Lana Brucker

Lana Brucker first moved to New York City in October 2014 with dreams of becoming a Broadway star. She studied musical theatre, auditioned a lot, and booked an occasional gig. A huge animal lover, she started volunteering at the ASPCA to cope with the stress of the entertainment industry and give back to the community. Soon after starting volunteer work, she decided to pet-sit as a side job to her acting career. Before she knew it, she was spending most of her time with animals and walking away from national tour opportunities to rescue the love of her life, a cat named Olly, from North Shore Animal League. What started as a hobby and side hustle quickly turned into a new dream as Lana was able see the impact she could have on animals, especially those suffering from anxiety.
In 2016, Lana decided to go back to school with the goal of becoming an animal behavior specialist. At Hunter College, she studied psychology, animal behavior, conservation, and economics. She also completed a cat-human play internship in the Reiss lab with scientist Julie Hecht. As a student, Lana steadily built animal care clientele and dreamt about starting her own animal behavior business one day. Even after the pandemic hit, she still obtained some work with animals, both in shelter and home settings. After graduate school, Lana decided to take her skill to the next level by studying dog training in Karen Pryor Academy's top rated Dog Trainer Professional Program. During this time, she also earned her Fear Free Shelters certification, dedicating to minimize fear, anxiety, and stress among dogs and cats.
In 2021, Lana's dream business started coming to fruition. As a result of the pandemic, pet ownership rates had hit a record high. It was the perfect time to start a companion animal behavior business. Lana recognized the fear, anxiety, and stress among both people and animals struggling to adapt to unpredictable safety restrictions. Seeing a great need for comfort, Lana decided to name her business Lana's Comforting Pawsibilities. Now, Lana's Comforting Pawsibilities is serving clients in person in the Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania and New York City areas as well as virtually nationwide.

Training Philosophy

Lana uses force-free, positive reinforcement behavior modification methods and low-stress handling techniques. She recommends a combination of management, training, and enrichment tailored to each individual animal. Substantial scientific research demonstrates that giving animals choice, control, and enjoyable experiences not only supports their welfare but also hastens the change we want to see in their behavior. This positive energy is good for both pet and pet caregiver alike. Therefore, Lana makes sure to provide a safe, supportive space for people to gain confidence alongside their furry companions.

Services

Lana offers a variety of services for both dog and cat owners, including:

For Pet Parents

• Phone Screening (Free): A 10-15 minute phone call to determine if Lana can help you and your pet.
• Initial Consultation (90 Minutes): An in-person or virtual consultation to assess your needs and goals, recommend management strategies, and provide a starter enrichment tool. Lana will then create a training and/or behavior modification plan. After the consultation, she will send you a summary of takeaways with extra tips and a selection of discounted packages customized just for you.
• Behavior Modification/Training: Lana offers a variety of training packages, including:
  • Coaching: Lana teaches you how to train your dog(s) in 60-minute sessions, gives you homework exercises to work on in between sessions, and teaches you emergency problem-solving techniques.
  • Day Training: Lana comes to your home to train your dog(s) in 60-minute sessions. You have a choice to be in the house or out of the house for the training. She then meets with you to teach you the cues and/or coping strategies she worked on with your dog(s) as well as emergency problem-solving techniques.
  • Board & Train: You board your dog(s) at Lana's place in Easton, PA. Lana cares for and trains your dog(s) on a daily basis until you pick up your dog(s). She then meets with you to teach you the cues and/or coping strategies she worked on with your dog(s) as well as emergency problem-solving techniques.
  • Stay & Train: Lana stays overnight in your home with your dog(s) when you are out of town. Lana cares for and trains your dog(s) on a daily basis until you return home. She then meets with you to teach you the cues and/or coping strategies she worked on with your dog(s) as well as emergency problem-solving techniques.
• Individual Sessions: Lana also offers individual sessions for those who cannot commit to a package.
• Follow-Up (30 Minutes): A virtual or in-home follow-up consultation approximately 1 month after your final behavior modification/training session to assess your progress and offer additional tips if needed. This follow-up consultation is included in all behavior modification/training packages.
• Refresher Sessions (60 Minutes): If you completed a training package, you are eligible for refresher sessions at 25% off the regular training session price!

For Shelters/Rescues

• Phone Screening (Free): A 10-15 minute phone call to determine if Lana can help you and your pet.
• Initial Consultation (90 Minutes): An in-person or virtual consultation to assess your needs and goals, recommend management strategies, and provide a starter enrichment tool. Lana will then create a training and/or behavior modification plan. After the consultation, she will send you a summary of takeaways with extra tips.
• Behavior Modification/Training (60 Minute Sessions): Lana teaches you how to train the dog(s) under your care, gives you homework exercises to work on in between sessions, and teaches you emergency problem-solving techniques.
• Adoption Support (60 Minutes): Lana helps foster parents and adoption counselors introduce dogs to potential adopters. In this time, she can also transfer cues and handling techniques to approved adopters.

Pricing

For Pet Parents

• Initial Consultation:
  • NYC- $200
  • Lehigh Valley- $150
  • Virtual- $100
• Behavior Modification/Training Packages: Dependent on customized package
• Individual Coaching Sessions:
  • NYC- $150
  • Lehigh Valley- $100
  • Virtual- $85
• Individual Day Training Sessions:
  • NYC- $150
  • Lehigh Valley- $100
• Individual Board & Train Overnights:
  • Lana's Place in Easton, PA- $200 (+$10 each additional animal)
• Individual Stay & Train Overnights:
  • NYC- $300 (+$15 each additional animal)
  • Lehigh Valley- $200 (+$10 each additional animal)
• Refresher Sessions:
  • NYC- $112
  • Lehigh Valley- $75
  • Virtual- $65

For Shelters/Rescues

• Initial Consultation:
  • NYC- $100
  • Lehigh Valley- $75
  • Virtual- $55
• Behavior Modification/Training (60 Minute Sessions):
  • NYC- $75
  • Lehigh Valley- $50
  • Virtual- $35
• Adoption Support:
  • NYC- $70
  • Lehigh Valley- $45
  • Virtual- $30

Disclaimer: Results not guaranteed

Certifications

Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner (KPA CTP), Fear Free Shelters certified

Specializations

Cat and dog behavior

Training Methods

Force-free, positive reinforcement behavior modification methods and low-stress handling techniques

Customer Reviews

Hema S
It was awesome to work with Lana Brucker! I have worked with her for 5 months and seen incredible results.
I turned to her for help with my one-year-old golden doodle Kiko. She had been the sweetest, most affectionate puppy, and it was like she became a totally different dog after her spay. She was behaving aggressively to my other dog, who is much smaller than her, and to the people in my house due to resource guarding. She was very reactive, making walks and even leaving the house extremely difficult, and was completely unmanageable to handle. After several injuries incurred trying to control her outside, I was ready to admit I had no idea how to deal with her anxiety. Her vet even suggested seeing a veterinary behaviorist for long term anxiety medication, even though she was barely one.
I was impressed with Lana's website and positive, compassionate training methods, and we held a virtual consultation. I was struck by how thoroughly she took notes and didn't miss covering a single detail. Throughout the virtual course, she was very dedicated and committed to addressing every issue we faced, even when new ones cropped up.
She was highly flexible when I needed more time between classes, and when I asked for more detailed instructions to help me learn the techniques, she sent me comprehensive summaries as well as the zoom recording of our sessions. She also was very organized, taking notes during our sessions, and telling me in advance how to prepare for the next session.
Lana was as helpful for me and my family as she was my dogs! Always in a calm, positive way, she encouraged me to work on my own anxiety to help my dog handle hers. We even did some calming warm up exercises for ME at the start of sessions, to help gradually ease my fear of Kiko's reactivity! Thanks to Lana, I stopped being afraid of my dog and learned to understand and love her even more!
When a circumstance arose in which I needed to leave home for a week, I took the opportunity to board Kiko with her for a week of training, a second course. She was so warm and welcoming to my dog, who had immense separation issues, that she even let her sleep in her bed! Kiko warmed up her to immediately, and happily enjoyed her week of training and extra yummy treats. She taught my highly reactive dog, who used to be difficult to walk in quiet suburbs, how to navigate complex scenarios like city streets and meeting people, in a way that was empathetic to my dog's anxiety. By the end of the week, Kiko was much more comfortable with people, and even looked forward to meeting them! Lana then explained in detail to me how she had dealt with Kiko, so I could transfer those skills to life at home.
Since then, Kiko has been much easier to handle. She walks loose leash, and passes dogs, people, and loud distractions with confidence, sometimes without a single reaction! She is very warm with my other dog, and by using the ideas Lana gave us, we can eliminate incidents between the two. Lana helped restore my entire family's peace of mind, and we are incredibly grateful! Kiko has also calmed down as we have learned to help her better, and we rarely need to use calming/Cbd supplements anymore.
I want to point out two specific changes that happened due to our work with Lana. In the consultation, Lana explained how she wanted Kiko to be able to turn to me in times of distress, so I could help her. I had no illusions of this ever happening; once Kiko reacted, we could never reach her. Now, Kiko looks at me when she sees something she isn't sure about. My mom blew a whistle once, which Kiko had never heard before, and Kiko turned to look at me! I couldn't resist sharing her incredible progress to everyone I knew!
Another amazing improvement: when we would pass a dog on the other side of the street, she used to bark and lunge until the dog was out of sight. Recently, she looked at the dog calmly and actually sat down looking at me to wait for a treat! I was so surprised as I was prepared to walk away as fast as possible, and she just looked at me with sweet, trusting eyes and enjoyed her treat instead!
Above all, Lana was a cheerful, calm person to work with. She never got frustrated, nor said a single critical comment. Her wonderful, compassionate attitude helped change our approach to dealing with difficult moments. She would always remind us with a smile, to use a happy, positive tone even when we were the most frustrated. This has been a truly helpful attitude to adopt, in dealing not only with Kiko, but regular life as well!
I'm so glad I could learn from Lana. Thank you so much for giving us our cuddly, loving dog back! As we continue to make progress with Kiko, I'm sure we will be turning to Lana for more guidance.