Our leadership team of certified behavior consultants, board-certified veterinary behaviorists, and business and technology specialists are working hard every single day to bring you and your dog a learning experience like no other.
Walk with the dreamers,
the believers, the courageous,
the cheerful, the planners, the doers,
the successful people
with their heads in the clouds
and their feet on the ground.
Let their spirit ignite a fire within you
to leave this world
better than when you found it.
–Wilferd Peterson
Labor Day plans? Your dog can level up while you’re away 🌸
Our In-Home Camp + Coaching Program gives dogs (9 weeks and up) the chance to live and learn with an Instinct Trainer, developing real world skills in a home environment.
This isn’t just boarding: In-Home Camp + Coaching is immersive, weaving learning into daily life. Help your dog build:
✨ Manners in the house
✨ Confidence out in the world
✨ Social skills and exposure
✨ Foundational cues and practical life skills
Spots are limited —— reach out now to secure your dates 🌷 [email protected]
A better life with your dog starts with understanding 🩵
At Instinct, we focus on helping you learn about your dog’s individual needs, building trust, and teaching skills that have real world application: that’s how you make behavior change last.
We love hearing from clients that we’ve made a difference in their lives — big shout out to Instinct Trainer Poppy for her incredible work!
Ready to make a change for you and your dog? Give Instinct a ring at 971-358-8787 to get started ☎️
Our new website is live!✨ 💻
We updated our website to make things easier for dog guardians to learn about our training philosophy, explore our programs, and find the right fit for your needs.
No matter what stage of training you may be navigating with your pup, you’ll find everything you need at instinctportland.com. Take a look around and let us know what you think!
Instinct Portland is looking to welcome 1–2 experienced trainers or behavior consultants to our team.
If you’re a certified trainer or behavior consultant with 3+ years of experience, enjoy working thoughtfully through complex behavior cases (fear, anxiety, aggression, resource guarding, and more), and are committed to evidence-based, force-free training, we’d love to connect.
Our team works collaboratively, with weekly case discussions alongside the @animalbehaviorclinic veterinary behavior team, ongoing support from experienced colleagues, and a shared commitment to helping dogs and their people build safe, strong relationships.
We’re hiring for part-time or full-time positions serving the Portland metro area (Multnomah, Clackamas, and Washington counties, plus Clark County, WA) through a mix of in-home and virtual sessions. Already local? Wonderful. Relocating for the right opportunity? We’d love to hear from you, too.
Compensation includes paid client sessions, paid admin and drive time, and full benefits for full-time team members, including health, dental, retirement matching, and PTO.
If this sounds like the kind of work you’ve been looking for, we’d love to hear from you. Link in bio to apply!
Reactivity is all about how your dog FEELS.
Dogs who display leash reactivity are almost always experiencing an emotional response toward their triggers. Typically, that emotional response includes fear, anxiety, frustration — or even a combination of all three!
There’s no question; being on a leash is weird for our dogs. A leash restricts your dog’s ability to move away from scary things, and to move toward exciting things. Restriction can lead to intensified emotional responses to a trigger.
Understanding the underlying emotions your dog is experiencing is key to navigating reactivity; without considering their emotional state, we can’t affect behavioral change.
Need help figuring out exactly what your dog is feeling? Give us a call 🩵
At Instinct, we love the littles!
Smaller dogs have just as much personality and intelligence as larger breeds, and we love to support guardians in helping tinies live their best lives. Some of the most skilled dogs we know are pint-sized; from trick training to dog sports, they can do it all!
Small doesn’t mean less — it simply means more personality per pound 🩵
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Reviews like this mean the world to us.
Instinct Trainer Claire’s teaching philosophy goes beyond building skills. Her thoughtful and creative approach creates lasting behavior change, helping both dogs and their humans navigate the world together; and she stays invested every step of the way.
We’re so proud of Cooper and his family for the dedication they bring to his journey. Working through phobias and quirks takes patience and consistency. We can’t wait to see where this team goes!
Our first heat wave of summer 2026 is coming up, and keeping dogs safe is our top priority! As temperatures rise, remember these essential tips:
☀️ Always provide fresh, cool water
☀️ Walk during early mornings or evenings to avoid hot pavement and protect paws
☀️ Never leave your dog in a parked car
☀️ Watch for signs of overheating such as: excessive panting, drooling, or lethargy
☀️ Provide shade when spending time outdoors
☀️ Offer a cooling mat for seniors and extra heat sensitive breeds to lay on
We’re so stoked for a happy and healthy summer with our dogs — stay cool, Portland! 💛
In our busy lives, it’s easy to focus on getting our dogs exercise, training sessions and enrichment games, but dogs have a natural need to observe their surroundings. Often, modern dogs have few opportunities to practice simply watching the world go by — so why not give them the chance? 🐾
Sitting together on a porch or relaxing in the park, gives our dogs the chance to take in sights, sounds, and smells without the pressure of interacting. This relaxed observation provides low arousal mental enrichment and helps dogs process their environment. Slowing down and sharing quiet moment together is an underrated skill 🩵
We ALWAYS celebrate our wins 🩵
A heartfelt thank you to Deby R for her wonderful 5 star review and for trusting Instinct Trainer Poppy to be part of Gizmo and Ollie’s training journey.
The progress Ollie & Gizmo have made is something to be proud of, and it’s a testament not only to Poppy’s expertise, but also to Deb’s incredible hard work and commitment to her dogs. Training is a team effort, and when guardians and trainers come together, real change happens. Way to go, Ollie and Gizmo! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
