Our team
Alyssa Craig, CPT
Owner and Head Trainer
Alyssa has always had a strong love for animals, but it wasn't until she adopted a particularly difficult dog (her husky mix, Kita) that she started to pursue dog training. After living with a dog who dug through the trash, bit the family whenever she wanted attention, and tried to attack every dog she encountered, Alyssa knew she needed to make some changes. Owning a dog with so many issues gave her the opportunity to experience a number of different training methods, styles, and tools.
Eventually, she found the right fit and was able to rehabilitate Kita -- who can regularly be found in our training videos and helping out in lessons and group classes! Alyssa loves being able to share her knowledge and "AHA" moments with her clients and help them achieve the same peace of mind that she has experienced!
In her 10 years in the industry, Alyssa has pursued a number of training goals including becoming certified for therapy pet visits, and titling her Belgian Malinois, Dare (the face and inspiration for her company) in the protection sport PSA. Her and Dare are currently training for their PSA2 title.
Certifications
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Alyssa has earned the following certifications through National K-9 School for Dog Trainers:
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Basic Obedience (on leash)
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Advanced Obedience (off leash)
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Puppy Development
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Behavior Modification
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Utility
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Breed Identification
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Scent Detection
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Tracking/Trailing
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Soft-Mouth Retrieval
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Personal Protection
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Police K9
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Certified evaluator for AKC Canine Good Citizen, STAR Puppy, and Urban CGC, and Community Canine
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Certified evaluator for Therapy Pets Unlimited
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Certified by the American Red Cross in animal first aid and CPR
Qualifications
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Member of the International Association of Canine Professionals
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Member of the National K-9 Dog Trainers' Association
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Current Evaluator and past volunteer for Therapy Pets Unlimited
Jess Fogliano
Trainer
Jess has several years of experience in the pet care industry including time spent building a successful dog walking business in Fairmount, volunteering with the SPCA, and completing her apprenticeship with DareDevil!
She enjoys spending time with her cattle dog mix, Bowie, who she's taught several tricks(including Get Me a Beer) and hopes to at some point pursue agility with him. You will also see her cat side-kick Karen schooling the dogs in her care!
Jess is certified in animal CPR and first aid through the Red Cross, is an active member of the International Association of Canine Professionals, and is currently working towards completing her Foundation Dog Trainer Certification.
Sami Snyman
Trainer
Sami started out in the training industry by completing a 3 year apprenticeship under David Owens of Northeastern K9 before beginning to work with them as a trainer. She also has experience working at local daycare/enrichment centers observing dogs social behavior. Her experience as a trainer has given to the opportunity to work with a variety of extremely challenging behavioral cases and to learn how to work through areas of aggression safely. She is particularly adept at reading dog's body language and is our resident "dog social" expert.
Sami enjoys pursuing the dog sport of PSA with her malinois Trout, is an active member of the Greater Philadelphia PSA Club and the International Association of Canine Professionals, is certified in animal CPR and first aid through the Red Cross, and is currently working towards completing her Dog Trainer Certification with the IACP.
Tammy Doan
Training Assistant
Tammy is the newest addition to our team! She realized her love for dog training while working through her pit bull, Astro's, dog reactivity. Tammy enjoys studying animal behavior and in her off time will be found working with her own dogs and kitten!
Tammy is certified in animal CPR through the Red Cross.