Dog training center has new home; grooming now available
Published 12:10 am Sunday, November 10, 2024
Theresa Pitner and Bessie pose in front of one of the cutouts of downtown Salisbury. — Karen Kistler
A distraction class was held in Bell Tower Green recently.. Theresa Pitner, trainer, at right in middle, led the class. — Submitted photo, Sue McHugh - Public Relations
Trained dog walker Wendy Long takes a walk with Bruno. — Submitted photo
Pictured with owner and dog trainer Theresa Pitner, far right, are groomers Angelina Araujo, left, Nicole Casper, in back, and Charlie. — Submitted photo
Nellie Mae, left, and Gus greet one another during puppy class. — Submitted by Sue McHugh - public relations with Understanding Your Dog, LLC
The distraction class walks in a pack through Bell Tower Green.. — Submitted photo, Sue McHugh - Public Relations
Theresa Pitner and Bessie stand by the sign at the training center on S. Fulton St., — Karen Kistler
Chloe looks up and poses for the camera during puppy class. — Submitted photo
SALISBURY — Finding her talent and being naturally good at what she does is what Theresa Pitner said got her started into her career as a certified dog trainer.
Training dogs for fun for people she worked with is something Pitner said she had done since the ’90s. It was also during that time frame she did lots of fostering and volunteering for rescues and shelters, helping people select their dog, home visits, walking them, rehabilitating them and getting them adopted.
After years of doing what she enjoyed on a volunteer basis, Pitner began training dogs professionally in 2017. It was in November 2019 that she quit hospice and “was just full-blown dog training,” she said, with a training center on East Council Street.
Over the last year, Pitner, owner of Understanding Your Dog, LLC and certified dog trainer, has experienced several new things in her career, one being moving to a new location in October of 2023 and secondly, beginning her own grooming business within the facility.
The dog training center is located at 1325 S. Fulton St., Salisbury, which, before it was totally renovated, was the home of the late Vanda Crowell, who was well known in the neighborhood, Pitner said, having taught children violin and piano lessons.
Pitner said her landlords bought it and changed it completely from a four-bedroom house to what it is today.
She has had several clients come in and tell her they had been in that home previously as one of Crowell’s music students.
Opening up her own grooming is something she has wanted to do, Pitner said, and in February, it became a reality. She has two part-time groomers on staff, Nicole Casper and Angelina Araujo, and what she said she loves about it is, “it’s different than any other groomers because it’s a gentle groomer.”
As for what this type of grooming looks like, Pitner said it is a quiet atmosphere with no crates and only one dog per appointment. The dogs are stress free when they get groomed as she said the “groomers take their time and pay attention to any stress the dogs might show and make the grooming experience a positive one.”
Referrals come into Pitner and she gives them to the groomers, who make the calls, talk with the clients and set up the appointments.
Inside the house, there is a main training area, which is large enough for her to hold her big classes. And if there are dogs that get stressed, she said, there are additional rooms they can go into and still be trained but be separated.
Pitner’s dog, Bessie, an eight-year-old beagle-Chow mix rescue that she got last year, helps with classes.
“If we have a dog that’s a little iffy around other dogs, she’s a very neutral dog,” Pitner said, and “so she kind of hangs out here.”
In the main training area and the neighboring room, the walls are decorated with cutouts of various buildings of downtown Salisbury, which local artist Clyde had done for a play at the Meroney Theater and she was able to get. She had them in her previous Council Street center and brought them with her and placed them on the walls at her new location. So, the dogs as they train can, in a way, “walk downtown.”
At Understanding Your Dog, LLC, Pitner offers a variety of services, but stressed that her motto is “I train you how to train your dog,” and therefore it’s one-on-one training and not people dropping off their dogs.
“Probably 96 percent of training is people,” Pitner said. “Majority of the time it’s not the dog, it’s the person.”
And while she did say dogs get stressed, it’s a reaction to the leash, not being aggressive, but being stressed.
Therefore, she teaches one-on-one how to train dogs and group socialization classes, which she offers monthly.
She also offers professional dog walking services as she has a trained dog walker, Wendy Long, who can will comes and walk people’s dogs, whether while they’re working or other times,” Pitner said.
They don’t do dog sitting or a doggie daycare unless it’s puppy school drop-off; however, they are currently unable to offer the puppy school as the trainer can’t be there at this time, she noted.
Workshops are offered for specific things such as a trick workshop during which time, Tracy Crotts, an AKC trick trainer, will be doing a Trick & Treat workshop at the S. Fulton Street location Nov. 9 from 10:30 a.m. to noon. Cost is $85 and those interested can register at www.TheresaDogNC.com.
Pitner said that Crotts has been working with her from day one.
Additional services include a loose leash dog walk time, teaching puppy boundaries, manners in the home and whatever Pitner said she feels people need.
Seminars are also provided, which are free, and cover various topics such as senior dogs or puppies, which she noted is popular now with people getting puppies for Christmas or any dog issues that people want to learn about. Seminars are people only without the dogs.
Distraction classes are also offered, where they walk in a pack and visit various places including parks or the nearby cemetery, which Pitner said is a high distraction area because of the smells of squirrels, however, the number of cars and people are less.
The dogs are taken to different areas where the distractions are different, but there’s no agenda to this class and could be more “re-directional such as preventing jumping and biting. It really depends on the dogs,” she said.
While Pitner said she doesn’t train dogs to become service dogs, she does prepare them to be trained to be one.
For example, she said, if someone has a disability and they need their dog to be trained to help, she will first find out about the dog to see if they need help with manners and help with that aspect and get them ready.
The training Pitner does is through the AKC Canine Good Citizen Class, a six-week class through the American Kennel Society, she said.
“They come and I get them ready to take a therapy dog test,” she said. “I don’t test, but I send them to Concord to have them tested.
However, she did add that she is taking online classes to become a service dog trainer and would like to use her knowledge to “go a step higher” and train the dog to walk with a wheelchair instead of actually teaching the dog to pick things up, she said.
When selecting a dog, Pitner noted several important factors including to not buy a puppy for Christmas Day as it’s very stressful for a dog to have all that excitement. She said it’s better to do it before or afterward.
It’s also important for everyone in the household to come to at least one training session to learn how to work with the dog.
Having the dog spayed or neutered is another factor she passed along.
Selecting the right breed is another critical factor as she said, “one of the biggest mistakes people make is they get a dog and don’t understand what the needs are.”
She explained that some want a puppy because of how cute it is or want to get a rescue to save it from its environment, and end up going for the emotion instead of getting the right breed for their particular situation.
“I can train any dog,” Pitner said, “it just depends on where the person wants to start,” which is huge, she added.
While people who aren’t certified can call themselves a dog trainer, Pitner said what makes her different is she went through Animal Behavior College Dog Trainer Certification Program, which is where she got certified. Plus she has gone through the Council of Professional Dog Training – Knowledge Accessed, an actual school, she said.
Both of these require continuing education, which is something she stresses is important and how she stays on top of how to do things.
“I do in-services probably every three to four months,” she said. “You have to take continuing education to get up on the latest training technique.”
Having the letters ABCDT behind her name, she said guarantees you are registered as that and you “don’t use aversive type training. I don’t use any electric collars. I don’t use prong collars. I don’t force a dog to do something. We use positive reinforcement. I wait and then I reward, and that’s how I train.”
For more information about Understanding Your Dog, LLC, go to www.TheresaDogNC.com or to sign up for dog walking, grooming or other services, call 704-754-2536
