My clients range from families who need assistance to develop a behavior modification plan for their dog or cat to veterans who have received a psychological assistance dog to help manage their PTSD symptoms. I have helped manage introduction of a new cat into a household with other cats, restructured a home environment and greeting body language to reduce a Dachsund’s anxiety, jointly created safe procedures for a household with two battling adopted dogs, demonstrated and established training sessions for a family with three bulldog puppies, and researched and guided the adoption of a young Great Dane.

My work with veterans and assistance dogs began when the North Star Foundation contacted me to partner with the Veterans Transitional Housing Program in Port Orchard, Washington. This pilot project was started to expand mental health support for veterans with post traumatic stress disorder and/or traumatic brain injuries and match them with trained assistance dogs. I provide advanced public access training for selected North Star dogs and, once the dogs are matched with a veteran, I monitor and continue training sessions with the team. This collaborative project successfully provides comfort and builds confidence for these veterans.

Here is what a few selected clients have to say:

• "Wendy is part of a team of people that are helping train a service dog for my four year-old daughter whom has autism. Wendy is quite knowledgeable in dog behavior and flexible in coming up with solutions that work well with our family. She is kind, patient and explains things in ways that are easy to grasp. She translates from dog to human quite effectively and makes training fun for all participants. She does amazing research and brings many exciting ideas to the table. She makes individualized recommendations for each situation and listens to what the problems are. It is obvious that she doesn't simply teach from a manual, but draws on her experience, training, intuition and her ability to read people and animals to form effective and meaningful solutions. I would recommend Wendy for animal behavior consultations and training."

- Liz Moore, Tacoma, Washington

• "I'm WAY more than just happy, Wendy, I literally cannot put into words how happy I am! Huck is such an amazing dog, he is so understanding when he's in crowded areas. Just today, Huck, my mom, and I went to Safeway. Huck always expresses his initial curiosity by sniffing everything, but he immediately adjusted to the surroundings and became obedient. I cannot thank you enough for your expert dog training, Wendy. You trained Huck so well, and Huck became my best friend. I love him so much!!!"

- Brandon Gauvreau, Olympia, Washington

• "My dog, Bobby, a 15-year-old miniature poodle, has an annoying behavior of nipping at people's feet when they visit in my home. Wendy came to the rescue! She had such a calming, gentle and positive approach with him AND me. She gave me wonderful ideas to help decrease his anxiety in order to help stop his nipping behavior. She did a follow up visit as well with my friends and family in my home to put the ideas into practice. Bobby is definitely showing signs of improvement! Wendy is genuinely compassionate about your animal companion and you! Thank you, Wendy, for your wisdom, compassion and support!"

- Marsha, Seattle, Washington

• "Our Dachshund, Cleatus, was very shy, fearful and suffered with separation anxiety, submissive urination and excessive barking. Working with Wendy over about 9 months has transformed our little Cleatus into a whole new dog. All of his issues have been drastically improved, and I am confident if we continue with Wendy’s advice that things will keep getting better. Our whole family is so thankful for Wendy’s knowledge and support."

- Julie and Lisa, Vashon Island, Washington

• "I serve as Executive Director of North Star Foundation, and in 2010 we partnered up with Wendy Dahl to match our dogs with veterans with PTSD in Washington state.  Together we have created three veteran teams, and in this time I have found Wendy to be knowledgeable, reliable and very sensitive in her work as a trainer and behavioral consultant. She has a talent relating to dogs as well as people, and I would recommend her without any reservations."

- Patty Dobbs Gross, Connecticut

• "You have made the relationship with Owen and me the phenomenally beautiful thing that it is through your training. All the issues we HAD are so gone and anything I wanted to even make better you gave me the skills to do! Thanks for being our trainer! You've had a HUGE 100% positive impact on our lives! To have you visit our environment is beyond huge and your write-up and follow-up work is so excellent/helpful - you set things up to help us succeed."

  - S. Stanley, Bellevue, Washington

• "I am a disabled Veteran whose struggle has been very difficult. Wendy Dahl came into my life as a breath of fresh air and with her was a sweet Labrador named Jack. Wendy insured I had the skills to handle Jack, and Jack has surprised us by doing more than he was trained to do. Wendy is a wonderful woman who has a spirit of calm peace and has given me the opportunity to rest easy."

  - Brian Boyce, Port Orchard, Washington