It all started when I got involved volunteering and fostering in the rescue community in Toronto. My first foster had extreme separation anxiety and I was in way over my head. Helping her go from a frightened shell of a dog to a fetch playing confident girl was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. From then, I was hooked. I have since fostered over 20 dogs of various breed, size and backgrounds, and worked internally at rescue organizations to provide training support to fosters struggling with behavioural issues.

My world changed even more when I adopted my first dog Josie. She was my seventh foster and the most fearful and shut down dog I had taken in. She had little motivation to work with people, and presented a new challenge to me that I hadn’t yet had. I fell in love with her through the process of gaining her trust, and she never left. I went on a mission to help her be more resilient from the moment I met her. I worked with a few different trainers, educated myself with online content, and worked with her every day to make her stronger. Seeing her transform inspired me to keep working with dogs to help the human and dog team reach their potential. Today, Josie is my sidekick and best friend who helps me rehabilitate all the foster dogs and board and trains that come through my home. We enjoy hiking together almost every weekend, participating in dog sports such as GRC and Herding, and backcountry camp a couple times each summer. I would not be who I am today without Josie.