You Can — and Must — Speak Up for Your Dog

Before I was a force-free trainer, I took my own dog out of a bad training situation. There is no reason to let any trainer harm your dog.

I wasn’t born a dog trainer. No one is. I have, like many of you, a deep compassion and love of animals — and of dogs in particular. And, like some of you, my childhood was not a rosy one but instead full of neglect, so I looked for love and companionship from dogs. They always delivered both.

Perhaps as a consequence (of the good kind) from that rough childhood, I am sensitive to the needs to animals. I am also an outspoken advocate of humane training protocols for dogs, in part because I know how awful I felt when I was mistreated by the adults who were supposed to be looking out for my welfare.