Winter Kennels

Reviews

• SS

  Skyler

  Aug 11, 2026
  5.0
  We took our dogs here for rattlesnake avoidance training. Super sweet lady, reasonable price, & efficient.
• SH

  S H

  Jun 28, 2025
  5.0
  My one year-old, 13 pound cockapoo took the snake safety class here. It was phenomenal! Felt a little traumatizing at the time, but we found a copperhead in our backyard a couple of nights ago. Magnolia steered straight away from it! Now, she's afraid to go in the garage where the boots and machete are located. Don't judge - we can't have another den of copperheads in our backyard after I was bit two summers ago. Thank you so much to Winter Kennels for helping us avoid another trip to the hospital, and even worse, a potential trip to the emergency vet. You were amazing! We will be back next year for a refresh. Literally, life saving!
• TT

  Tatsi

  Dec 2, 2023
  5.0
  The snake training is not fun but intents to save your dog’s life. We took the training and our dog picked up on the idea pretty fast. Our dog was shocked only when expressing interest and trying to approach the snake. The dog jumped from the shock, and was a bit jumpy after the trading but he calmed down in a few hours. Yes, it’s no fun to watch your dog go through this, however, it is a right thing to do and from my experience Winter Kennels did this training professionally and with due care.
• AA

  Alex

  Oct 18, 2023
  5.0
  I recommend Winter Kennels for the snake avoidance training. Working with Kay was very easy. I took my two year old chocolate lab in for snake avoidance training. It is never fun taking your beloved dog somewhere, knowing that they'll be using a shock collar for training purposes. However, I'm very glad I did. My dog was introduced to three separate snakes (venom glands are removed), and the idea is that once they pick up the scent, see the snake and move in to investigate, they get a shock to the system to reinforce that the snake is not something to be curious about or move towards. You definitely want your dog to associate a snake with a quick shock, and to be fearful of a snake. I was amazed at how small the snakes were as well - you really can't see them very well until you're 8 feet in front of them, and by that point it may be too late. It is very important to me that my dog can now recognize a snake and know to stay away. While there is no guarantee for certain that she won't get bit by a snake, I have much more peace of mind about having her off leash in central TX, southern CA, etc. At the end of the day, I'd much rather her get 3 small shocks to her system through training, rather than get bit by a toxic snake.

Frequently Asked Questions About Winter Kennels