Meet the Trainer

I am not your typical ‘dog trainer’. Dog training was not my first profession nor is it my only profession. I am a Certified Public Accountant by trade, but training is definitely much more than a hobby for me. Dogs (and their related behaviors) are my passion. I am the proud parent of six dogs currently, and over the years I have fostered many, many dogs who have gone on to find wonderful, loving homes. All of my dogs have their own stories, all are rescues, and most have had behavioral and/or health issues to overcome. Rehabilitating a dog is one of the most rewarding experiences I can imagine. I hope through my work in behavior I am improving the lives and dogs and their humans, as well as preventing dogs from being surrendered to shelters/rescues for behavior problems.

I can give you all of my stats – I’m a Certified Professional Dog Trainer, a member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers, an American Kennel Club Canine Good Citizen Evaluator, have been training since 2000, have trained thousands of dogs, references are available, etc., but that really doesn’t tell you much about me or how I got here. When seeking a trainer it is important to find a trainer with credentials and references, but it’s just as important to find a trainer that you and your dog are comfortable with and whose training philosophy and style most match your own beliefs.

So, how did I come to be a ‘dog trainer’? Well, most of what I do is train humans to communicate properly with their dogs, and help the humans understand what their dog is really trying to tell them. So in reality, I’m a human trainer and a dog translator! The better question is ‘What drew you to animal behavior?’ That is a question I can easily answer: Sadie! Back in 1999, I adopted a dog from the local shelter. She was about six months old and cute as a button, a terrier mix of a mix of a mix. I dubbed her a Disney Dog because she is cute enough to be in movies. Little did I know that the cute blonde dog would have a dark side…

Sadie was a fear biter. If you walked by her too quickly, she would jump up and nip at your hands. People, especially men, were not to be trusted under any circumstances. As I started reading on fear behavior, I found myself drawn to the really complex, yet strangely simple, way a dog thinks and processes information. After several weeks of work, Sadie became more confident and less unnerved around strangers. But, the worst was yet to come…

After I had Sadie for about three months, she developed a very severe case of separation anxiety. The day I came home from work and found my carpet ripped up and the back of my sofa ripped off was the day I knew I had much, much to learn on dog behavior. I started reading, and reading and reading. And I got lucky. I was volunteering for the local shelter during this time, and the shelter – the Kentucky Humane Society – decided they were going to start a behavior program. The program was going to be purely positive reinforcement and they were bringing in a successful trainer from Michigan to get the program started. I signed on as one of the original behavior volunteers and the rest, as they say, is well history.