I was 5 when we got my first dog on Christmas day, a cock-a-poo named Sandy. She slept in our beds, cuddled on the couch, was free fed and had all the treats and toys she could ever want. However, she also incessantly ran away from home and dug to get out of the yard; eventually breaking her leg climbing over the fence to get out and getting hit by a car running across the street. Through it all she survived; and I learned greatly from it, or so I hoped.

As an adult I knew I wanted a dog, so we embarked on our journey as canine parents with Hudson, my first Irish Terrier. We did what we thought was our best parenting for him, taking him to doggie daycare, obedience classes, dog walkers, kennels. You name it, we paid for it. A year and a half later I thought it would be a great idea if Hudson had a doggie companion to go through life with so along came Madison. I now had 2 dogs that slept in our bed and on the couch, ran away from home, destroyed everything we owned and now were beginning to fight and bite my family. I had enough, it was time for change, and unless I could find another option they were getting eviction notices.

After finding myself unsatisfied with the advice I was given by other trainers, I heard what I needed to when I spoke with Brad. He taught me more than just how to train my dogs, he showed me what real trust and friendship with them is. He encouraged me to fight for the relationship he knew I could build with them. There was nothing easy about the training process we went through, but it’s also one of the most rewarding accomplishments of my life.

Now as a CTE I love what I do every day; encouraging and educating people that there is a better way than spoiling, negotiating and bribing their dog. I get to show them that it is possible to have this amazing success and friendship with their dog and in the rest of their life as well.

Melissa MacFarlane
*On current leave of absence

A life-long animal lover with over 7 years experience working with dogs and 15 years experience in the helping profession, I have always been motivated and driven by new challenges, building valuable relationships and providing leadership and support to help people and creatures rise to their potential.  A nature-nut and active living enthusiast, I know first hand the life-long emotional, physical and spiritual benefits of being connected to the outdoors through exercise and activity and want to bring these opportunities to both dogs and owners.

A few months ago I put on my “entrepreneur hat” and began brainstorming ideas on how to tie in all that I love into a business I can call my own. In June 2009 I completed the 6Legs to Fitness(tm) Instructor course.  As I began running classes in Calgary during the summer I knew my business plan was still missing something.  The branches of my “vision” tree were beginning to grow strong, but my “foundational” roots were still weak....this is when I called Hustle Up Training, enrolled in the CTE course and proudly graduated in October 2009.

Why Dogs? Why Hustle-Up Training?

7 years ago I overcame my fear of dogs, instilled by a run-in with a mini “Lassie” as a teen.  As I opened my heart and soul, my connection and passion for dogs was undeniable.  I began fostering, raising, training (informally) and sitting dogs while soaking up all the canine knowledge my little’ brain could hold. 
During that time I became the owner of 2 brilliant dogs. Like any new owner ambushed by trainers and misleading information, I placed my blind-faith into the hands of treat/clicker training, spray-collars and “doggie vallium”.  I let my dogs sleep on beds and couches and had daily hour-long conversations with them about everything and nothing.  Time passed and amazement and mass confusion set-in.  Why were my dogs the re-incarnation of Einstein when I had slabs of liver in my hand for sits, stays and even a round of “game-show”,  yet were unruly on-leash when meeting other dogs and created a barking tag-team furry at the off-leash, sometimes ending in fights and disgruntled owners.
 
Baffled by the mysteries unsolved by the almighty bag of treats, I was embarrassed, anxious and stressed every time I stepped into a park.  I walked my dogs at awkward hours and crossed the street whenever another dog approached.  I was extremely frustrated with feeling clueless about the underlying issues and behaviours I was truly dealing with and was determined that there must be a better way.

This was when Season 1 of “At the End of My Leash” began to air on Slice.  Stumbling across it one night on tv, my eyes grew big with excitement and hope and I figured I had nothing to lose.  So I began retraining my dogs using information from the show, began to research information based upon Brad’s philosophy and approach and the results were immediate.  Walks became enjoyable, the park became pleasant, but most importantly, I began to understand my dogs and respect for the intelligent, social and complex animal that they are -  not the domesticated novelty on 4-legs I first mistook them for.
 
I am honoured and excited about the opportunity to bring my passion, knowledge and experience to the lives of other dog owners so they too can reap the unspeakable rewards of building a bond and relationship build on leadership, trust and respect.

Everything was good, so I thought, until I realized people had stopped asking me to go on walks with my dogs and I could not bring my dogs to my friends’ house anymore. The dogs had become the rulers and had bad manners. After being in denial for so long I finally saw the light after watching Brad’s show.  I attended a seminar and was mesmerized by his how he had the dogs under control and behaving with great manners. I was mostly impressed though by his connection to the dogs. I wanted that relationship with my dogs!

I enrolled in a Street Safety class and saw such positive change in my dogs. The classes were fun, dynamic and a great way to create the bond I wanted. My relationship with them is now one of trust and respect. I can take my dogs anywhere I go and I get compliments on how well behaved they are. The friends who weren’t tolerant of my dogs are now asking me for advice.

Not only do I want to share my experience with people interested in improving their relationship with their dog, I want to provide them with all the knowledge and information that will empower them to have this great bond with a well-mannered dog, their dog. Becoming a CTE was the next logical step for me. I want the owners and their dogs to be a team, for the dog to live the life it deserves and for the owner to enjoy life with a great companion.

It’s interesting to read the bio’s of the other CTE’s; we all have a true love for dogs as well as a desire to help people build a stronger relationship with their canine friends. Many of us also seem to have had tricky dogs, which because of their issues, created fantastic learning opportunities!

Your dog doesn’t need to have issues to benefit from this training though. I often hear, “That training works for bad dogs, but mine’s good…” Hmmm, you mean the dog that counter-surfs, doesn’t come when called, jumps up on visitors and flies around the car like a wild banshee, THAT’S good?!  This training is for anyone who desires a more responsive dog and who is interested in building a bond based on mutual trust and respect.

My story is this: Brad began helping me with Murphy (8 lbs of attitude!) before the days of his show, “At the End of My Leash.” At the time I thought I was fairly educated and I remember it bruising my ego when Brad essentially threw all my knowledge out the window and began to re-educate me. In the years following, I have continued to witness the amazing results of this training firsthand. As a result I decided to become a Certified Trainer Educator so I could make a difference in the lives of other dogs and their people.

I do have a different teaching style than Brad’s; no two personalities are the same. But although the delivery may vary, the philosophy and method is ironclad. Thus, I can guarantee that you will need to be open to information contrary to what you’ve previously learned. It’s unfortunate that we have been so misled and misguided about what our dogs truly need from us. However, this misinformation has opened the door for the Pattison training method to really make a difference and I’m proud to be a part of it.

I have my own training business (including private consults, group training and pet-pet purchase consultations) and I look forward to helping you build a more pawsitive relationship with your dawg.