Gwen Urie, CPDT-KA
Certified Professional Dog Trainer – Knowledge Assessed (CPDT-KA)
The Certification Council of Professional Dog Trainers (CCPDT) measures a broad range of knowledge and skills in ethology, animal husbandry, learning theory, dog training technique, instruction skills and training equipment. As a Certified Professional Dog Trainer with CCPDT, I have been tested and passed rigorous standards for knowledge and skills in science-based dog training, and have a commitment to ongoing continuing education and professional development. Certification represents an individual step toward a future when only qualified professionals are allowed to call themselves dog trainers.
Requirements for the CPDT-KA: Passing score on a 200 question test covering ethology, animal husbandry, learning theory, dog training technique, instruction skills and training equipment. Signed attestation statement from a CCPDT certificant or a veterinarian, a minimum of 300 hours logged experience in dog training within the last 3 years and an agreement to the CCPDT Standards of Practice and Code of Ethics.
I have been working as a Dog Trainer and Canine Behavioral Consultant since 1999, training dogs and teaching people the skills necessary to make living with their dogs positive, productive, and fun! Working with dogs was an early calling for me, starting as a kennel assistant at a local veterinary hospital when I was in my early teens. I continued to work with dogs as a veterinary technician, a kennel manager, and a teacher of obedience classes and private in-home sessions. When I look back, I’m amazed to find that I have been working with and around dogs for over 35 years!
I specialize in crate training, housebreaking, leash walking, basic obedience, clicker training, and behavior modification.
I have been helping people raise puppies for over 20 years, have shown and handled my own dogs and others in the AKC conformation show ring, and have taught AKC Canine Good Citizen classes and AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy classes. I am also a Professional Member of APDT (Association of Professional Dog Trainers). I assisted in raising dogs to live “as family” in Nursing Homes as part of a bigger nationwide effort called “The Eden Alternative,” with a mission to improve the lives of older adults lacking close family support.
Dogs are living, thinking, feeling beings that give us companionship, loyalty and love. No two dogs are the same.
Training your dog is all about relationship and communication. More than anything, dogs want fit in and understand what is expected of them. Once you learn to develop the relationship and utilize the communication skills and tools I teach you, you’ll see your ability to communicate with your dog open up in front of you. The joy I get from seeing happy dogs and happy families is immeasurable.
