Sam knows what you’re going through
Sam has lived with two difficult dogs in her life, both being adopted at their teenage phase. Here’s how that went . . .
Sam’s first dog Nola she adopted without knowing a lot about her. When she brought her home she was five months old and didn’t have an “off button” — this girl was ready to go, go, go! On top of that she would bark, lunge, and scream at other dogs at far distances on walks, and destroyed her apartment every time she left for short errands.
Without any resources at the time, Sam was stuck googling for hours trying to find solutions. However, she didn’t know what information to trust because a lot of what she saw on the internet involved shock collars and spikey collars that Sam did NOT want to use on her already sensitive dog.
Once Sam realized what type of relationship she wanted to have with her dog and discovered some key exercises to try, she started to see progress snowball into where Nola is today. Nola is able to walk by other dogs as close as 10-15ft without the need for a close heel on a shock collar. Nola chooses to walk by other dogs, no reaction required.
Remember, Sam had two difficult dogs . . .
After having Nola for 3 years, Sam decided to integrate a 2nd dog into her family unit. This dog’s name was JB (short for Jelly Bones. That’s right. Jelly Bones). He was 3 months old when he came into Sam’s home and boy did he leave a mark. Once he hit the shark tornado phase of his adolescence (5 months old), he turned into a completely different dog. He constantly sought out Sam to chew on, and would start to chew on Nola as well.
Everything Sam did with Nola, she tried on JB to get him to calm down. He would either get bored with these activities or frustrated to the point where he would go back to hanging off arms. The physical exercise that helped Nola, he had no interest in, which would send Sam spiraling back to square one.
It was only when Sam started learning to become a dog trainer that she understood that his needs could not be met in the same way as Nola’s. And the answer to his “bad behavior” could not be found in the history Sam had with Nola who was difficult in a different way.
Unfortunately the relationship between JB and Nola had deteriorated to the point of JB having to be rehomed. Sam has taken her personal experience to help other dog parents having a really difficult time with their dogs. She doesn’t want anyone to go through what she went through with the dogs that they’ve brought into their home and fallen head over heels in love with.
Caring for another being wasn’t made to be easy, but it certainly shouldn’t be heart-wrenchingly difficult either.
Meet Your Trainer
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Sam Wolfman, KPA CTP, CPDT-KA
Owner, Trainer, Consultant
Sam specializes in reactivity, and adolescent dogs. Her dog, Nola, is highly dog reactive. As Sam’s first dog, there was a lot for her to learn — and she had no clue where to start.
On Sam and Nola’s training journey, there were a lot of mistakes made along the way. Once Sam discovered the power of positive reinforcement paired with empathy and some pharmaceutical help (prescribed by her veterinarian), Nola began to progress in a way that Sam never thought would be possible.
Leaving her career in visual merchandising, Sam has changed her path entirely to help dogs and their guardians find a better understanding. Her experiences in sheltering and in private training have been invaluable to Sam starting her own business.
Sam is a Karen Pryor Certified Training Partner and a Certified Professional Dog Trainer. She is the former Director of Behavior and Pathway Planning at the Animal Welfare League of Arlington where she played a role in assessing and placing the Envigo beagles as well as many other difficult dogs. She also worked at JW Dog Training & Consulting. Sam was also featured in the Washington Post in an interview about one of the Envigo beagles and where they were at that point in time.
Sam directly serves Alexandria, Arlington, and some parts of Fairfax in Northern VA
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1:1 Coaching
Learn your dog, support your dog
What to expect from this service:
For your dog’s behavior to change, you have to be closely connected to that process. What does that process look like? Learning some fun games for you and your dog!
Sam coaches you during a 1 hour session on how to do 1-3 skills that you build on as you go! This way your homework is feasible for your busy schedule (5 minutes tops!) and change happens the way it’s supposed to — step by step.
The best part? We never use any tools that could compromise your dog’s behavior or the relationship you have with your dog. Positive reinforcement is the cornerstone of every training plan, which are customized with care to work for you.
What behavior problems this service is catered to:
Dogs with reactivity to people and other dogs, resource guarding aggression, impulse control problems, and inter-dog aggression between dogs in the home.
Our philosophy:
Training your dog should be based off of trust, communication, and empathy. These are principles that are really important to success.
While helping dogs adjust into their new homes post-adoption, and working as a private trainer, Sam realized these were the key ingredients to building a healthy relationship with your dog.
Because a lot of dog guardians seek out trainers once their bonds have been chipped away at, Sam wants to help rebuild their bond quickly and efficiently.
Your role as the pet parent:
Your role is to learn these skills for daily support. Sam teaches you to manage your dog’s behavior while teaching them new skills, and also ensures that you know how to meet your dog’s daily needs. Spoiler alert — daily walks twice a day is not enough!
You are responsible for your dog’s progress, so we make it really easy for you to be someone your dog can rely on when they’re feeling the pressure and the stress.
Why it works:
There are a lot of questions that can come up during training, like “what does going to a mat have to do with my dog’s sharknado behavior?” Luckily Sam is there to explain to you the ins and outs of each skill and it’s value to your dog’s overall behavior. No long scientific rants, no blame for past missteps, just simple explanations for superb support.
As you learn and troubleshoot these skills with Sam, you’ll be able to drop these skills into every day life — a life that you want to see with your dog! Sam is available via text to clients during business hours and can help you when you need it. Bringing consistency in a way that works for you and your dog is part of every coaching plan.
If there are complicated skills that the dog needs to learn, you can add day training to your package at any time for Sam to work with your pup and install the complex skills for things like leash reactivity.
1:1 Coaching is available virtually for all types of aggression-based behaviors as well as specifically for stranger-danger cases.
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In-Home Day Training
A perfect add-on when you and your dog get stuck!
What to expect from us:
Day training allows the trainer to train your dog. We set you up with skills to help you manage and guide your dog in times of stress or excitement. But what happens when that’s not enough? What if your progress has plateaued?
Sam works with your dog to give them a high enough level of reinforcement at the rate necessary for your dog to progress to the next steps of your training plan. Sometimes dogs need that professional touch to make the new skills stick!
Your role as the pet parent:
Once we get the troubleshooting out of the way, you get a dog with more solid behavior — while you learn how to keep those new life skills sharp.
Communication is key! We want your feedback and updates, even if it’s just a quick text exchange. Our line is always open.
Why it works:
Training for behaviors like aggression or impulse control can be really difficult and confusing for both the dog and pet parent. Not only do we make it easy for everyone using clear communication for the dog and human, but Sam uses the pro-timing and skills necessary to see a bump in progress.
Everyone starts off excited and pumped to train their dog, but then life gets in the way or they just don’t know how to get over the difficult humps. With our day training add-on, you’ll set your dog up for success to receive consistent training directly from a dog training professional.
Day Training is only available in direct service areas.
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Shelter Consulting
Difficult behavior made easy
How we can help with individual cases:
Have a tough case that you are dealing with as a shelter or rescue worker? Aggression, high arousal behaviors, or extreme fear?
We can help you build protocols and training plans for the dogs that seem impossible. This includes handling safety, training dogs to succeed with coping skills and life skills, and suggestions for safe placement.
In home training for dogs in foster is also available to help work on behavior problems, or to just help them get adopted!
Not located in the DC area? No problem. Our shelter consulting is available virtually nationwide — including foster training!
Enrichment programs:
Even a shelter with low resources can build an enrichment program for their animals. It just takes a little bit of creativity!
Running low on creative juice? That’s where we come in.
We can help you jumpstart your program which is tailored to how your facility works and runs. This includes the types of enrichment and how it fits into your already hectic schedule.
This service is available virtually, or in person (see description for details).
Free resources:
Every shelter needs to start somewhere in their shelter behavior journey — no matter how small.
There are many resources that should be shared to match everyone’s mission of saving more lives. Sam has put together a list of resources that are catered to sheltering and how to understand the population you are working with.
Check out our resources page for details, or send an inquiry to learn more!
Sam’s experience:
Sam has many years of experience assessing and placing dogs into her local community. With her years working at a local shelter, she has placed dogs and cats labeled as “behavior” with appropriate protocols and restrictions.
Sam has been a speaker at Maddie’s Fund foster events, and is currently developing a class for Maddie’s Fund that is based in placing behavior animals in foster. She has also consulted with shelter professionals on cases and held handling workshops and behavior workshops!
Sam continues her close relationship with her local shelter to keep her skills sharp and familiarize herself with the animals in the community. All different types of animals come into the shelter, all with different behavioral needs. From basic life skills, to severe behavior issues, Sam loves working with them all!
Available nationwide!