More about my personal and professional journey with dogs.

A few days after I brought home my new puppy - back in the summer of 1999 - my neighbor, who owned a dog grooming business in Santa Rosa, California, told me that my life will change.  Little did I know just how right she was.  At the time I did not think my life needed changing, as I was happily employed working for a human services agency, and enjoying writing on the side. But my life changed anyway.  Sometimes things get even better, in a strange sort of way.

The puppy I brought home was a very large, flea ridden puppy of three months old.  His mother was a known biting dog, and unapproachable, and at that time I believed, incorrectly, that I could love a puppy into being a good-natured, friendly, lovable dog.  Being college educated, I still had no clue that genetics played a significant role in a dog's behavior over which I had no control.  But the environment a dog lives in is clearly important because by the time Wakelee was five months old his brother, still living in a less than desirable home with his mother, was a frightened, unapproachable, aggressive dog.  And Wakelee grew into an 85 pound well loved adolescent who was funny, lovable and exuberant, who went traveling with us, and enjoyed many days at the beach. We did everything together.  But Wakelee also had an awkward side to him, an overly serious side that was a bit frightening at times. It seemed to get worse as he matured.

I needed help.

The two dog training classes we'd gone through by the time Wakelee was ten months old had him sitting and staying, but did nothing for his wild and sensitive temperament.  I wanted so to understand and make life easier for us.  Doing right with Wakelee became my mission, and my study of dog behavior deepened.

By the time Wakelee was a year old, people were asking me for advice about their dogs.  Overly academic and serious by nature, and overly in love with my dog, I took to the study whole heartedly, devoting my life to understanding and helping Wakelee, and understanding and helping dogs in general.  I attended seminars and workshops, and acquired an extensive library of dog behavior books and videos.  I volunteered helping shelter dogs for four years - and still occasionally help - and established a successful business consulting with dog owners about their dogs' problematic behavior.

In 2005 I applied for, and was granted, certification in Dog Behavior Consulting from the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants.  The process was rigorous, having to demonstrate competency in the five core areas, including assessment and intervention strategies, counseling skills and social systems assessment, behavioral science, knowledge of animal behavior, and species-specific knowledge.

Meanwhile we moved to the country in Northern California, near Oregon, and our family of dogs grew.  As I've heard other dog behavior professionals say, we have a neon sign on our foreheads: "Problem Dog Come Live With Me!" 

Mitzie Rose was an extremely fearful dog when I brought her home from the shelter at a year and two months old.  She was deathly afraid of all people, but children and men were the worst.  She was afraid of the dishwasher, the refrigerator, feet, nearly everything, really, but she did like to ride in a car (as long as I didn't park somewhere) and she liked other dogs.  She is now a stately mature dog who runs outside to greet guests, and has traveled with us to many places.  I still have to keep Mitzie Rose away from crowds, but that is a small price to pay, for she is truly a wonderful dog.

Busbus joined our family next, as an abandoned puppy Eric found while setting out to fish one Thanksgiving some years ago.  Bus is a good dog.  Even though some dog behavior professionals will say a dog does not try to please, I believe Bus does just that.  He is five steps ahead of me, predicting what I'd like for him to do at any given moment.  He does make 'executive decisions' occasionally, but any sentient being should have some measure of free choice.  And he will do as I ask when he hears that serious "mommy voice".

Pinket, the long-haired Chihuahua, arrived some years later.  He was a sweet lovable puppy in a shelter when we met him and fell in love with those dreamy eyes.  I'd never shared my life with a small dog and he seemed perfect (and he is).  Once home, he quickly set our hair on end with his serious possessiveness over objects important to him.  He bit both Eric and me a number of times, snarling like a little wild thing!  We were ever so thankful that he had little round teeth.  I worked with him and his "resource guarding issues", and he is fine sharing his treasured objects with us, and has been for quite some time.

The last addition to our family was in March of 2006, when Bernard Finmark joined our family as a foster dog at four days old.  We fostered a litter of six, along with Mom, until the puppies were old enough to live in their new homes.  Bernard has once again brought alive the reality of living with an adolescent dog.  Phew! He has also given me the experience of living with a dog who has separation anxiety.  That's probably why we kept him, because he was overly attached to us from the beginning, well before his litter left our house.  I worked on making separation easier for him at a young age, and it has been easier for him to be left alone as he matures.  Now, one year later, I would characterize him as having very mild separation anxiety, as long as there is another of our dogs with him, and that's not hard to do!

** Update... at a year and eight months old Bernard has no separation anxiety, and can be left completely alone without another dog (or human).

Wakelee, who started this all, has turned into a wonderful (and large- over 100 pounds) adult dog.  He has overcome much of his anxiety and reactivity.  He is happy being part of our family of five dogs, and has led a rich and varied life.  Wakelee and I are tightly bonded, and he is my soul mate dog.  Had I not learned how to understand him and how best to interact with him, I may have missed this opportunity experiencing a most special relationship.

In 2006 I decided to expand my dog behavior consulting business to a national level.  My interest with dogs has always been centered on problem behavior, and I found that when visiting local clients I could observe the problematic dog in his or her home, but this was not really necessary.  In most cases we could have successfully resolved the behavior problem via phone or email.  So the national division of Dogs and Folks Behavior Consulting was born, along with all the learning that goes with developing an Internet based business.  My dogs now not only marvel over how many new dog smells I come home with, but how many hours I spend looking at a screen and talking into that thing called a telephone.

A huge motivating factor for expanding my business to the national level was remembering back when Wakelee was a puppy, when he growled at me that first time.   I would so have appreciated (understatement) having someone to call for help.  Now I can offer the service I then so desperately needed.