08/10/2026
A little Kayleigh Lawler appreciation post because she deserves it. š¤
Because apparently being approximately the same size as the dogs youāre catching and STILL volunteering to let them launch themselves full speed directly into you is considered a perfectly reasonable hobby in PSA. š
But seriously, Kayleigh deserves some recognition for just how much she puts into this club and this sport.
Sheās always one of the first people helping set the field and one of the last helping clean it up. She keeps dogs rotating, keeps things moving, travels to train, asks questions, soaks up information, takes feedback like a champ, and somehow hears āthis dog is a LOT of dogā and responds with what is essentially āokay cool, send him.ā š¤£
The growth sheās made as a decoy has been awesome to watch. She doesnāt just want to put on a suit and catch dogs. She genuinely wants to understand PSA and bite sports as a whole; pressure, pictures, grips, movement, reading dogs, helping dogs progress, and WHY weāre doing what weāre doing. Sheās constantly asking how she can improve and then actually applying the feedback she gets.
And we have to talk about the dedication to her own two dogs. Neither one was particularly bred with PSA in mind, but Kayleigh said challenge accepted and has poured everything she can into learning how to bring out the best in both of them. She shows up, puts in the reps, takes the ugly sessions with the good ones, adjusts, learns, and keeps going.
PSA clubs donāt run on bite suits and bad decisions alone. They run because people are willing to show up early, stay late, drag tunnels and jumps around, move equipment, rotate dogs, catch dogs, take criticism, travel ridiculous distances to learn something new, and do a whole bunch of work nobody sees in the final trial pictures.
Kayleigh is THAT person.
Sheās become such an important part of Northeast Ohio Working Dogs, and we couldnāt appreciate her more.
So hereās to Kayleigh. may your catches stay clean, your knees stay somewhat functional, your suit remain mostly intact, and may you continue making questionable decisions when someone asks, āYou wanna catch this one?ā
We already know the answer is yes. šš«”