Program Director, Next Step Service Dogs

In 2014 with my then companion dogs, Tebow, Scruffy and Richter, I ventured to the dog park and had a chance meeting with the founder of Next Step Service Dogs. This meeting changed my life, as Sally helped me take my passion for dogs and service to the next level. After attending just one class with NSSD I was committed to the program and excited for the opportunity to train a dog and change a veterans life! In 2015, I became the Assistant Training Director at NSSD and from their applied for and received my Certification for Professional Dog Trainer – Knowledge Assessed (CPDT-KA) in 2016. It was this same year that I met Dr. Ian Dunbar, world renowned veterinarian, animal behaviorist, and dog trainer who became my mentor with whom I continue to work with today at CDT. Today I serve as the COO and Training Director at NSSD where I continue to work renewing the lives of veterans by training and placing exceptional service dogs.
In 2019, seeing a need for education and training of private clients I founded Companion Dog Training (CDT).
Training your dog whether it be for a companion, therapy work, or service is about trust, communication and most of all relationship. Your companion dog should be trained to fit your lifestyle, your family and your needs. Working with service dogs and veterans I have spent many years training and transferring dogs to their new teammate. Dogs will always perform for the trainer but is it transferable? My goal is to give those tools its handler, to not only help in the process, but allow you to maintain the training for years to come!