A native of Michigan, Kathy has been active in the sport of dog obedience since 1972. Seeking the right match in a canine companion in 1978, a friend suggested Kathy look at a litter of Golden Retrievers. A pup with a freckled muzzle caught her eye. Abbey was a match made in heaven. Kathy began training immediately and found an obvious advantage to working with such a young puppy. Instinctively using cookies as positive feedback, her common sense approach to training began to emerge.
Relocating to New England in 1981 prompted Kathy to mobilize her budding training philosophy. Kathy’s Dog Training on Wheels was born. Impressed by the positive aspects of her approach to training, local veterinarians began referring clients to her. Realizing a need to change public opinion about when puppy training should begin, Kathy began to develop the educational program Back To Basics, complete with detailed handouts geared toward owners and their 8-week-old pups. The one missing link to her mobile operation, primarily one-on-one consults with clients in their homes, was a lack of socialization for these pups. In order to incorporate that key element, Kathy began teaching puppy classes at her home and in continuing education venues. Teaching owners to think like a puppy, incorporate voice modulation, and use cookies as a motivator, her firm but gentle training program was embraced. Since its inception, the Back To Basics program has enlightened hundreds of student teams, encompassing all breed groups and mixed-breed dogs as well. Several students once dubbed Kathy “America’s answer to Barbara Woodhouse” and more recently, “The Puppy Whisperer.” A friend recently commented, "Kathy's training techniques are so effective that we not only used them on the dogs in our lives, but also on our three children with measurable success...consistency, positive reinforcement and fun."
She has now developed and taught a complete training series from Puppy Kindergarten, through First Grade and Adult Dog, to the ever-popular Family Class. The challenge by her students to put Back To Basics handouts in book format has come to fruition in Puppy Possibilities.
Kathy’s public speaking engagements have included the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (MSPCA), Ann Arbor Dog Training Club (AADTC), Massachusetts 4-H, the Connecticut River Valley Golden Retriever Club (CTRVGRC), and the Bethel Animal Hospital Community Fun Day. Having a knack with novice dog owners interested in competing in AKC events, she is often invited to judge at local club and training center matches.
Club affiliations include: The Golden Retriever Club of America (GRCA), Yankee Golden Retriever Club (YGRC), Connecticut River Valley Golden Retriever Club, and Yankee Golden Retriever Rescue. Kathy has served her local clubs as breed historian, obedience chair, board member, and columnist.
Although her senior Golden, Canadian Champion U-CD Byrnbrae’s Goin’ Under Cover, UD, OA, CGC, GRCA 2003 Veteran Agility High In Trial, 2x Front & Finish Honoree (Tucker), and Brynbrae’s Lucy In The Sky, CDX, CAN CD, 2x HIT/Maritime Show Spectacular Invitee, and 2x Front & Finish Honoree (Lucy), have crossed the bridge, look for Kathy at ringside with her smiling sidekick, CAN Champion Mirasol’s I Luv Ricky Ricotta, CDX, TD, AXP, CCA, CAN CD (Desi). The latest addition to Kathy's family is little miss sniff-o-matic, Malagold's Winter Storm Fairy, TD (Winnie).
