About Me
I, Originally came to America from Japan to become a professional dog trainer. In this article I would like to tell you what inspired me to follow this path.
I have had a love for animals all my life. In the beginning of my childhood, my parents were reluctant to let me have a pet, but at the age of ten, they finally let me take on the responsibility of a puppy which I named Popo. I loved and took care of Popo to the best of my ability for six years before she passed away; I was taken aback at her early death and felt that I was responsible for not being a good enough dog owner.
A year later, when I was walking near a park with my friends, I found a puppy which looked only about ten or eleven weeks old. So I took her home and asked my parents if I could keep her. My mother was not so thrilled and did not want me to have another dog after my previous experience, but my father told me that if the puppy was still at the house when I came back home from school that day that she could stay. When I arrived home after school, I could not find the puppy; my father said that she had left and that we would wait and see because she is only a puppy and would of course wander off. So the next morning when I woke up, I was surprised to find the puppy outside asleep next to my shoes. "She is still here!" I cried, feeling so relieved inside. When it was time for me to leave for school again, I tried to tell the puppy to wait for me to get back. Being only eleven at the time, I thought she might understand me. Throughout the day, my mother watched the puppy from inside the house to see what she would do.The puppy would leave the yard occasionally but would always come back and stay near my shoes.
As soon as school let out, I rushed home and was happy to see that my puppy was still there for me; she was such a smart dog and was really mine! I decided to name her Miyuki, which is a Chinese character for "happy". Throughout the time I was taking care of her, I had a strong urge to work with animal as a career; I then decided that after high school I would go to vocational school to become a veterinary technician. So as soon as I finished my three years of high school, I started my dream. I went for two years until I had to serve my internship at a veterinary hospital so that I could graduate. When I finished the internship, the veterinarian in charge offered me a job there; I accepted his offer and worked there for two more years thereafter. During my employment I encountered many owners that were unable to control and handle their dogs and realized that many owners did not have the training skills that were needed to teach their dogs to behave properly. Many of these problems were apparent with clients that owned large dogs and it was hard for me to handle them in the examination rooms.
Many of the pet owners asked my boss questions about the proper training for their dogs. Since he was not experienced in this field, I explained to him that I was also interested in learning how to train dogs and their owners. One day when I was watching television, a program came on about a Japanese man who went to England for a week to train dogs. I learned many things from it and that was when I realized that this is what I wanted to do. I then only worked part time and started looking for a job in that profession. Two years later, I read an article in a newspaper "Internship Program for Foreign Country" that read "You can learn cooking, gardening, dog training....." Dog training! I sent out an application that same day and waited for a school to pick me. Almost six months later, someone in the Internship Program called me to say they found the right school for me. I was so elated and planned to go in October, but some paperwork came up and I had to wait a few months. Finally, at the end of March 2001, I flew over and started my aspiration.
Now I am professional dog trainer and, beyond doubt, love it.
My Dogs
SPECIAL THANKS!!
My parents, All my family, Popo, Miyuki
Jirocho- Sushi, Mr. Miura, Mr. Suzuki
All my friends in Japan
Heart Animal Clinic
National Internship Program
Pet Country Club, Inc
Pro Canine Center
Mr, Andres Aportela -Prosessor
Aportela's Family
Ms, Maureen I
Ms, Laura D
Mr, Mark G
Mr, Al C
Ms, Mary Lynne F
Ellen P DVM
Member of North Jersey Schutzhund & Police Association
Mr, Oscar R
Mr & Miss Lilly & Jhon S
Mr & Miss Ai & Carlos R
Mr, James H
Mr, Steve L
Mr, Wilson R
Animal Alliance NJ
Ms, Merghan B
Patrick Fitzgerald
Patrick's Family
and
All my friends in USA
Thank you very much for all your help!!!