Alanna Westfall

Alanna is a self proclaimed dog sport enthusiast. She actively competes in agility, barn hunt, and dock diving. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Psychology from San Diego State University and began working in zoological and wildlife rehab. She cared for flamingos, penguins, parrots, gators, raptors, and many other critters in between. She loved it. What she didn’t love was working every weekend and holidays and missing out on time with her kids and husband. Eventually, she said goodbye to her exotic co-workers and opted for the next best thing, a doberman. She wouldn’t be nearly the trainer she is today without the wrecking ball her doberman took to her life. She has taught Alanna how to train with patience and empathy. She has taught her how to be a good teammate. And most importantly, she has taught her to alway keep it fun!

Training Philosophy

Alanna is a LIMA based trainer, meaning that her training philosophy is focused on the Least Invasive Method Available. She does not believe that training with fear, intimidation, or pain is ever an available method, it’s abuse. She believes in empowering dogs and owners to build their confidence, skills, and behavior catalog with reward based training. She uses positive reinforcement as her most powerful tool, but it is not the only tool used in learning. She uses tools such as no pull harnesses and head harnesses, that are used widely in the “positive reinforcement only” world, use positive punishment and negative reinforcement to teach a dog to stop pulling on the leash. She believes that training needs to be about training the behaviors we do want to see vs. suppressing behaviors we don’t want to see. However, all team members need to be supported in training, meaning that the handler’s needs must be considered alongside the needs of the dog. As a trainer, she chooses to approach dog and handler holistically.

Services

RED DOG training offers a variety of services, including:

• Group Classes: Group classes are available for both puppies and adult dogs. These classes focus on confidence building, neutrality focused socialization, and handler engagement. Whether your goals are an active adventure buddy or you want to explore dog sports, or both, these classes are the foundation for you and your dog’s training journey.
• One on One Coaching: One on one coaching might be the right fit for you if your dog isn’t ready for a group class or if you learn better in a private setting. Alanna is able to customize these sessions to hit a wide variety of concerns.
• Agility: Agility is Alanna's absolute favorite dog sport! It is both physically and mentally challenging for the dog and the handler. It’s a great way to strengthen your relationship, provide quality enrichment and exercise to your dog’s daily life, and it’s just down right FUN!
• Barn Hunt: Barn Hunt is a competitive dog sport in which dogs are able to act out their natural prey instincts in a safe and humane way. Domestic trained rats are placed in protective PVCu tubes and are hidden on a straw bale course. Dogs and handlers work together to beat the clock to find all the rats. Teams can earn titles and ribbons as well! Barn Hunt titles are recognized by the AKC.
• AKC Canine Good Citizen (CGC): The AKC Canine Good Citizen(TM) (CGC) program provides a perfect framework for training your dog to become a polite member of society. This class will cover loose lead walking skills, greeting strangers, neutrality to other dogs, recalls, grooming, supervised separation, and engagement with distractions.

Specializations

Agility, Barn Hunt, Canine Good Citizen, Puppy Training, Adult Dog Training, Reactivity, Leash Manners

Training Methods

Positive Reinforcement, Least Invasive Method Available (LIMA), Classical Conditioning, Operant Conditioning

Customer Reviews

Jinx
“Alanna is absolutely wonderful to work with. She helped us with our German shepherd puppy! He went from dragging me all over the place to enjoying walks around Battle Point. Not only does Alanna help teach your dog but she also teaches you how to best communicate and work with them.”
-Alex M.

Frankie and Charlie
“The boys and I always learn a lot in our sessions with Alanna and we have so much fun! What started as a desire to work on a few things has developed into building a toolbox of skills for deepening my relationship with my dogs. Alanna is so well versed, perceptive, kind and encouraging. Everything you would want in an excellent teacher!”
-Alex S.

Rona
“Rona and I are learning so much from Alanna. She is aware of my dog's abilities and potential. She keeps the training sessions fun and light for both of us!”
-Robin S.

Zoey
“Alanna is such a gift. We rescued a super sweet but very high drive 8 week old puppy and were so overwhelmed. Alanna's utilization of shaping and positive reinforcement showed us how to work WITH Zoe to achieve results rather than fighting against her natural instincts. With Alanna’s help we have gone from frenetic and out of control to calm and an absolute joy.”
-Sarah C