We want to help give you the life you and your dog both deserve. We offer training programs that are tailored to suit your needs, and tons of support along the way.
Philosophy
Beneath every behavior is a feeling. And beneath every feeling is a need. And when we meet that need rather than focus on the behavior, we begin to deal with the cause not the symptom.
— Ashleigh Warner
Methods
How We Train
We use positive reinforcement methods that are fear free and force free. We teach new behaviors by breaking learning down into small, easy to follow steps. We change unwanted behaviors by teaching a new replacement behavior and/or modifying the environment around your dog to prevent the unwanted behavior from occurring. We keep it all going by giving you the knowledge and skills necessary to maintain behaviors you like, change behaviors you don’t like, and prevent unwanted behaviors from turning into habits.
How We Won’t Train
Behavior suppression is not behavior modification. We will never use or recommend a tool or technique designed to suppress behavior via pain, fear or intimidation. We do not use prong, choke, and shock collars but we are happy to show you how to train your dog without them.
Credentials
Experience
Holly has been training dogs professionally since 2013.
She has experience running group classes, private lessons, day training, board and trains, training walks and training dogs on movie sets.
Over the years Holly has worked with all manner of dogs from young puppies to adults, fearful and anxious dogs to over exuberant adolescents and even pet wolfdogs.
To see a full resume-style list of Holly’s workplaces, please email us.
Education
Please note this is the shortlist! If you would like a full list of every book, study, seminar, conference & online course that Holly has ever taken, please email us.
2020: Fear Free Certification
2020: IAABC & FDSA’s Lemonade Conference
2019: CCPDT’s CPDT-KA
2019: BCSPCA’s Animal Behaviour Science Symposium
2018: BCSPCA’s Animal Behaviour Science Symposium
2015: Karen Pryor Academy’s Puppy Start Right for Instructors
2013: Petco’s DTIP
Growth
"Continuing education is the cornerstone of any good professional and Holly is committed to continually expanding her wealth of knowledge.
She is currently enrolled at Langara College for a course in Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and the next course on her list to complete is the Companion Animal Sciences Institute Diploma of Animal Behavior Science and Technology for both dogs and cats.
Holly also plans to apply for the BCSPCA’s Animal Kind Certification in 2022 to showcase her commitment to humane training and animal welfare.
You and your dog deserve to be happy.
We come up with customized training solutions to help you reach your goals, and give you both a better life.
Core Values
Education
Before you can prevent or fix a problem, you’ve got to understand it first. Education gives you the information and problem solving skills you need to be able to handle whatever life throws at you & your dog.
Empowerment
Empowering You:
Say goodbye to uncertainty and not knowing what you're supposed to do. Our mission is to give you the knowledge and skills necessary to feel confident in your decisions and grow into self sufficiency.
Empowering Your Dog:
Dogs deserve choices (that we curate for them) and to have their feelings heard and honoured. It is our duty as their humans to teach them how to live safely in our world and guide them towards making better choices.
Empathy
Understanding how your dog perceives the world around them and how they’re feeling about it all is the secret to successful dog ownership. Empathy enables us to understand needs and create solutions that work for both you and your dog long term.
A Word to the Wise:
Dog training is an unregulated field.
This means absolutely anyone can claim to be a professional dog trainer regardless of their education, experience or ethics. All of these things matter when you place your trust and the welfare of your dog, who cannot speak and tell you how they are being treated, in the hands of another individual.
We are positive reinforcement dog trainers not just because it is scientifically proven to be the most effective method for dog training but because it is simply the better way to treat dogs.
We have known for decades that dog training can be successfully accomplished without the use of pain, fear or intimidation. Like many other things in life, however, this knowledge must be learned. That’s where we come in.
