I’ve always had a special fondness for animals ; my first word as a baby was “Maggie” , which is the name of our golden retriever who would live to be 17 years old. Guided by buddhist philosophy, my love for fuzzy mammals has expanded outward to include all living things & has to approach even the most difficult situations gently & with empathy. In the years preceding my “Eureka!” Moment of wanting to become a trainer, i worked as a walker & sitter for 3 years in NYC at a place called brooklyn bow wow and later worked for a trainer named Daniel Nogueira for another 2 years. Periodically we would have workshops with Mark Bennett (CPDT-KA) which informed my ability to improve leash behaviors & develop a behavioral modification strategy of positive reinforcement (most domesticated dogs do not respond well to negative feedback ; they don’t understand why they are being yelled at! 🥹) Eventually I had to eschew the dream job to take on a better-paying gig to pay my astronomical rent, which sucked, so my instincts all led me back to the midwest to continue pursuing my goal of becoming a certified trainer.