Kellie is a Certified Dog Behavior Consultant (CDBC) who has been working as a dog behavior consultant in New York City for the past 13 years. She was the lifelong guardian of a highly anxious and reactive dog in a bustling city, and learning to work with her dog using R+, FF training instilled a deep understanding and empathy for both dogs and their guardians. This experience fueled her passion to begin a career as a dog behavior consultant in 2014.
Training Philosophy
Kellie believes in Force-Free (FF), Positive Reinforcement (R+) training methods, which she describes as offering an incredible opportunity to deepen your bond with your dog and learn how to shape behavior you don’t want to see into behavior you do – making life easier for everyone involved. She is committed to creating a safe, inclusive space that celebrates individual uniqueness and welcomes every race, gender, ethnicity, religion, orientation, ability, age (and dog breed!).
Services
Kellie offers a variety of services, including:
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Virtual Consultation:
A 60-90 minute assessment that includes valuable insights, personalized recommendations, and actionable resources. This is the gateway to success for every client.
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Follow Up Sessions:
Weekly or bi-weekly sessions to help clients reinforce the skills they’ve learned and continue their training journey.
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Refresher Sessions:
30-minute sessions for established clients to reinforce previously taught behaviors/skills, address specific behavioral challenges, or fine-tune training plans in progress.
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Video Behavior Analysis:
A written analysis of a video submitted by a client to help them understand their dog’s actions better.
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Enrichment Discovery Session:
A personalized exploration of a dog’s preferences to uncover the activities and stimuli that ignite their joy and vitality.
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Pre-Dog Consultation:
A 30-minute consultation for those considering bringing a canine companion into their life. This service includes identifying the best breed(s) to suit their lifestyle, guidance on finding an ethical breeder or rescue, key questions to ask breeders or rescues during the selection process, preparing their home for the arrival of a new puppy or dog, strategies for integrating a new dog with existing pets, and what to expect in the initial stages of dog guardianship.
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Dog behavior consulting for businesses:
Contact for rates.
Certifications
Kellie is a Certified Dog Behavior Consultant (CDBC) and previously held the CCPDT Certified Professional Dog Trainer – Knowledge Assessed (CPDT-KA) certification.
Specializations
Kellie specializes in adult behavioral issues such as shyness/fear, reactivity, fear-based aggression and biting, stranger danger, general and separation anxiety, resource guarding, and more. She is also well-versed in urban management and leash reactivity.
Training Methods
Kellie uses Force-Free (FF), Positive Reinforcement (R+) training methods. She does not use aversive methods or tools (e.g. prong or choke collars, e-collars, spray bottles, etc.) as she believes these are temporary ‘fixes’ that can worsen the situation over time.
Customer Reviews
Champion:
‘Kellie is the absolute best. I worked with a few other trainers before someone referred me to her and she’s by far my favorite! She not only brings her breadth of training knowledge to the table, but she takes the time to get to know you and your dog. She actually listens when you say something is or isn’t working and then comes up with new ideas based on your individual pup instead of just giving general advice. She’s helped me work with my pup on resource guarding, fear aggression, leash reactivity, and more. I’ve made more progress with my dog in the year+ working with Kellie than I did in the first two years I had her.’
Jinx:
‘Kellie completely changed my relationship with my pup, Jinx. I thought I knew what I was getting into in adopting a high-energy bred, but NOPE! My little rescue quickly established herself as a complicated cutie with BIG feelings. Kellie taught us practical basics like loose-leashing walking and management, but more than that: she taught us how to communicate with each other, trust each other, and somehow even taught me – a first-time dog guardian – how to teach a purebred cattle dog to RELAX – how impressive is that?! She’s the most accessible, inclusive, and responsible trainer we’ve worked with; this woman cares for her clients, and she cares hard.’
Phoebe:
‘If you want to better your dog’s quality of life as well as your own, strengthen your bond with your dog, and have fun… reach out to Kellie! We have worked with Kellie off and on for the past two years and can’t say enough positive things about our experience. Kellie brought so much knowledge and compassion to each and every one of our concerns about our young and exuberant Havanese. She has taught us not only how to understand our dog, but how to apply her teachings in real life situations to continue the training journey on our own. Kellie is extremely professional, accessible and organized and sends thoughtful outlines before/after each training session so that we are all on the same page and confident in advancing our goals. She is well versed in behavioral issues and she also has the best ideas for enrichment activities so that while we’re working on challenging things, we also have the opportunity to learn how to make our dog happy and fulfilled. Kellie truly cares about the humans and dogs she works with and I can’t imagine where we’d be without her!’
Rex:
‘This won’t be another cookie-cutter approach to addressing your dog’s issues—this a bespoke partnership that will set you up for successful outcomes with your dog for life. With Kellie you get so much more than a dog trainer. Her approach is compassionately tailored to meet individual circumstances and needs (your dog’s and yours). Further, she has first-hand experience helping struggling dogs living in the city. That means she’s especially good at applying the basic principles of management and behavior modification in environments that you can’t control. The fact that my noise-sensitive dog is progressing (and happy) while living in trigger-laden NYC is a testament to her creativity and prowess. I can confidently say that the foundation I’ve built working with Kellie is evergreen—the principles I’ve learned will apply to every goal on our list and will help us weather any unforeseen curve balls in our future (and there will be curve balls I’m sure)… I will take refreshers with her of course, but she’s essentially transformed this neophyte into a dog-savvy individual who finally believes she can give her dog the best life possible.’
Diana:
‘Kellie is an expert trainer and educator and I can’t imagine how my life with my dog would look if I hadn’t gotten her help when I did. One of the first things Kellie taught me was that engaging in dog training would be an investment in mine and my dog’s future – and she was so right! Because of my investment in Kellie’s services, my relationship with my dog grew much stronger, and the stress associated with caring for a rescue dog with behavioral challenges dropped dramatically. Kellie taught me much more than specific commands: she taught me how dogs learn, play, communicate, and experience the world – and how I fit into that. Years later, I use the lessons Kellie taught me on a daily basis – her work is that foundational.’
Arnie:
‘Highly recommend working with Kellie/Gonzo Dog Training! She helped me immensely in working with my ‘cute and complicated’ dog Arnie, a chihuahua rescue with a tendency to plant stubbornly on walks and exhibit aggression toward other humans/dogs. Turns out human instincts for how to solve these types of issues (talking/reasoning/yelling/pulling) are not terribly helpful when dealing with dogs! Kellie taught me effective strategies, which I have continued to practice and rely on since.’
Norm:
‘Kellie is a total rock star, and makes the training process fun! I love how closely she listens to clients and tailors her training to each dog’s behavior. She even provided a resources and product recommendations for us based on our training session, which took a lot of time/energy and super helpful. The switch to remote/Zoom training was a breeze, and we’re so grateful we found her!’
