Blogger Biographies

Michelle Douglas, CPDT, CDBC formed THE REFINED CANINE, LLC and began training dogs and their people in 1997.  The Refined Canine, LLC utilizes positive training methods, which are family and dog friendly, FUN and proven to work.  Michelle offers group classes, private lessons and behavior consultations; she is a Presenter for the Dogs & Storks™ Program, an AKC Approved CGC Evaluator and a Mentor Trainer for Animal Behavior College.  She has published articles on various aspects of owning and training dogs and is a featured author in the book The Dog Trainer’s Resource, The APDT Chronicle of the Dog Collection.  Michelle has been featured in major local media and is a regular guest on the top-rated local morning radio show: ‘Chaz & AJ in the morning’ on 99.1 FM WPLR in New Haven CT.

Kelly Gorman Dunbar is a cofounder and the executive editor of the dogstardaily.com and a contributing editor at dogtime.com.

She is the President of Open Paw, a non-profit organization devoted to addressing the unwanted animal problem in a whole new way, arming communities worldwide with valuable user and animal friendly training and behavior information with the goal of keeping cats and dogs out of shelters by keeping them in their original homes. Kelly lectures internationally on the principles of Open Paw and consults for animal shelters regarding layout, and staff-and-animal training protocols and procedures.

She is a Director of the Center for Applied Animal Behavior, a multi-faceted business that focuses on teaching people how to train their dogs to be the best canine citizens possible.

Dr. Ian Dunbar is a veterinarian, animal behaviorist, and writer. He received his veterinary degree and a Special Honors degree in Physiology & Biochemistry from the Royal Veterinary College (London University) and a doctorate in animal behavior from the Psychology Department at the University of California in Berkeley, where he spent ten years researching olfactory communication, the development of hierarchical social behavior, and aggression in domestic dogs.

Dr. Dunbar is a member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, the International Society for Applied Ethology, the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior, the California Veterinary Medical Association, the Sierra Veterinary Medical Association, and the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (which he founded).

Marie Finnegan is the founder and owner of K-9 Solutions Dog Training Inc.
Specializing in private training for dogs and their owners, her focus is teaching effective communication between the two for the betterment of the relationship. Her motto is, "I do not whisper, I translate."

Marie has been training her own dogs since 1992 and decided to pursue a professional career in training in 2000 after noticing that many dogs at her local shelter were given up for simple training issues. Of that period she says, "I knew enough to know I didn't know quite enough to teach others, so I went in search of some advanced training. I found myself fascinated by the whole process of teaching, behavior modification and effective communication." Her thirst for knowledge lead to a yearlong hands-on apprenticeship learning both traditional and progressive techniques,

I brought my first dog home at the tender age of 5 and according to family lore, said “Mom, look what I found.” Tramp, as he became, was bleeding from a gunshot wound, but survived to be a wonderful and colorful family pet, succumbing at the age of 16. And so it went over the years, a long line of furry faces and names coming to recollection.

I wish my Mother lived on, to witness the success of Look What I Can Do! Dog Training, founded in December of 2006. As the saying goes, the apple does not fall far from the tree. These days, I am owned by three labs, and live in the waterfront area of Earleville MD, an ideal location for my gang. Many a morning we are off to the Bohemia River, so Talley, Bridget CGC RN RA and Doobie can do what labs do best. My boyfriend Argil “adopted” all three labs, and turned not a hair at three large dogs taking up occupation.

Dogs recognize John Flanagan as the gentle giant who they want to serve. You may recognize John from some of the many national TV commercials he has done over the years. Others will know John as a freelance union animal trainer to the entertainment industry.

John began his home training practice in 1998 after experiencing success and discovery from his work with his standard and giant Schnauzers, Garbo & Franklin. John uses a technique to teach dogs commands using rewards and hand signals. A strong believer in training using positive reinforcement, John likes to say, “I vibe the dog”.

John is respected and accredited by some of the most prominent organizations in the animal training community including:
- SFSPCA Academy for Dog Trainers – COC Program with Jean Donaldson
- L.A. City Animals – Volunteer
- Delta Society – Evaluator
- FEMA-OES – Trained with Search & Rescue Dog Task Force

He has trained animals for clients such as:

A life-long dog-lover, Deborah was mostly asleep-at-the-leash with her dogs until Sadie, her fearful, reactive 4-year old standard poodle, came along in the fall of 2006 with a wake-up call: You cannot sleepwalk through life with a fearful dog! (Well, you can if you want to risk turning your life and your dog’s life into nightmare!)

Deborah wasn’t willing to take that risk. Within days of Sadie coming home, and under the weekly guidance of a positive trainer, Sadie and Deborah began attending puppy kindergarten classes and going on socialization expeditions. Still today, four years later, Sadie and Deborah are committed life-long learners because: “When you love a fearful dog, there’s always something!”

Rachel Friedman has worked with both people and animals for more than 25 years. She has a B.A. in Social Sciences from The University of Michigan and a Master's Degree in Social Work from The University of Pennsylvania and is an independently licensed social worker in Ohio. Rachel worked for many years in early childhood development/in-home parenting and emergency mental health/crisis intervention work in both Pennsylvania and Ohio.

Combining her passion for and long experience in working with animals with her extensive social work training and work experience, Rachel became a full time dog trainer in 1999 and founded her company, A Better Pet LLC. Her background makes her uniquely qualified to help clients learn how best to teach their dogs, and thus how best to create a harmonious household.

Eric owns and runs Dog Spelled Forward dog training part-time in Maywood NJ, while working full-time as a software engineer on Wall Street. He hopes to transition Dog Spelled Forward to full-time in a few years. He is a Certified Pet Dog Trainer (CPDT.)

After adopting a puppy that was a "bit of a handful" in 2000, Eric discovered modern dog training via classes at St. Hubert's Dog Training School, experiencing first hand what can be done with dog-friendly techniques.

He has since attended an Internship at Pat Miller's Peaceable Paws, level one and two Instructor Training Courses with Dogs Of Course, and became an instructor at St. Hubert's. Eric also serves on the Board of Directors of the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants.

Jerry Hope is the author of The Breeder’s Guide to Raising Superstar Dogs and the creator of the Superstar Dog Program, which is designed to prevent many common behavior problems in dogs by imprinting correct behaviors very early puppyhood. The book outlines for breeders how to best prepare puppies for life in the real world. Additionally, the book is an excellent source for future puppy owners to use in selecting the right breeder; a breeder that has produced a puppy that will have the best chance to blend into their family with the least amount of problems. The Breeder’s Guide to Raising Superstar Dogs is available on Jerry’s website, www.k9fixer.com.