BetterDog: dog training that happens in your house, not a rented gym
Jon and Nancy Wells come to you — so your dog learns in the room where the problem actually happens. Ottawa and Gatineau.
Who they are
BetterDog is an in-home dog training service covering Ottawa and Gatineau, run by a husband-and-wife team, Jon and Nancy Wells. The trainers come to you, so training happens in your dog's everyday environment.
That distinction does real work. A dog that performs beautifully in a training hall and then loses its mind at your front door hasn't learned much — it's learned to behave in a hall. The barking at the window, the door-dash, the counter-surf, the thing that happens when the mail arrives: those live at your address. Training them where they happen is not a gimmick, it's just where the problem is.
Most "bad dogs" are dogs who were taught something perfectly — just not the thing their owner thought they were teaching.
Why Scoop Dog partners with them
We are in yards. We see the dog through the window. We see who is losing that argument. Training is the single most common thing our clients ask us about that has nothing to do with scooping, and BetterDog is who we point at — a two-person, in-home operation covering both sides of the river.
How BetterDog and Scoop Dog work together
Yard training, on a clean yard
Recall and place work in the backyard goes better when the dog isn't navigating a minefield. We clear it weekly, from $30/week.
New puppy, two problems
House-training a puppy creates a lot of yard. We handle the volume while you handle the lessons.
Both sides of the river
BetterDog covers Ottawa and Gatineau. Scoop Dog covers Ottawa — see service areas.
Reactive dogs and strangers in the yard
Tell us if your dog is reactive. We work around your dog's schedule and gate access — we don't need to meet them.
The short version
- In-home dog training across Ottawa and Gatineau — the trainer comes to your house.
- Run by Jon and Nancy Wells, a husband-and-wife team. Small operation, direct contact.
- Best for problems that only happen at home: door-dashing, window barking, counter-surfing, house-training.
- Book at betterdog.ca. We'll keep the training yard clear.
Questions people ask
What is BetterDog?
An in-home dog training service in Ottawa and Gatineau run by Jon and Nancy Wells. Rather than bringing your dog to a facility, the trainers come to your home and work with the dog in its everyday environment.
Why train a dog at home instead of at a class?
Because most behaviour problems are location-specific. A dog that behaves in a training hall may still bark at your window or bolt out your door. Training in the actual environment addresses the actual triggers.
Does BetterDog cover Gatineau?
Yes — they serve both Ottawa and Gatineau. Confirm your specific address with them at betterdog.ca.
My dog is reactive to strangers. Can Scoop Dog still service my yard?
Yes. Tell us when you book. We schedule around your dog, use gate access, and don't need to interact with your dog at all.
Does a clean yard actually help with training?
It helps in the plain, unglamorous way: you can do recall and place work in your own backyard without stepping around a week of waste, and a puppy in house-training generates more mess than most owners expect.
Weekly dog waste removal in Ottawa — from $30/week
Scoop Dog handles the job nobody wants. Bagged, hauled to your bin, gate double-checked, every visit.
Get your free quote Call 613-400-4040Keep exploring
- Residential scooping
- Odour removal
- Dog poop scooping in Ottawa
- Pricing
- Service areas
- Before & after
- All partners
About this partnership: BetterDog is an independent business. Scoop Dog partners with them because we work with the same Ottawa dog owners and we trust the work they do — not because either of us is paid to say so. We don't take a cut of their services, and they don't take a cut of ours unless they've joined our referral program.
Sources: Business details summarized from betterdog.ca and from Scoop Dog's partners page. Last reviewed: 7/12/2026.