Google Rating
5.0
Based on 35 reviews

We Use Proven Techniques To Get The Best Result Possible.

Dog Training

In-Home Dog Training

We offer personalized dog and puppy lessons In your home. Let us design a custom training program based on your unique needs. This service is by appointment only.

Board & Train

Our Board & Train Service for Dogs is a great option for new puppy owners as well as older dogs with certain behavior issues.Give us a call to find out more!
Other Services

Online Dog Training

During These Difficult Times, We Offer Live Help With Your Dog By Video Chat.

Pet Sitting

Does You Dog Need A Sitter? Give Barks & Recreation A Call To Learn More And To See If We Are A Good Fit For You.
Verified Reviews
Scott is amazing!!! We learned so many valuable lessons to help train our puppy, Riggs, a golden/collie mix. Scott teaches you basics you’ll have for life. The emergency recall is incredible, and something we never would have known to do ourselves. He taught us how to ride our bikes with Riggs, as well as many tips on manners. We’re planning to book a follow-up with Scott this spring - cannot recommend him enough!
Ashley Schweitzer
Ashley S.
Before we called Scott, we were nervous that we might need to give up our puppy. We read books, watched YouTube, and even tried another trainer, virtually. Scott worked with us and with our dog for a two hour session and it was as if we had a completely different dog by the end. We worked on everything that he told us to do for one week and our dog has made amazing gains in her behavior, but most of all, she finally feels like a part of the family. His tips were practical and logical.Scott is reliable amd knowledgeable, but he’s also very personable and super funny. In addition to getting help for our dog, we had a few great laughs. I would highly recommend his services.
Tim D
Tim D
Scott is incredible! Thanks to him our Newfoundland, Lola has improved SO MUCH! We learned so much working with him and would recommend his service to ANYONE! Our puppy had difficulty counter surfing, jumping up on people, play biting, walking on a leash and resource guarding. After Scott worked with Lola and we continued using the techniques Scott gave us, she’s improved an incredible amount and continues to improve each day! And Lola loves him!!! He truly cares. He’s THE BEST!
Courtney Diskin
Courtney D.
Scott was amazing with my dog! She was very spoiled and didn't listen at all! Scott got her to listen to not only my husband and I but my 5 year old too!! She is a completely new dog thanks to barks and recreation. Would recommend to anyone who needs help with there pup!
Jessica Klausner
Jessica K.
Patti O Connor
Patti O C.
We contacted Scott about training our 11 month old Morkie. We had contacted three potential board and train companies before deciding to use Barks and Recreation. First, Scott was very responsive, answered all of our questions and was receptive to our concerns for seeking a board and train. Then, when we met Scott we knew it was the right fit. Both of our dogs were immediately taken with him. During his ten day board and train, our Morkie was taught several essential commands and his behavior has dramatically improved. We are so grateful for the training, love and attention he received with Scott at Barks and Recreation - we would highly recommend him!
Carrie Anne Cavallo
Carrie Anne C.
Ashley Perillo
Ashley P.
Scott is an AMAZING dog trainer!! My family and I rescued a 5 month old puppy named Reese. He was kept in a hunting crate his whole life and never had the chance to experience life. Therefore, everything was new and terrifying to him. I remember looking for a trainer a couple months ago and once they heard the breed of our puppy and how timid he was they criticized us and dismissed us. On the other hand, Scott called me right back and was eager to help. He even dropped his plans and showed up early the next morning! He was very honest and upfront with us about the amount of work and time we would need to put into training our dog. His enthusiasm and determination matched mine. It was refreshing to work with someone who is so passionate about what they do. Before we started working with Scott, Reese was so scared that his tail was always tucked and he would freeze in fear. We could not get Reese to go down the hallway or the back steps and would have to carry him outside. It has taken a while for our dog to adjust to his new environment, but if it wasn’t for Scott’s helpful training tips our dog would be curled up in the corner still. In 2 months of working with Scott, Reese is now going for long hikes and passing the “scary” trash cans on trash day. Scott shows you the importance of being a leader for your dog. The methods and techniques he has taught me have helped Reese gain confidence. Also, the “puppy tech support for life” has been a huge help! If you are looking for a reliable, honest, funny, and enthusiastic trainer give Scott a call! I am grateful for Scott’s guidance in training my dog and his support!
Kayla Dillinger
Kayla D.
Scott has been wonderful with our new puppy Finn. We are new dog owners and wanted to make sure we were setting our puppy up for success. Finn absolutely adored Scott (we did too). He has great suggestions and has provided us with tools we can continue to use as Finn grows. The first 2 sessions helped lay the foundation for life with a new puppy. It was incredible to see how quickly Scott was able to teach and train Finn. We would highly suggest using Scott for all your dog training.
Sarah Lippman
Sarah L.
We sent Kona (11mths) on a 10 day board and train with Scott and the results absolutely succeeded all of our expectations! Kona returned to us having learned better overall manners and Scott's process (and follow up lessons) also helped teach us how to continue her training, with confidence, at home. We cannot recommend Scott enough and look forward to continuing to work with him on the future!
Danielle Smythe
Danielle S.
We recently added an English Bulldog named Archie to our family. We are new to the puppy world and luckily found Scott. He has been priceless in training, both Archie and ourselves :). He is professional, reliable and knowledgeable in answering all of our questions. We have seen so much growth in Archie and we highly recommend Scott!
Abigail Collins
Abigail C.
Scott is amazing! He was so understanding and good with our dog Barry! Extremely flexible with scheduling and very very affordable! He really changed my whole family’s life, Barry is like a completely new and happier dog. Would recommend to anyone with training needs of all severities. I will definitely come back for any more obedience training we may need and for dog sitting.
Emily Kaplan
Emily K.
Scott is fantastic. Thanks to him, we taught our puppy how to go to the bathroom outside in just about a week. We now understand when to reward our puppy with treats, and which ones to reward her with. I grew up with dogs, but – after meeting Scott – I learned that I never really knew how to properly teach and/or discipline a dog. Scott comes with “puppy tech support for life”; he is very responsive by phone and/or text. Scott practices social distancing. He’s a great trainer!
Steven Hill
Steven H.
Scott has helped us so much with Duke! Tips to follow that the whole family can be involved with and he leaves you with notes.
Jenny Baxter
Jenny B.
Scott is nothing short of amazing! After adopting a timid rescue dog (Walter) in July, we immediately called Scott to have him help acclimate Walter to his new life in NJ. Upon our first meeting with Scott, we learned valuable tools to help train Walter and make him comfortable with his new surroundings while letting him know “who’s boss”. Scott comes with “puppy tech support for life” which I just cashed in on for the first time! We had a phone call about an issue with Walter, and now have the tools to confidently solve the problem. Thank you, Scott, for your knowledge, patience, and love for what you do!
Molly Solebello
Molly S.
Scott is efficient, funny, and effective. Also I don't write reviews. I know people say that but literally I think this is my second review ever. First session he gave me the tools to stop my dogs leash pulling, and taught us how to recall him from bad behaviors. I didn't think much would come from one lesson considering how bad my boy was, but I couldn't have been more wrong. Thanks barks and rec 🙂
Rachel Dash
Rachel D.
Scott has done wonders with my 10 year old dog, Spike. Some trainers won't or have little hope for training dogs that age. Within the first lesson I saw a real change in Spike and myself, he explains things in a clear and often humorous way. And he checks up to make sure that we're making progress and he's always available if you have questions. He charges fairly and by lesson not in bulk like some people do.
Alaina McLaughlin
Alaina M.
I can not say enough about Scott and his training! As first time puppy owners we were very excited yet nervous about what getting a new puppy would entail. Scott walked us through step and step of managing our expectations. He was very patient to answer any and all of our questions and work through the best strategies for our puppy. This is wonderful because not all puppies respond to training techniques in the same way. One of the things I like best about his method of training is that he takes an extremely positive approach. His love for what he does is very apparent. His enthusiasm creates such a positive fun environment for both the families and the puppies. And most of all he creates amazing results. We were having problems with our puppy barking during crate training. After a few days, our puppy doesn’t make a sound in his crate. I highly recommend him and will not hesitate to go back over our puppy’s first year. We are so thankful to have found him!
Cara Strashnov
Cara S.
Scott was friendly, knowledgeable and accommodating. He took great care of our dog, Bowie, and provided updates to us during the course of our time away from him. Bowie came home happy and we came home with a bunch of new tips/ticks for Bowie’s training. Would definitely recommend Scott to anyone looking for reliable pet care.
Carol O'Hara
Carol O.
Scott is by far the most knowledgeable and friendly dog trainer we have used. He is always willing to help and has even offered us some quick advice over the phone in a pinch. I would definitely recommend him for any dog owners.
Chris DeMarco
Chris D.
Scott was awesome and very knowledgeable on teaching us how to correct or dog from pulling on the leash, being over protective , and better with other dogs!
Anne Deus
Anne D.
Scott was a life saver! My 5 month old Brittany rescue was never socialized, and afraid of everything. Scott trained me how to help her adjust. Without him we would be lost! He's patient, kind, and loves dogs. If you need a trainer you MUST call Scott!
Tracy Vanduyn
Tracy V.
Scott is amazing. He took care of my lab Riley on a weekly basis. Never missed a week. He was so dependable. I never had to worry if he would show or not. Sadly I had to put Riley down and on Scott’s last visit he brought him special treats. That right there just told me he loved and cared about my dog like his own.
Amy S
Amy S
I've been meaning to write this review for awhile. Scott helped us with our two dogs barking. Scott is wonderful, he really knows what he is doing and has definitely found his calling. Our one dog Coco would bark at almost every noise and then Bailey would follow, as soon as Scott came to our house it was incredible how the dogs reacted to him. He taught us how to get the dogs attention and to realize that we are the alpha and they did not have to alert us. Its almost like Scott explains how dogs think so their reaction is different to how we react. The dogs would also bark while being walked,it was so embarrassing, could not get them to stop. And Coco would be scared to death with fireworks and tremble uncontrollably. So those were our problems we told Scott about. After our first lesson it was incredible, what a difference. They still barked but would listen to the command and would stop fairly quickly. After about a week it was obvious that the dogs were seeing my sister as the alpha and listening to her and she could take them on walks and actually enjoy them. Unfortunately the commands weren't working as well for my Mom and myself so I called Scott and he came again and we worked on the recall command. I have to say that command was a godsend. Twice since we saw Scott each dog got out and was running away down the street, I did the recall command and they came back! I couldn't believe it. The final outcome was during fireworks we put a thundershirt on Coco and kept her in a room and we just acted like everything was ok, she tried to jump on my lap at first but eventually calmed down we couldn't believe it. I called Scott and told him he was a miracle worker. They don't listen all the time re: barking but they are so much better and it will just take consistency on our part. But we are so glad to have met Scott and for all his help. Would definitely use him again if needed and would absolutely recommend him. His price was very fair, we are very happy customers
Cathy Loughran
Cathy L.
I am not easily blown away, but, WOW!!! Scott is the dog whisperer! I had a consult with him today and in a short amount of time I learned so much! I am now able to stop Bootsie from humping my cat and I was able to keep her off my lap in the car! Scott really knows what he is doing! If you are looking to create a living and safe home for your furbaby, look no further Scott is your man! I can't wait for our first lesson!!! Thank you Scott!
Heather Roncinske
Heather R.
Best service ever! Thank you Scott for caring my puppy Ruby while we were away. Scott made sure Ruby was walked, fed, exercised, loved and even practiced some new commands she learned. I knew without a shadow of a doubt my puppy was in the BEST HANDS. Thank you Scott for your dedication to your business and most of all to the pets you care for!!!
Laura Avon Dunzelman
Laura Avon D.
For my family, the number one thing we want in a pet sitter is someone who will care about our dogs as much as we do. With Barks and Recreation we experienced a pet sitter (Scott) that went above and beyond in our dog's care. While we were away in Arizona our older dog became very sick when Cancer that had been on his leg decided to start moving throughout his body. Scott immediately noticed that our dog was not acting right and took action. In the days that followed he took him to the vet for us, took notes from the vet on how we should care for him, gave medicine, was always available to communicate updates and even slept by our dog's side. Our pets were given lots of love and I truly believe that if someone else had been caring for them while we were gone my dog would have suffered and I would have had to cut a long planned trip short to fly home right away. I cannot say enough good things about Barks and Recreation, they are the absolute best!
Allison Perry
Allison P.
Scott was amazing with Millie. We rescued her 3 months ago and she was very scared around strangers. He worked with her and within 20 minutes he had her literally eating out of his hand. He taught us some techniques to work with her and a lot of patience. We have seen a much more relaxed dog within a few days. Thank you Scott
Mary Rose Piana
Mary Rose P.
Scott is such a doll! He took THE BEST care of my lil pittie, Petunia (#petuniapup), while I was on a camping trip. I'm very particular about who I trust with my baby -- and I'm so grateful to have found Scott. I seriously can't recommend him highly enough!
Aurora Wells
Aurora W.
We rescued our dog, Nola. She is a very energetic lab and had adjustment issues.Scott gave our family lots of tips and tricks to use w/ Nola. We use them and Nola is a happy pup and we are all a happy family.
Anna Victoria
Anna V.
I gotta say I truly love Barks and Recreation! Scott is such a awesome trainer and you can tell he just loves dogs and takes great pride in what he does and that is huge to us! He has been helping us with our 2 dogs.. not only training them but training us to what we need to do... If we have a question all we have to do is text him and he is quick and happy to answer! He makes the training fun... A simple command like "down" was not in my dogs vocabulary... put a treat in our hand, say down, and boom their down now... took a day after Scott met with them... you will not be sorry with Barks and Recreation... Our family is 100% satisfied and 100% sure you will be too! Thanks Scott!
Niza
Niza
Scott is has been a huge help getting my puppy settled into living with me and visa-versa! Having my first pup, I knew very little about training a dog. Scott gave me a ton of great hints to get me going! Dublin loves going on training walks with Scott and he has helped socialize him with other dogs. Whether its training Dubs, taking him for a walk to get out some of his puppy energy while I work, or even watching him if I have to go away, I would absolutely trust Scott to take great care of my dog! His rates are extremely reasonable and he is more than accommodating with scheduling appointments!
Michael McBride
Michael M.
I have a newly rescued 2 year old pit bull mix who had a lot of trouble with play nipping/biting, jumping, and pulling on the leash. With only a few sessions I've seen a major change in her. With Scott's help, our dog has improved greatly and those things are no longer an issue. He is easy to get in contact with and always willing to help with any problems you may have. He is currently helping us to better socialize our dog who gets overly excited around other animals. Definitely recommend!
MaryKate Cotter
MaryKate C.
Robert Tebbs
Robert T.
was referred to Scott by a friend. have been through 3 dog trainers and he is not only the most personable and most affordable but also bar none the best trainer i have ever come across. Also offers walking and baby sitting services making it very convenient.
mark melango
mark M.
About
Scott Mottola

"Our goal is to take away the frustration that comes with getting a new family dog so you can enjoy your pet and have fun... which is the whole reason you got a dog to begin with! Whether You need help with a new puppy, or an older dog set in their ways, we can help. Give us a call today."

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