Specialized services for separation anxiety dogs.

Intensive, fear free support for dogs with separation anxiety, and the people who love them.

You love your dog, but their separation anxiety is taking a toll on your bond (and on your life).

Separation-related behaviour can be distressing for us, as well as our dogs. When you’re forced to choose between sacrificing your social life or seeing your dog panic, it feels like there’s no good option.

Figuring out how to help your separation anxiety dog can be challenging, but it doesn’t have to be.

Working with a separation anxiety specialist can help you:

  • Skip contradictory, vague, or downright harmful online advice

  • Understand and implement an evidence-based, force free training plan

  • Remove guesswork from the training process

  • Ask questions about your dog’s unique threshold

  • Evaluate other factors in your dog’s life that may impact their alone time progress

  • Effectively and humanely reach your goals

I’m a multi-certified positive reinforcement- based dog trainer, and a guardian to my own separation anxiety pup, Luna. I know firsthand how much separation anxiety changes your life, which is why I do what I do. For the last three years, I’ve solely taken separation anxiety cases. I’ve been privileged to help dozens of dogs and their people transform their lives, and their relationships.

Hi, I’m Jess.

Education & Credentials

We’ll be a good fit if:

  • You want to use a gentle, welfare-centred approach to address your dog’s separation anxiety.

  • You’re committed to managing absences and understand that you cannot make meaningful progress if you’re routinely leaving your dog home alone in distress.

  • You understand that separation anxiety is a panic disorder, and that like human phobias it will require time, patience, effort to recover.

  • You’ve tried to do some form of gradual exposure on your own, but you aren’t sure when to push your dog, or when to drop back.

  • You understand that learning is non-linear, behaviour is fluid, and your dog is an individual - we’re going to have a lot of highs throughout this process, but we’ll also experience the lows of regressions and plateaus.

  • You’re ready to invest up to a year, or more, into supporting your separation anxiety dog.

Kind Words

  • Manny, Zoe, & Yoni

    Jess was an absolute godsend for us and we're so grateful for her support after working with her for ≈18 months. At first our rescue dog couldn't be left alone for even a few minutes. The regular dog trainer we worked with for a year made no difference. Then Jess worked with us up until Manny was/is comfortable home alone for nearly 5 hours, multiple times a day! She's such an incredible resource and helped us find a specialized vet and was so supportive and compassionate as whenever we felt down or frustrated. We're so grateful to Jess - she helped us get our life back and helped turn our terrified dog into a more confident, happy guy.

  • Bea & Swara

    Jess changed my and my pup, Bea's, lives. When I first rescued Bea, it became very clear that she did not have a healthy relationship with being alone. She would pant, cry, whine and howl for as many hours as it would take for me to return home. Jess's approach made this grueling process so much more sustainable and fundamentally changed my relationship with Bea for the better. Bea graduated from separation training this past January (2024). She can consistently be left home alone in the evenings for over 6 hours without issue. It honestly feels like I have my life back. And it is really all thanks to Jess.

  • Norman, Grace, & Angus

    We cannot say enough good things about Jess! We came to her after seeing no progress with separation anxiety training on our own. Our dog started Week 1 not being able to be left alone. By Week 4, he progressed to up to 18 minutes of alone time! After training with The Underdog Collective, our dog is so much more relaxed and happy around the house, whether alone or with us. Jess is so kind, compassionate, and knowledgeable. She cares for and understands every dog she meets, and we are so thankful to have found Jess and The Underdog Collective!