Autumn brings over 14 years of experience in canine behavior, training, and care. They first started working with dogs through performance sports such as conformation, rally obedience, agility, and herding. Autumn then branched out into professional dog grooming, owning and operating a holistic dog grooming salon specializing in caring for dogs with unique needs such as fearfulness and reactivity. From there, Autumn began offering private dog training services, ranging from basic obedience, to therapy dog training, to service dog selection and training, which they continue today.

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Autumn obtained a Bachelor of Science in psychology from Western Washington University, and a Master of Social Work from University of Denver. As a graduate student they concentrated in mental health and obtained a certificate in Animal-Assisted Social Work. They interned with organizations providing services to clients with disabilities, trauma histories, as well as organizations utilizing animal-assisted interventions such as service and therapy dogs. They have helped develop and run service and therapy dog programs for local and national organizations. Autumn also conducted academic research on topics such as stigma directed towards service dog handlers and worked as a graduate research assistant at the Institute of Human-Animal Connection, researching animal-assisted interventions.

 

Autumn knows how impactful service dog partnerships are, as they are a service dog handler themselves for over 12 years. They are incredibly passionate and dedicated to serving the service dog community by providing knowledgeable and empathetic training support based in positive reinforcement.