• 3.1About the Pack Leader
• 3.2: Recommended Products & Services
• 3.3: A Pet's Picnic

About the Pack Leader

It would be an understatement to say that I love dogs, but this happened as a surprise about a decade ago when I had the great fortune to meet and become friends with Victoria Reynolds, a former Miss Maine with a passion for canine rescue and dogs in general.  With her encouragement and support, I brought home my first puppy, Casco Bay Beauty of Mallard Point Kennels in Pownal, Maine.  Anyone who has met Casco can attest that he should've been the star in the movie, "Marley and Me."  Because Casco was such a challenging pup, I embarked on a journey of studying canine behavior, training methods and the human-canine relationship which now spans more than 8 years. I adopted a second Lab, Tonya, from My Wonderful Dog, 5 years ago.
I began as a volunteer puppy raiser and training assistant in 2002 for My Wonderful Dog, a Portland-based non-profit which raised and trained service dogs for disabled folks.  Later, I helped open the Planet Dog Company Store in Portland and during my employment there, created and ran an incredibly popular Puppy Romprrr Room for 2.5 years, providing early socialization and learning opportunities for puppies and support to their new owners. From this experience, I designed my business plan for a day program focusing on the needs of puppies and their families during the first year of ownership, and in the fall of 2006, Dances With Dogs Day School for Puppies opened its doors. Since then, DWD has provided a safe haven for more than 600 pups to socialize, learn and grow.  I designed the puppies' play space myself and continue to add equipment, toys and other features to make our playground a sanctuary and place of freedom and wonder for the pups. 
Since Elsa Larsen, Executive Director of My Wonderful Dog, closed her non-profit program, I have worked closely with her to further my training and experience and have served as her training assistant for the past few years. 
I hold a B.A. in English from the University of Maine and a Master's in Clinical Social Work from the University of New England. I have had past careers as a Public Relations Director for the Maine Forest Products Council, a Litigation Paralegal specializing in medical malpractice and personal injury lawsuits, and a Licensed Clinical Social Worker working with adolescents in a high school setting and adults in a private practice setting. 
In addition to running the day school, I deeply enjoy photographing all my puppy students and have had four solo shows of my work in the Portland area.  My puppy photos also grace the advertising literature of The Kennel Shop Pet Super Stores, a 10-store chain of pet stores in Maine and Massachusetts.    
My first small business, A Pet's Picnic, which I run with the help of my 20-year-old son, Brody, and four part-time employees, came into existence in 2003. We manufacture hand-braided fleece tug toys for dogs which are incredibly durable and have been a best-seller locally at Planet Dog Company Store and FETCH. Our tugs are available in 15 other retail stores in Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts.
I am a devoted student of The Bikram Yoga College of India and have been practicing at Maine Bikram Yoga in Portland for five years now and at Portland Power Yoga as well.  My other interests include hiking adventures with Casco and Tonya, running, searching for Northern Cardinals, meditation and furthering my knowledge of and commitment to the practice of Buddhism.  I am an avid writer of children's stories about puppies (of course!) and reader of great literature.  Gardening and being out in nature are also favorite pastimes which feed my soul and nurture my spirit.  In 2009, I took my first all-women's "adventure travel" trip with a travel company called Adventurous Wench (www.AdventurousWench.com) to Belize in Central America for a week of snorkeling, caving, hiking, and working in a remote jungle village with the local Mayan decendents.  I hope to travel more as funds and time allow.