Behave Atlanta is a training and consulting practice that provides both the behavioral analysis necessary to properly assess an issue and the training expertise required to modify behavior. As a small business, Lillian and Amy work one-on-one with families and their pets to ensure success. They offer hands-on training, behavioral assessments, and occasional small-group offerings. Their training plans are context-specific, so rather than having a training facility, they’ll learn with you and your dog/cat in the environment in which they need to succeed; whether it’s at home, at a public park, or even at the vet!
Education, Credentials and History
Amy Campbell is a Certified Professional Dog Trainer (CPDT-KA) and a Certified Family Paws Educator with over 15 years of experience, working with more than 1000 dogs and their humans. Lillian Ciardelli is an Associate Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist (ACAAB) with a Master's in Animal Behavior and Conservation from Hunter College and a BA in Psychology from Emory University. Over the last 16 years, Lillian has narrowed her scope of species from all captive animals to companion animals—primarily dogs and cats. Amy and Lillian joined forces in 2019 creating Behave Atlanta, to help pet owners understand canine and feline behavior, and how to modify it.
Specialties
- Puppy Raising: As behaviorists, we know the importance of intentional puppy raising. In our modern era, there is no shortage of expectations for our dogs. We expect them to travel with us, tolerate guests, ignore other dogs and cats out in public, and befriend humans of all ages. We also expect them to tolerate baths, nail trims, blow dryers, and more. We want to help you prepare your dog for all the fun things that life with you entails!
- Basic Training for Pups: Are you tired of your dog jumping on guests at the front door or pulling you on leash? Do you need help training behaviors like “go to bed” so you can eat your dinner in peace? Do you want your dog to come to you when you call him at the dog park? If this sounds familiar, a package gives us multiple sessions to teach you and your pet how to communicate and train! We recommend this for new pet parents as well to ensure sound communication, learning, and to address any struggles, which might become behavior problems without a change.
- Behavior Problems: Our Behave Program focuses on behavior modification for dogs with issues including (but not limited to) separation anxiety, inter-dog aggression, leash reactivity, fear/anxiety, resource guarding, and proper behaviors between kids and dogs. Many dogs have more than one “thing going on,” so if that’s the case, pick the issue of primary concern, and we’ll go from there!
- Cats: Cats are such special creatures that we gave them their own section. We can help with basic cat and kitten concerns like play-biting and scratching furniture, as well as more serious behavioral problems like litter box issues, inter-cat aggression, and human-directed aggression. There is no issue too small for the kitty committee.
Reach Out
If you’d like to connect, we’ve got several options. You can sign up for a free 15-minute discovery call, fill out a “contact me” form, and we’ll respond, or you can email us at i[email protected].
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Testimonials
Want to read more about some personal experiences with Behave Atlanta? You can find more here!
- “We cannot recommend Amy and Lillian enough! We adopted our rescue dog at an older age and learned that she had severe reactivity problems, particularly with men, other dogs, and anyone visiting the home. We had tried other trainers before to no avail and were still completely at our wits' end on how to help our dog and to make sure she wasn't harming other people or dogs. Amy and Lillian were absolutely wonderful in giving us the tools to support our dog. We no longer have to walk with our heads on a swivel and can finally have guests over without worrying! Amy and Lillian prioritize positive reinforcement, which we loved and was so effective for our dog. We would see them forever if we could, to reinforce the good behaviors our dog has learned!”
- “Amy and Lillian were amazing and invaluable as we were training a new puppy. They provided useful resources, answered all of our questions and concerns, and taught us a lot about raising a dog. I would highly recommend them to anyone with a puppy.”
- “Behave Atlanta helped get our 4-year-old shelter pup acclimated to our dog. The dogs loved them, learned the behaviors, and are now the best of friends! Highly recommended.”
- “I worked with Amy and Lillian at Behave Atlanta for a few months, getting my dog ready for her annual vet visit. First, my dog is sometimes skeptical of new people, but she loved them both (according to my dog, Amy is the best treat giver)! They were so gentle and worked at her pace. My dog is terrified of veterinary procedures, and working with Behave Atlanta helped me feel more confident in how to approach these visits. They communicated with the veterinary team to schedule ‘happy visits’ and helped formulate a training plan, which was feasible and effective. I will be returning if my dog and I have any future training needs!”
