My dog training journey began in 2006 with the adoption of my first dog. I grew up with cats and birds. I remember the first night at home with my new puppy. She peed everywhere…she ate so much that she made herself sick and within the first week, my beautiful puppy that I rescued…bit me. Hard. I was completely shocked and upset. I searched for help. I found Cesar Milan. I attempted to replicate his techniques and within a year…I had been bitten more times than I could count.

I adopted two more dogs, for some reason thinking more would be easier (ha!) and I was trying my best to be a calm and assertive pack leader. My two males fought often, and my original puppy was becoming more and more unpredictable each day. I was at a loss. How did I have such aggressive dogs?

I couldn’t be calm or assertive and the idea of having to dominate and hurt my dogs broke my heart with every jerk of the leash. The day I found force free dog training…I was so relieved.

In 2010, I paired up with an amazing Mentor. I started taking dog behavior classes online, read and studied my favorite trainers’ works and joined an amazing Force Free Guild that guided and helped me in my journey. I had the chance to implement and practice all that I was learning with my own pups. I gave myself a clean slate and started at the very beginning with each of my dogs.

I learned how to communicate, teach, and manage my environment. Our life changed from stressful and unpredictable, to happy and relaxed. It became our favorite activity to pile on my bed and share a bowl of popcorn. By the end of my pup’s life, I can say…without a doubt…they gave me a great life. They were my Happy Pups.

While I was in classes, I fostered pups for local rescues. They needed a safe place to stay for a while and I needed dogs to practice my timing and techniques with. I fostered over 30 dogs in 2 years. I cried like a baby each time one of my fosters went to their forever home. During my mentorship, we fostered over 500 puppies in a year. We were able to help save so many!

I started Happy Pups in 2017. I have been a member of the Pet Professional Guild since 2018. I studied education at Coastal Carolina University. I trained people in my job for over a decade. I have worked with over 1,000 dogs to date. I am happy to report I have never needed any harsh tools to change behavior. Force-free training gives us space to truly be a best friend and hero to our best friends, our pups.

⬆⬆ Mia, BeEasy, and Buddy, before force-free training and after committing to force-free training.⬆⬆