Conversations with Sarah Bond

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Bond.

Sarah, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I was going to grad school at UT for journalism in 2005 when I adopted a scruffy little poodle mix named Henry. I took him through training classes at PetSmart and had so much fun with it that when I graduated with my MA in 2008 and no one was hiring, I got a job at PetSmart in their boarding facility to pay the bills. Within a few months, I’d been offered a job there as a trainer. I spent about six years at PetSmart, and after the first couple, I was promoted to Area Trainer, which meant I trained new incoming trainers in the district and managed existing trainers in the stores near me. In the summer of 2013, I attended a seminar at Service Dogs, Inc., in Dripping Springs. It was for professional trainers who were interested in training service dogs. I absolutely loved it, and by early 2014 I was working there as a trainer. I stayed at Service Dogs, Inc. for 4 1/2 years before leaving to start my own training business, focusing on behavior issues like aggression and anxiety as well as private service dog training.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
One of the biggest challenges I faced in the first part of my career was making enough money as a trainer to get by. Working first in a retail environment and then at a nonprofit wasn’t the fastest way to make money, and I started my private business while I was still working for Service Dogs, Inc. to help pay the bills. There has never been a time that I didn’t love training dogs and their people, but it has not always been easy to support myself doing what I love. The other struggle for me was starting my own business. It was a big leap and business was not an area I had much experience in. I was passionate about my business and taking it full-time was a scary financial leap, but I knew it would allow me to set my own hours and prices and pursue all of the avenues I was interested in while still helping dogs and people.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am really passionate about continuing education so I’ve ended up with a lot of letters after my name – CDBC, CPDT-KSA, CSAT. Those stand for Certified Dog Behavior Consultant, Certified Professional Dog Trainer – Knowledge and Skills Assessed, and Certified Separation Anxiety Trainer. All of them represent hundreds of hours of learning and teaching and some pretty intensive tests and application processes. There is no legal requirement for dog trainers to have any education or knowledge – literally anyone can just say they’re a dog trainer and charge people to train their dogs. So it was really important to me to show my students that I have experience and knowledge and that I care about representing myself in an honest and professional way. I specialize in behavior modification for some of the more “serious” dog behavior issues – aggression, anxiety, fear and reactivity. I have specific training and a certification in separation anxiety, which is a pretty common issue, especially now that everyone is leaving home more after being with their dogs often 24/7 during the height of the pandemic.

My other area of specialty, which is really the total opposite of the first one, is service dog training. Service dogs are becoming more common and I’m passionate about helping to make service dogs more accessible to anyone who needs them.

How do you think about happiness?
My own dogs are what brings me the most joy. Percy is an Australian cattle dog mix and he’s almost nine years old. Clara is four years old and a lab/German shepherd, aka a sheprador. Both of them are rescue dogs who came to me in very different ways and who make every day of my life better just by being themselves.

I’m also a big reader and even though I didn’t pursue that career in journalism after grad school, I did keep writing, and I have self-published a few fantasy and science fiction novels under the name S.R. Bond.

Contact Info:

• Email: sarahthetrainer@gmail.com
• Website: www.bonddogtraining.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bonddogtraining/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sarahbonddogtraining

Image Credits:
All images taken by me (Sarah Bond)