Laurene loves all dogs. Most of her life she’s lived with one or more rescue dogs: the nippy wire fox terrier of her youth, the coon hound who marathon–trained with her, the fearful Catahoula, the herding disc-dog who helped raise her son, and now her lanky mixed-breed, Ginger, who is ribbon-winning obedience dog.
With each of her dogs, Laurene learned new training methods, ranging from correction to electric collars to positive clicker training, to competitive obedience.
When Laurene trains your dog, she considers your dog and you as individuals. What do you need? If your dog needs exercise Laurene can set up your dog on play dates or hikes. If your dog is leash reactive, Laurene will work with her while you are out to install behaviors that will make your dog more manageable for you when you go home and walk her. If you have a puppy that needs a good start, Laurene offers her 14-step puppy program.
Laurene does private sessions and teaches group classes with the West LA Obedience Club. You can visit the club website and learn more by visiting her website and Facebook page Santa Monica Dog
Laurene follows the training principles endorsed by American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior and the latest research.
To make her training effective, Laurene reads the scientific journals on dog behavior and makes a particular effort to use methods that are backed by study.
Laurene earned her dog training certificate, with honors, from Animal Behavior College. She is also a Certified Professional Dog Trainer – Knowledge Assessed (CPDT-KA), by the Certification Council of Professional Dog Trainers. She is a member of the Association of Professional Dog Trainers (APDT) and has presented at its annual conference and writes for their magazine. She has trained for K9 connection, a non-profit that helps teens and shelter dogs by pairing them together for life skills training. She volunteers at West LA Animal Shelter.
Laurene and her rescue dog Ginger compete in dog sports and train with the West LA Obedience Training Club. They have earned the AKC Rally Excellent title, AKC Canine Good Citizen and Companion Dog Excellent titles. Laurene and Ginger run and hike together on area trails.
Prior to becoming a certified dog trainer, Laurene worked as a non-profit executive, and received several awards including recognition as one of Chicago’s Most Influential Women.
Laurene lives with her son, partner, dog, and cat.