PAWSitiveTransformations

PAWSitiveTransformations Dog Training
🐾PAWSitive Reinforcement🐾
🐾Successive Approximation🐾 I am a firm believer in positive reinforcement.

At Pawsitive Transformations my work is finding your dog's drive, using games and techniques that your pup finds fun. I will work with you, teaching you how to keep your dog's attention and engagement as your dog learns through positive reinforcement and successive approximation. The other key factor is successive approximation. Shaping, or as it's formally known, “shaping by successive approximat

ions,” means breaking down a behavior into tiny increments, and reinforcing the dog at each incremental step until you've achieved the full behavior. Through these methods, I will teach you how to clearly and effectively communicate. Your dog will be excited and eager to learn, using a positive approach to motivate your dog with enthusiasm and respect instead of fear and pain, the result will be a well-behaved and balanced dog. If you currently use electronic collars, prong collars, or choke collars, I will gladly work with you and your pup to transition away from pain and use positive reinforcement and successive approximation techniques. Benefits of these techniques:

• Builds a strong bond with your dog based on trust and respect.
• Avoids increasing anxiety or aggression.
• Uses fun, easy training methods for the entire family.
• Provides mental stimulation, preventing boredom and problem behaviors.
• Allows a dog to choose, without fear of repercussions. I believe that training should involve the entire family. I will work with all of you so that your relationship is happy, healthy, and with clear boundaries & expectations! Training should be fun and involve every one of any age and ability!

09/05/2026

One of my favorite things about PAWSitive Transformations is that training doesn’t stop just because your dog has already completed a program with me. ❤️🐾

Look who’s back! Marigold from Remedy Ranch Aussiedoodles is boarding with me while her family is on vacation, and she is doing WONDERFUL! Even dogs who have already completed training with me still get out, work their brains, practice their skills, and have real world adventures while they’re here for boarding.

And Mari isn’t the only Remedy Ridge pup in this video!

You’ll also see Canyon and Solace, two of Remedy Ridge Aussiedoodles’ future breeding dogs. I really have to give Remedy Ridge credit for the thought they put into the dogs they choose for their breeding program. Temperament matters. Trainability matters. Confidence matters. The ability and desire to work with people matters. These dogs are smart, eager to learn, and genuinely fun to train.

With Canyon, I’m working on maintaining his position even when I physically disappear from sight. That’s a BIG step. It’s one thing for a dog to stay when you’re standing right in front of them. It’s another thing entirely for them to understand that the expectation remains even when you disappear.

With Solace, we’re working through different sounds, distractions, and increasingly longer distances. The goal isn’t simply getting a dog to perform a command. It’s teaching them that the same skills apply even when the environment gets bigger, louder, more interesting, and more distracting.

And Marigold gets to keep sharpening everything she already learned while her family enjoys their vacation. 🥰

Home Depot is one of my FAVORITE places for real world training. Doors opening, carts rolling, people passing, strange noises, new smells, different surfaces and distractions everywhere. There are so many opportunities to teach a dog how to stay connected and confident in the real world.

Three Remedy Ridge pups. Three different stages of training. Three different sets of goals.

And I am SO proud of all three of them. ❤️🐾

Long before PAWSitive Transformations existed, this was already where my heart was.I have always loved working with indi...
09/02/2026

Long before PAWSitive Transformations existed, this was already where my heart was.

I have always loved working with individuals with intellectual and physical challenges. At the time these photos were taken, I was working as a Life Enrichment Coordinator, and I was also training my personal dogs to perform service dog tasks.

Look closely at these photos.

There are kids running around, playing in the water, laughing, moving and creating all kinds of distractions. And in the background, you’ll see me, my buddy, and Pup.

My buddy was having a seizure.

In the middle of all that chaos, Pup knew she had a job to do. She stayed focused and applied pressure to him while he was seizing. As he began coming out of it, she would gradually take her weight off him.

When he was ready to sit up, she would position herself behind him, pressing her body into his back to help stabilize him.

When he was ready to stand, she would move in front of him, plant all four feet and brace herself so he could use her for support as he got to his feet.

And she did it while children played all around her.

This is why I believe so deeply in training dogs for real life.

A trained dog isn’t just a dog who can sit, stay or heel when everything is quiet. Training matters most when life isn’t quiet.

Years later, that same philosophy is at the heart of everything I do at PAWSitive Transformations.

Sometimes dog training is about manners.

Sometimes it’s about freedom.

And sometimes, it can give someone a little more independence, dignity and security in a world that wasn’t necessarily built with them in mind.

That will always be the part of this work closest to my heart. ❤️🐾

08/29/2026

There’s a reason I’m spinning around, moving like crazy, sitting down, standing back up and being completely unpredictable in this video. 😂🐾

Before starting PAWSitive Transformations, I worked at a large board and train facility where we were training 15 to 20 dogs at a time. With that many dogs, training had to move quickly and very systematically. Militantly.

When I built PAWSitive Transformations, I knew I wanted to do things differently.

I intentionally keep my program small because I want the time to train dogs for REAL LIFE.

Real life isn’t perfectly still or predictable. People move. Kids run. Someone suddenly sits down. A squirrel takes off. Another dog walks by. Life happens.

So yes, sometimes I’m going to look absolutely ridiculous. 😂 I’ll spin around, change directions, sit in the grass, get excited, move quickly and create distractions while asking the dog to maintain impulse control and make good decisions.

We get there through successive approximation. Baby steps. Clear communication. Repetition. Positive reinforcement. We build the behavior first, then gradually make the situation harder as the dog becomes successful.

I’m not interested in creating a dog that can perform perfectly only when everything around them is controlled.

I want to send families home a well rounded dog who understands what’s expected of them when the world gets messy.

Because that’s where training actually matters. ❤️🐾

PAWSitive Transformations
Training dogs for real life, one baby step at a time.

08/27/2026

Sometimes the reminder you need comes with a St. Bernard and a rainbow. 🌈🐾

Keep going, because you deserve to see how great things will be.

It’s hard to believe how many years I’ve had PAWSitive Transformations, especially when I think about where I started.

Before this business, I trained dogs for another company for $12 an hour. When I refused to spend unpaid time reading books that didn’t pertain to dog training, my boss reduced my pay to $11. He took away my training status and reduced me to a kennel tech. Then I was fired.

On Thanksgiving Day.

My ex won’t pay child support, my car was constantly breaking down, I was raising my son, and I genuinely had no idea how I was going to make it.

So I built something of my own.

And if you know me, you know I don’t do anything halfway. 😂

I wanted to create a training program where going above and beyond wasn’t the exception, it was the standard. That’s why the dogs in my program train somewhere in the real world every day. Parks, stores, downtown Chattanooga, crowds, distractions, animals and everyday life. Because that’s where their training ultimately needs to work.

Every morning I go through the things I’m grateful for, and owning this business and how completely it changed life for my son and me is always near the top.

To every person who has trusted me with their puppy and/or dog, recommended me, shared my posts, returned with another dog, or simply believed in what I was building, thank you. You helped turn one of the scariest seasons of my life into something I never could have imagined.

Life gets hard. There will be seasons when you have no idea how you’re going to make it work.

Keep going anyway.

You deserve to find out just how beautiful the other side might be.

And if you’re ever in one of those seasons and need a listening ear, mine is always available. No judgment. Chances are, I’ve probably been there, done that, or gotten close enough to understand.

🌈 Keep going. It gets better.

08/24/2026

One of the things that makes training at PAWSitive Transformations a little different? Our puppies don’t just learn around other dogs. They learn around the whole crew. 🐶🐰🐱🐓🦜

In this video, I’m carrying Waddles while Shambala works on leash walking alongside us. There is a very intentional reason these two are part of our training program.

I have dogs come into training who are reactive to cats, rabbits, squirrels, or basically anything small, furry, and fast. For some dogs, that instinct immediately says CHASE IT.

Instead of avoiding those triggers, we work on calm, controlled exposure. Dogs learn that seeing a cat or rabbit doesn’t mean they get to chase it. They learn impulse control, neutrality, engagement with their handler, and how to peacefully exist around other species.

It’s especially important with young puppies. I want them exposed appropriately from the beginning, before chasing becomes a rehearsed behavior we have to undo later.

But there’s another side of this that’s just as important. Waddles and Shambala have to trust me completely too. I want them confident, well socialized, and absolutely bombproof. They should be able to experience dogs, new environments, movement, noises, leashes, being carried, and all the weird things we encounter during training without living in fear.

We’re not just teaching dogs how to behave around the world.

We’re teaching all of them how to confidently live in it together. ❤️🐾

PAWSitive Transformations
Real world training. Real life distractions. Building confidence, neutrality, and trust.

08/15/2026

🏄‍♀️🐾 River Games Weekend + Puppy Training! 🐾🌊

River Games are happening downtown this weekend, so of course we had to bring the puppies along for the adventure!

Yesterday was incredible. Everyone diving did a phenomenal job, and watching the slackliners at sunset was absolutely amazing. 🌅

But while we were having fun, the puppies were also WORKING!

Environments like River Games are some of my favorite places to train because you simply cannot recreate these kinds of distractions at home. Tons of people along the river, swimmers, cheering, loud noises, bright lights, unfamiliar movement, people approaching the dogs, and even a live concert at night. It’s the perfect opportunity to work on focus, confidence, impulse control, and neutrality in the real world.

In this video, you’ll see me doing reps with Mari on the stairs right in front of the concert. People are walking by and even trying to get her attention and pet her, but Mari is learning that just because someone wants her attention doesn’t mean she automatically gets to disengage from her handler. She stays focused on me, continues working, and practices controlling that impulse to run over and greet everyone. ❤️

Training isn’t just about teaching a dog to sit or lay down in a quiet room. It’s about teaching them that those same expectations still apply when the entire world around them is exciting!

And I’m sorry I didn’t get videos of Buckley, Winnie, and Marley working too! We were having way too much fun enjoying all of the River Games activities together. 😂

So proud of these puppies and how beautifully they’re learning to navigate the big, exciting world around them! 🐶❤️

08/14/2026

Yesterday was Marley’s very first day of training, and I am already SO proud of this sweet girl! ❤️

Marley came to me for basic puppy obedience, but one of her family’s biggest struggles was simply getting her to walk on a leash. The moment she felt pressure, her natural opposition reflex would kick in. Instead of moving with her handler, she would pull against the pressure and refuse to walk.

After ONE DAY, Marley is already mastering leash walking! 🙌🐶

Late last night we took our training to Coolidge Park, where Marley got to work in a real world environment with plenty of nighttime distractions. We worked on leash walking, sit, down, distance and duration.

And she wasn’t working alone!

Marigold joined us and continued building her own distance, duration and distraction work. Even while my attention was focused on Marley, Marigold was expected to maintain her sit or down until released. That ability to stay engaged with a command even when the handler’s attention is elsewhere is such an important part of creating a reliable dog.

Winnie and Buckley were there too! With them, we really hyper focused on name recognition while working the two dogs simultaneously. In a multidog household, I don’t want every dog responding every time they hear a command. I want them listening for their name followed by their command. That distinction gives owners so much more control and makes communication much clearer for the dogs.

Four puppies. Four different training goals. One real world environment full of distractions. ❤️

I am incredibly proud of Marley, Marigold, Winnie and Buckley! Watching these puppies learn how to think, listen and make good choices is exactly why I love what I do.

Welcome to training, Marley! 🐾❤️

08/11/2026

🐾 We don’t train for perfect conditions. We train for real life. 🐾

Today Meri and I are downtown at Coolidge Park working on her down command using successive approximation, gradually increasing the difficulty as she succeeds.

In the video, I’m building distance and duration while distractions are happening all around us. People are walking by, there are unfamiliar sounds and movement, and Meri is learning that even when the environment changes, the expectation stays the same.

This is especially important because Meris parents babysit their grandbaby often 👶🐶 Life won’t always be quiet or predictable, so her training shouldn’t be either!

My goal isn’t to create a dog who only listens in a controlled environment. It’s to create a dog who can stay regulated, think, and respond to their family in the real world.

Train for the life your dog is actually going to live. ❤️🐾

I think one of the keys to life is finding what brings you joy and figuring out how to make a living doing it. Because w...
08/10/2026

I think one of the keys to life is finding what brings you joy and figuring out how to make a living doing it. Because when you truly love what you do, it never really feels like a day of work. ❤️

Every day, I get to witness a little bit of magic.

I get to watch adults who are usually rushing through life, caught up in responsibilities, schedules, work, bills and everything else adulthood throws at us, suddenly stop.

They smile. They laugh. They get down on the ground to play with a kitten or love on a rabbit. For just a moment, you can literally see that little spark of childhood light back up inside them. 🐰🐱✨

And somehow, THIS is my job.

I get to spend my days working with your dogs and puppies, watching them learn and grow, helping families build structure, communication and stronger relationships with their dogs. And along the way, I get to share all of the other animals and beautiful chaos that make our home and training environment so special.

I am incredibly blessed to get to do something that brings me this much joy for a living.

To every single person who has trusted me with your dog, recommended PAWSitive Transformations to a friend, shared a post, followed our adventures or supported this little dream of mine in any way, THANK YOU.

You are the reason I get to wake up every day and do something I genuinely love.

Find what makes your soul light up.

Then find a way to build a life around it. ❤️🐾

I’m so grateful this is mine.

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Chattanooga, TN

Telephone

+14238259579

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