emBARK

1.When I worked in the “real” world, I could never make it to work on time at 9am on the weekdays, but I could make it to a dog show at 6am in St. Paul on a Saturday morning.

2.When I blow dry my hair in the bathroom, Summit brings me a tennis ball and drops it in the sink for me to throw it. It is a game we have played since he was a pup.

3.Scout is my oldest dog and my soulmate. She has been through so much of life with me. She has the wisest eyes I have ever seen. I found her in a ditch 15 years ago as a 5 week old pup. She has competed in every venue of dog sports successfully, but her biggest accomplishment is being my trail running partner and my chalkboard as a dog trainer.

4.I love the Flat Coated Retriever breed for their ridiculous goofy antics, endless energy and happy persona….and so many say we are like our dogs……hmmm…..?

5.I have taught over 2000 puppies since training dogs professionally.

6.If you put all the dog poop I have ever picked up in a pile, you could hike up it and set some type of Guinness World record.

7.Dogs are amazing creatures and are blatantly honest, we just need to listen to what they are telling us.

8.Losing my three year old Flat Coated Retriever to an autoimmune kidney disease in 2005 at the height of her competition career was the impetus for me to leave health care and pursue doing what I love.

9.I have not owned a TV in 13 years.

10.I have fed a raw diet for almost 13 years, but yet, I rarely eat meat myself.

11.When I was 10 years old, I stewarded for my first conformation dog show, and thought it was so cool that I could call for “Puppy Bitches….6-9 months” in a room of adults and NOT get grounded to my room.

12. I got Rook, my Italian Greyhound, to foster until I found him a home. 11 years later, I just cannot seem to find the “right” home for him…..hmmm……

13.I am blessed to have the most amazing clients surround me every day, and humbled that they entrust me with the care of their animals.

14.Dr. Jean Dodds, a world renowned veterinary immunologist, once called me “effervescent”. I will always treasure her words.

15.My favorite place to be is in the woods. Nature is the most amazing healer.

16.Never did I think that owning a business would be so much work, yet so worth it.

17.The first dog obedience class that I taught was as a Junior 4-H Leader in 1985. I baked liver brownies and wore my best IZOD polo shirt for the first night of class.

18.I crave education. I believe that we are always evolving, and there is always another way to solve a problem. I love learning new things, and seek out educational opportunities any time that I am able.

19.My mom and dad instilled my love of animals. I had doves, rabbits, cats, chickens, a pony, dogs, and a cow named “Dinner” when I grew up.   Hmmm….refer to #10, there could be a correlation here.

20.This quote is on my office wall and I live by these words.

“Enthusiasm is one of the most powerful engines of success. When you do a thing, do it with all your might. Put your whole soul into it. Stamp it with your own personality. Be active, be energetic and faithful, and you will accomplish your object. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.”   Ralph Waldo Emerson

Dog Training History:

Owner – emBARK (formerly The Beastro)   (December 2005 to present)

Instructor – Ann Braue’s Canine Training Center (October 1996 to July 2008)

Dog Class instructor – Petco  (June 1996 to October 1996)

Program Coordinator/Instructor – Chippewa County 4-H dog project (April 1996 to July 2000)

Youth Leader – Chippewa County 4-H dog project (1986-1990)

Professional organizations:

Certified Pet Dog trainer (Certification Council Of Professional Dog Trainers)

Lifeline Italian Greyhound Rescue

Flat Coated Retriever Society of America

Indianhead Kennel Club

Eau Claire County Humane Association

International Association of Animal Massage and Bodywork

American Canine Sports Medicine Association

Upper Midwest Flat Coated Retriever Club

Seminars attended:

Agility: (Ann Braue, Julie Daniels, Karen Holik, Stuart and Patti Mah, Steve Frick, Chris Parker, Terri Smorch)

Competition obedience:  (Terri Arnold, Jane Jackson)

Canine health and behavior: Dr. Ian Dunbar (behavior), Dr. Jean Dodds, DVM (vaccine protocols/immunology), Dr. Ian billinghurst, DVM (raw diets), Dr. Christine Zink, Dvm (sports vet med), Kymythy Schultze (raw diets), Monica Segal (raw diets), Patricia McConnell, PhD (behavior, aggression, etc.), Nicholas Doddman, DVM (behavior), Karen Pryor (clicker training), Suzanne Clothier (training & behavior), Mitch White (field/hunt training), Emma Parsons (aggression), Kathy Sdao (behavior), Ken Ramirez (behavior), Terri Ryan (Behavior), Robert Milner (field training)

Other important stuff:

*Bachelor Degree – Dietetics – University Of Wisconsin-Madison  1996 (Go BADGERS!!!)

*Recipient of 2009 Eau Claire County Humane Association’s “Humane Education Award”

*Certified level II canine massage provider

* Member of Globe University’s Program Advisory Committee for the Veterinary Technician program

*Massage therapist to the 2006 & 2007 USA AKC World agility team in Europe

*Work at Twin cities Animal Rehabilitation Clinic in Burnsville, MN doing therapeutic massage

*Competitively titled dogs in multiple venues (AKC, USDAA,  NADAC) in multiple performance and conformation events

1. I got my first dog when I was 18, her name was Bartles. Guess how many times I’ve heard, “Where’s James?”.

2. I’ve had 11 dogs, and still have 6 of them, and had the others until the day they died.

3. I have had 5 puppies in 6 years. There isn’t a potty training trick I don’t know!

4. I can get dressed in the dark, take a puppy out to potty at 2 am at 20 degree below zero in a blizzard and n

ever even fully wake up.

5. Three Bernese Mountain dogs, a Sheltie, an English Cocker Spaniel, a Dachshund, and 1 adult female all fit on a king size bed.

6. Three Bernese Mountain dogs, a Sheltie, an English Cocker Spaniel, a Dachshund and 1 adult female all fit in a 2 door Ford Focus hatchback.

7. I grew up without a TV, or an indoor toilet. But we had an outhouse with a chandelier.

8. After grooming dogs for 17 years, one of my favorite saying is, “God doesn’t groom dogs and I don’t perform miracles”

9. I sold my grooming business to become a wedding cake designer.

10. I have had one litter of puppies, whelping them was one of my worst dog experience ever, but raising the litter was one of my best.

11. I can pick up a Great Dane size pile of poop with a sandwich baggie and not get a speck of poop on my hand!

12. Somehow I managed to buy a house with wall-to-wall off-white carpet. ?!! (do you know Berners are long haired black dogs?!)

13. I’m addicted to books on tape.

14. After having a boarding kennel for 15 years, I can tell the brand of dog food you feed by looking at your dogs poop.

15. My Bernese Mountain Dog, Rio and I had the honor of earning our CD in competition obedience with a DOG WORLD AWARD from the American Kennel Club.

16. Rio was ranked the #1 Bernese Mountain Dog  in the country with each obedience and agility titled he earned.

17. I don’t understand why people get dogs and then keep them outside.

18. Stepping on a bone barefoot hurts more than going to the dentist.

19. A 30 pound bag of dog food last about 1 1/2 weeks in a house of 6 dogs.

20. There is nothing that feels better than taking a pack of dogs for a walk in the woods on a beautiful, sunny fall day. Life doesn’t get much better than that.

Bartles
Snickes
Belle
Rio
DOT
Delta
Keep-it
Sousa
Hudson
Ace
Dax