Walks feel overwhelming
Pulling, barking, or lunging at dogs, people, or traffic. Biting the leash, balking, freezing, trying to bolt, or chasing squirrels and other wildlife.
Certified mobile dog training and behavior consulting
For a better life with your dog.
Practical, individualized support for Kansas City dog owners navigating behavior challenges, everyday training, and everything in between.
Reasons clients reach out
Support for the challenges affecting life together.
Home no longer feels settled
Dogs in the home who aren’t getting along, resource guarding, separation-related behavior, destructive behavior, or barking and lunging at windows, fences, and gates.
Your dog is struggling
Fear, anxiety, wariness of strangers, handling sensitivities, stressful veterinary or grooming care, confinement distress, aggression, or behavior involving bite history or bite risk.
Training is not only for problems
A strong start—and useful skills for life.
Puppies and young dogs
Age-appropriate foundations, thoughtful socialization, confidence-building, and guidance through changing developmental stages.
New dogs at home
Help settling in, building trust, establishing routines, and introducing everyday experiences at a pace the dog can handle.
Real-life skills
Recall, walking together, settling, waiting, disengaging from distractions, cooperative care for veterinary visits, grooming, and nails, and making thoughtful choices.
Coaching for people
Reading body language, using reinforcement effectively, managing the environment, and knowing how to respond when plans change.
Skilled help without judgment
Your dog’s behavior doesn’t happen without a reason.
Whether you’re building everyday skills or working through a difficult behavior, I look at the whole picture: your dog’s health, history, environment, routines, relationships, and what happens before and after a behavior. Together, we turn what we learn into a plan your household can actually use.
01
Understand first
We begin with careful observation and a detailed conversation about what daily life looks like for you and your dog, including any unwanted or problem behaviors.
02
Build a practical plan
Your recommendations are tailored to your dog, your household, and the situations that matter most.
03
Support lasting change
Training includes the people in your dog’s life, with a gradual transition toward confident independent handling.
04
Continue when you need to
As-needed support picks up where we left off, whether you need a tune-up, help through a new challenge, or another step forward.
Your starting point
Behavior Assessment
After a brief phone call, we meet for a 90-minute in-home consultation to understand your dog and give you a practical path forward—whether you have a puppy, want help with everyday training, or are facing more difficult behavior. I evaluate your dog’s behavior in the context of their health and history, daily routines, environment, and household dynamics.
- Detailed written assessment findings
- A customized training plan with priorities and next steps
- Management and safety recommendations, including routines and household setup
- Guidance on gear, with training equipment available to try during active services
- Enrichment ideas suited to your dog and household
Assessment fee
Included
There is no separate charge for the assessment if you move forward with any service. If you only need the assessment, my professional opinion, and a plan—or I don’t recommend further services—the assessment is $150.
Request an assessmentWe’ll have a brief phone call before we meet. You can call or text (816) 797-0302 to get started.
Training philosophy
Training should make life better for both ends of the leash.
I use humane, evidence-based training that considers why a behavior is happening—not just how to stop it—while respecting each dog’s individual spirit, natural needs, and ability to make safe choices. My work is informed by the Least Inhibitive, Functionally Effective (LIFE) model. For dogs who bark, lunge, or struggle around triggers, I may use Behavior Adjustment Training (BAT) and other individualized approaches that help dogs feel safer, make better choices, and develop practical skills at a pace they can handle.
In practical terms, we set you and your dog up for success. I thoughtfully arrange practice so the behavior we want is easier to choose, then reinforce those successful choices with rewards that matter to that individual dog. That may be high-value food or play, or a functional reward such as space, movement, access, or relief from something difficult. We repeat successful practice and gradually work toward more challenging real-life situations so the desired behavior becomes increasingly likely.
Training prioritizes physical and emotional safety without relying on pain, fear, or intimidation. Fear Free and cooperative-care principles also guide how we approach necessary handling and care: gradually, with attention to the dog’s communication and opportunities for safe participation.
The Spirited Dog Solutions difference
Professional support from your door to the real world.
Certified expertise in both training and complex behavior
Door-to-door mobile service designed around your schedule
Climate-controlled training vehicle with remote safety monitoring
Progress updates, training videos, and transparent communication
Training gear and equipment provided throughout active training, so you can learn what works before purchasing your own
Owner coaching that builds confidence beyond the training session
Experience supporting dogs with bite histories or identified bite risk
Meet Lauren
Experience shaped by a lifetime of working with animals.
Lauren Spear, BS, CPDT-KSA®, CBCC-KA®
Fear Free Certified Professional Trainer · IAABC Member · BAT Foundations
I have worked with animals for most of my life. What began in barns and veterinary clinics grew into a career spanning animal sheltering, equine care, laboratory animal and biomedical lab work, and canine behavior.
Around 2015, a serious fight between two of my own personal dogs changed the course of my professional life. I know what it feels like to love your dogs and still feel frightened, overwhelmed, or unsure what to do next. That experience led me to pursue formal education in dog training and behavior.
My initial training education followed a balanced methodology. As I gained hands-on experience, continued studying behavior, and pursued independent professional credentials, my approach evolved. Today, my work prioritizes humane, evidence-based methods, reinforcement, careful observation, and an understanding of why behavior happens—not simply how to suppress it.
I founded Spirited Dog Solutions in 2025. What matters most to me is keeping families together—both their human and dog members. My goal is to help people understand the dog in front of them, make daily life more manageable, and find a practical way forward together.
Start with understanding.
Schedule an in-home behavior assessment and get a clear plan for moving forward.