“Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other”
–John F. Kennedy
Since 2016, I have been committed to the behavioral development and teaching of canines and their handlers. I am a Positive Reinforcement/Clicker trainer at Petco in Barboursville, WV, and practice using only current, fear-free methods of training. I hold certification through the CCPDT and through Petco, where I am a Dog Training Mentor and certified In-Home Dog Trainer. Not only am I happy that I work for a company that backs my training methods, but this environment also allows me to educate others about this training method as opposed to other methods.
I am a former Correctional Officer, and during my time working at the Jail, I thoroughly experienced the mental and emotional benefits of having dogs. My goal is to replicate this for as many people as possible. Aside from this, I have also experienced the frustration that comes with having dogs. This makes my goal two-sided: I also want to alleviate and eliminate these unwanted behaviors. In these situations, as well as any situation, using aversive methods such as prong collars, choke collars, and electric shock collars are not only outdated, but extremely unnecessary.
My passion is teaching dogs and watching the dogs learn. I express how important the relationship is between dog and handler, and one of the most rewarding things is to see the bond built between human and dog. I absolutely love seeing hard work paying off.
My name is David and my incredible wife is Candace, and we have 2 awesome dogs, an Australian Shepherd named Berkley, and a German Shepherd named Hezekiah. Candace and I are members at 26th Street Baptist Church in Huntington, where God has strategically placed us among an awesome church family. I have a passion for Huntington and the community where I grew up. Through my dogs, I have come to realize that I can help a lot more people through animals instead of using a badge.
Berkley
This is Berkley. Berkley was born in April of 2015 and is a very active young man. We call him: “Berkley, protector of all things” because he does not like conflict. He is an avid herder (imagine that) and often herds his little brother back to us. Whenever Hezekiah wants to pester the cats, Berkley is always there to shoulder-check Kai back in place. I also call this “Big Brother Syndrome”. Berkley is very fast, and can turn on a dime. I did a poor job of socializing him when he was a puppy, so it took me a lot of work to recondition him to being in public, and I’m proud to say that he does awesome in public now.
Strongest behavior: leash walking
Hobbies: Fetch, Hiking, Scaling Rocks, swimming, kayaking, agility, and chasing derpy younger brother
Best Trick: Sit pretty
Hezekiah
This is Hezekiah. Kai was born in November of 2015 and lacks no energy. Like Berkley, he is also very active and we have to exercise him frequently. Kai is an awesome demo dog, because he loves to work. I tell people, in a lot of ways he makes me look good (but in alot of other ways, we have both worked hard to achieve what he does). He is super friendly and has a tremendous prey/play drive. He loves when things move away from him and he wants to investigate anything in motion. Hezekiah loves to play, and if no one is paying attention to him, he likes to drop slimy tennis balls and tug ropes in your lap, or he likes to bite Berkley’s butt until he finally gives in.
Strongest behavior: Stay
Hobbies: Fetch, frisbee, tug-of-war, hiking, kayaking, agility, and pestering cats at home
Best trick: Weave (between legs)