Mindful Dog Training With Liz

Hi, I'm Liz. And together with my dog, Luca, and tripawd kitty, Huckleberry, my goal is to help people and animals bring out each other's best selves, while living their best respective and collective lives. I am a dog trainer (who specializes in training service and therapy dogs), and an animal-assisted interventionist with over twenty years' experience working with people, animals, and a combination thereof.

I earned my A.S. in Assistance Dog Education (2013) and M.S. in Human-Canine Life Sciences (2017) from Bergin University of Canine Studies (https://www.berginu.edu/). I earned my B.S. in Behavioral Ecology & Cognitive Psychology from The Evergreen State College in 2001. And I am currently working toward my M.A. in Counseling Psychology at National University, with the goal of becoming a licensed marriage and family therapist and licensed professional counselor.

In 2013, I established Miracle Mutts -- the community outreach and therapy dog certification division of Marley's Mutts Dog Rescue, in Tehachapi, CA. In 2017, my dogs and I established the F.R.E.D. (Freedom, Recovery & Empowerment with Dogs) program with Kern County Behavioral Health & Recovery Services, through which we collected data on the efficacy of pet therapy in the treatment of substance use disorder and PTSD. We also contract with Aspire Counseling, where we integrate dogs into intensive outpatient treatment for adults and teens. And our aim is to build a therapy dog team here in the KRV.

I feel infinitely blessed to do the work I do, because it means I get to help people, while simultaneously fulfilling my pets' needs to learn, work, and contribute in their own special way.