Pet Sitter in Concord, North Carolina

My name is Natalie. I have 5 years of professional experience working with animals, primarily as a positive reinforcement trainer and a pet sitter at a dog daycare. I also board-and-train adoptable dogs for the Greater Charlotte SPCA for free until they find their forever homes. I'm offering my services as a pet sitter and dog walker to supplement my freelance dog training business. I am pet CPR and first aid certified through the Red Cross. I offer the option to add on positive-reinforcement training sessions so that your dog gets mental exercise as well as physical, ranging from basic pet manners to advanced tricks and enrichment activities. One of my own dogs was born deaf and partially blind, so I am very comfortable working with special needs dogs. I am also comfortable working with physically handicapped dogs and administering medications. Training: I have been working as a dog trainer since 2009. I teach obedience, life skills and household manners, and provide various enrichment activities for more light-hearted learning (training games, puzzle toys, scent-work, etc). I also offer behavioral modification programs for leash reactivity, fearfulness and resource guarding on a case-by-case basis. As a force-free trainer, I am dedicated to using science-based, humane methods which do NOT rely on fear, discomfort, intimidation or startle-response to achieve results. I strongly believe in continuing education and work hard to stay abreast of current research into canine cognition and learning theory. I am pursuing a prestigious national certification through the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers (CCPDT) which I expect to achieve by the end of 2014.