Train your Dog,
Transform Your Life
Struggling with your precious puppy or terrible teenager? You're in the right place!
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We specialize in working with puppies and adolescent dogs to help them become the best version of themselves - your dream dog.
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Don't worry, we work with the adult dogs too! You're never too old to get started.
Our Approach to Dog Training
At Enlightened Hounds Maryland our goal is to help you live the best life possible with your dog. We believe that a well-trained dog leads to a harmonious and fulfilling life for both the pet and the owner. Our training methods are designed to create a positive and supportive environment, focusing on building trust, respect, and clear communication between you and your dog.
We offer...
Private Lessons
Work one on one with our trainer to learn the best way to work with your dog directly where you need the help.
Tutoring
Our trainer will come and work with your pup one on one in your home or out in the world. Meanwhile, you get done what you need to do.
Day School
Send your pup to our trainers home for a day of daycare where they will learn as much as they play.
Boarding
Need your pup to stay somewhere safe and fun while you go out of town, but don't think they need the training time? Good news, they can still come stay with us!
Board & Train
Take advantage of being out of town for your pup to go to boot camp, or just let our trainer take care of the heavy lifting.
Testimonials
We found Meggan in the best possible way - through the referral of a colleague. Due to Covid, our first meeting was virtual, and we were impressed with Meggan’s thorough questions about our dog, and the wealth of information and tailored suggestions she offered immediately. I had been concerned that we would not benefit from a strictly online session, but the fear was unfounded - Meggan offered concrete suggestions and followed them up with a summary of our meeting and multiple additional articles which addressed our puppy concerns.
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When we finally met Meggan, our dog was smitten with her immediately! Meggan truly sees issues from the dog's perspective, while also understanding the needs of their human families. Her knowledge is obviously both both academic and experiential. One of her philosophies that I've been inspired to adopt is trying to give our dog choices, waiting for her to offer positive behaviors, and then rewarding so that they become intrinsic.
We loved the chance for our dog to be part of Meggan's "extended pack" and will definitely call her as needed in the future!
Yuzu
Dana & Eric Sposeep
​Meggan has been training my dog Misty since Misty was 6 months old. Meggan was working at one of Austin’s most highly regarded Kennels when Meggan started training Misty during an extended stays. Megan took an interest in Misty and she quickly noticed her smarts and eagerness to learn. When I returned 4 weeks later, I was amazed at the the mind boggling tricks Meggan had taken upon herself to teach Misty. One summer when Misty was at the Kennel, Meggan, with my blessing, brought Misty to the Dog Exposition in Houston and had Misty be her “Show Dog”. Misty performed all her tricks Meggan had taught her over the years infront of thousands of people. I continued working with Meggan and she taught ME how to train Misty. She taught me how dogs' brains work and what they respond to and not. Meggan has been working regularly doing private lessons with Misty and I for almost ten years and I credit Meggan for bringing out the very best in my very first dog. Meggan is so passionate about dogs and eager to make sure the owner gets the most out of their furry family member. I have learned so much from Meggan. She has enriched our lives by bringing out the very best in our sweet Misty.
I have referred Meggan to many of my friends over the years and everyone has been so happy to have worked with Meggan.
She is a true gem to any dog owner that has the privilege of working with Meggan.
Misty
Marianne Olsson
Meggan is the best dog trainer we’ve ever worked with in two decades. She helped our high-energy puppy learn skills to self-regulate during his three weeks of board and train, and after, she helped my wife and me learn how to not only train our pup, but to meet his specific needs, given his breed, health, and personality. She adapted the training to our chronic illnesses and my mobility impairment, without treating us like we were unusual. She has given us a new perspective beyond the basic obedience skills. We now better understand our dog’s emotional needs, which benefits all of our pets and us too, far beyond the specific issues that first led us to Meggan.
Galileo
Tessa Nguyen-Bloom
I brought home my rescue pup Daisy back in January and she struggles with anxiety and reactivity towards people as a byproduct from her previous living situation. Meggan has been wonderful in helping understand and navigate her behaviors.
She is wonderful at communicating and being available as a resource whenever you have questions or concerns. She is the only person I trust to board Daisy with, especially since she focuses on positive reinforcement.
I could not recommend sending your pup to Enlightened Hounds more!
Daisy
Gianna Matassa
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This past year working with Meggan to train our hound Otis has been a wonderful experience. Otis was a very skittish 1-yo rescue when we first adopted him and Meggan helped us understand the source of these behaviors and how to manage them. Now Otis is an extremely friendly and trusting 2-yo with the necessary skills for our family's lifestyle. He's best friends with our older cat Jimothy and is well-socialized with neighborhood dogs. We've really appreciated the variety of training options Meggan offers and her flexible scheduling. If you're a first-time dog owner like us or are simply looking for personalized, quality training we highly recommend working with Meggan!
Otis
Hannah & Nick Schiwy
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Meet our Trainer
Meggan Porter, KPA-CTP CPDT-KA
Meggan's love of dogs started at an early age. Being born into a family who was in equal parts allergic to and afraid of dogs meant that she was forced to find creative ways to share her life with dogs as a child. Her passion for dogs has carried through all the way into adult life, and she now makes sure her life is full of dogs by specializing in Board & Trains and Day School held in her home.
Meggan is a graduate of the Karen Pryor Academy, and a Certified Professional Dog Trainer - Knowledge Assessed. She is dedicated to making dog training easy and accessible to clients by pursuing continuing education through webinars, seminars, and conferences, as well as reading.​ Meggan has been working with dogs since 2008 in a variety of different settings. She has been a receptionist at a vet clinic, a kennel technician at a boarding facility, as well as a shelter, and a head trainer at a training facility and a kennel.
She currently has 3 resident dogs: a non stop Border Collie, a shockingly chill Husky mix, and a goofy noodle Whippet. She also shares her home with a grumpy old cat, a very tolerant husband, and a very happy toddler.
Meggan likes to focus on teaching dogs to make the right choices without being told what to do, and creating enrichment opportunities for dogs. She specializes in teaching household manners that translate well back to our clients homes, as well as refining obedience skills. She also loves taking dogs on field trips to teach good manners on trails, build foundations for off leash skills, and help her students feel comfortable in stores and on patios. Meggan's goal is to help owners understand their dogs better and help create as many good pet dogs as possible.
