. Thanks Michael for all your patience, instruction and fun and for helping us have the best puppy ever!!!
Spring, TX
Cheri - Curly
Saturday, 14 September 2025
A year and a half ago, a half-wild neighborhood mutt named Curly decided to leave her home and move in to mine (with her first owner’s blessing). During this time, she came a long, long way towards overcoming her fear and becoming a loving, fun companion. But when I got as far with her as I could on my own, with my limited repertoire of training techniques, I called in Michael Curran.
In four sessions, Michael gave Curly and me the tools to overcome her remaining issues. She loved Michael, loves training, and is so much calmer and happier. Michael is great with dogs AND people, and is most generous with recommended resources that don’t make any money for him but really help the pet. Curly and I are grateful for his guidance. We still work daily with the techniques and tools he showed us, and she’s still blossoming. Thanks, Michael!
Houston, TX
Carol - Cooper
Thursday, 12 September 2025
Soon after adopting our mixed lab rescue we realized his personality wasn’t as sweet as it initially seemed. Either he had some issues, or we weren’t communicating, (or both) but he was aggressive and threatening when meeting anyone outside of his immediate family. This problem was made worse because of our overly social blond lab who loved everyone and every one of all ages loved her! They could no longer visit with her or her with them. I began looking for someone to help with training but it was necessary to first take Cooper through a month-long heartworm treatment and then several months of follow-up recovery. That’s when I contacted Houston Dog Behavior.
A four-session series combined with online journals had me a little nervous wondering why we weren’t just working with other dogs in group socializing sessions. That had always worked in the past but as I soon learned from Michael Curran, that wasn’t what Cooper needed. We found it necessary to build his confidence and our two-way communication skills. I needed to learn to read his body language and provide him with the skills to relax when stressed. The process works.
When we began he was incredibly sweet with us, but that was the extent of it. He growled, snarled and lunged at everyone trying hard to just chase them away. He’d avoid situations or charge into them with his tail wagging but his teeth exposed and the hair on his back up (called piloerection). I wasn’t recognizing his distance-increasing signals. He’d display subtle muscle ridges around his eyes, fast breathing and whale eyes and I interpreted these to mean he was nervous but not that these were final warnings and I was supposed to help get him out of a bad situation. That was then, this is today.
Michael and Houston Dog Behavior provided me the skills to help resolve Cooper’s issues. There were only four sessions but it required a lot of work in between sessions on my part and my husband’s part. We had to commit to use training tools and run through strategies. The combination of these resources, our time, and his advice culminated with several very positive observations on the last session. Cooper ignores the doorbell (as well as our social lab), he rested with his head on Michael’s leg during the final session, and He’s just a different dog. Our lab also went through daily training sessions with Cooper and it provided her with new skills. I am so impressed.
Now, we’re planning a long road trip and the dogs will be riding in the back of the truck. Neither has traveled back there although we’ve always had dogs riding in the back of the truck. It has a shell, slider between shell and cab, dog-proof screens on windows and soft-surfaced bed designed for our dogs. I’ve taken the training tools (a relaxation protocol) and modified them for training both dogs to not only ride in the back of the truck and enjoy it (rather than their usual location in the extended cab) but to wait after I open the door and I give them a release command before exiting on the ramp. It’s already working.
I highly recommend Houston Dog Behavior. Michael proved knowledgeable, capable of identifying appropriate tools and resources for our needs, and definitely capable of isolating our problems. He was always punctual and professional in his approach. My blond lab likes him and while she’s Miss Social she also lets me know when she doesn’t trust people - and I trust her instincts. Cooper is a different dog now and while we still have work to do, each day he improves and continually impresses me. This was money well spent.
Houston, TX
Erika - Solo
Monday, 2 August 2025
In May 2013, my husband and I adopted a 3-6 year old Blue Heeler/Border Collie rescue. Being somewhat misled about the dog’s past, we quickly noticed that she was a resource guarding velcro dog with isolation/separation anxiety who exhibited bad manners, such as air-snapping and soft biting when urged to do something she didn’t want to do. Just prior to finding Michael and his reward-based training techniques, we had a horrific experience with a highly-recommended and well-established boarding “dog school” trainer who, for a month without us realizing it, was using very severe discipline-based techniques that incorporated violent punishment and force, including suspending the dog in the air with a leash to restrict her air supply, muzzling and pinning down by the throat, and shrieking commands in a terrifying growling voice. “This is the kind of dominant aggressive dog that gets euthanized,” was the trainer’s conclusive words to us. To say the least, the experience left us all — humans and dog alike — feeling completely defeated and utterly traumatized. Not wanting to give up on our dog, feeling very responsible for what the trainer did to her, and wanting very much to correct what had gone so awfully wrong, I decided to contact Michael after searching for trainers in Houston who deal with aggressive dogs. Michael’s first promise to us was that we would never again have to use violence or aggression toward our dog. Over the course of 4 home visits supplemented with a significant amount of reading, homework, exercises, and shared journaling, Michael has guided us on fresh path to success. Our dog has been very receptive to the curriculum and has made significant progress. She loves her doggie-human exercises! For the first time since knowing our dog, she now wags her tail and approaches us to demonstrate affection toward us. She is much happier, calmer, trusting and more obedient. Michael is an excellent instructor — he is positive, patient, consistent, skilled, and knowledgable. We are so happy we found him and we highly recommend him to those seeking professional evaluation and everyday tools for creating and continuing a positive relationship with dogs that need special attention. Thank you, Michael, for setting us in the right direction. With your wonderful help, we are more educated and equipped to maintain a happy, healthy and positive relationship with our beautiful pooch who we love so much. Thank you for helping us help our dog!
Houston, TX
The Moore Family
Saturday, 31 August 2025
We wanted to adopt a rescue puppy but after a long wait we made a last minute decision to visit a local animal shelter just to “look”. We arrived at the shelter at 5pm and by the time they closed at 6pm we were loading not one, but two large breed dogs into our van. They did not even know how to get into a car and were afraid of it.
We arrived home with two completely overwhelmed and over excited dogs. Our lives turned upside down, things quickly spiraled downward. One of our dogs bit and cornered our son’s friend within days of getting him when we decided to seek professional help.
Finding Michael Curran of Houston Dog Behavior was a miracle. He was available to meet with us quickly and began to open us up to a way of interacting with our dogs that we would never have believed. Michael was a wealth of knowledge including reading materials, leash paraphernalia, proper food, treats and shopping lists of things we would never have found on our own. Even when we balked at some of the things suggested we found they worked. He helped and supported our family as we reached the best decision for our one highly reactive dog. Our entire family was opened up to a new way of anticipating our dog’s reactive behavior by learning the subtle behavior signals and dealing with them at that point before they get out of control. He showed us by example with our own dog how to get the behavior we wanted and therefore decrease their reactive behavior. We were definitely the ones that had to change in order to assist our dogs to a better state of being. I also saw the value of his methods with many annoying behaviors such as “counter surfing”, jumping up on you when greeting, “cobbing” or teething on you as well as lunging after squirrels, birds, and other dogs when on a walk. Your dog can benefit from his methods if he is not aggressive. In fact, if we get another puppy in the future, I will call on Michael to help get the dog off to a solid start so that we can be free of many of the issues dog owners have problems with in the future.
I can say that we are much happier dog owners as well as having vastly improved our dogs well being. I cannot tell you how important it is to deal with behavior issues utilizing a dog behaviorist. It completely changes the way you work with your dog and you and your dog will be so much better together because of it. Michael will put you at ease as he takes you on the journey.
The Woodlands, TX
Nicole B - Archer
Saturday, 31 August 2025
My husband and I contacted Michael for behavioral issues with our 3.5 yr old Shiba Inu, Archer. Archer recently started guarding food and toys at our friends house with their other dogs. He was also not behaving well on walks and barking at the front door. Michael taught us SO much about dog behavior and how to read dogs. He also gave us the tools to help Archer with his problems. Michael was very prompt in answering emails or texts and always had a great attitude. The entire training package we got included Michael coming to our house as well as an online journal for us to write in that Michael would review and post suggestions. One thing I should make clear is that training your dog and dealing with behavioral issues is not a one time fix kinda thing. YOU as a dog owner have to put in the work with your dog. You cannot expect results if every time the trainer leaves, you go back to your old ways. We saw awesome results with Archer and are still using Michaels training techniques because they work so well. I highly recommend Houston Dog Behavior training with Michael.
Houston, TX
Natalie - Buddha
Wednesday, 17 July 2025
All that needs to be said is these guys KNOW what they’re doing. They build a relationship with your animal, and it goes beyond just training sessions. They are available at all hours the day to guide you.
Your dog isn’t just their paycheck, it’s their passion. If you want your dog in good hands, if you want to know the key to your dogs happiness; these guys have it. All that’s between you and a better relationship with your dog is a phone call.
I finally had to come to the realization without dog training I was going to have to give up my aggressive dog, Buddha. He has bitten people, growled at many and scared many. But what stopped me from giving up was the fact that Buddha is family. Your pets are family as weird as it is. And if family was sick you wouldn’t throw them away, you’d do whatever it takes. Michael’s Dogs is WHAT IT TAKES.
The Woodlands, Tx
Bex - NYX
Friday, 4 january 2026
Michael Curran is a fantastic photographer. My little dog, NYX, is black and fast moving so it’s quite difficult to take nice pictures of her. Michael managed to capture, not only her intense cuteness, but also her spirit and joy! And I don’t look too bad in the pictures either His on-site, natural looking photos are so much cooler than a posed studio picture. Also, his demeanor, empathy, and knowledge of dog behaviour made my dog so comfortable (she worries a lot). Our photo shoot with Michael was a wonderful experience and I highly recommend him!
Bex Smith - Aurora, Co