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OccuPaws is
pleased to announce that Douglas Weil has joined our
Board of Directors as a Training Advisor to help
establish our training curriculum. Doug has 30 years of
experience training dogs in many different venues. Doug
started his formal dog training as a Military Working
Dog Handler in the United States Air Force. He is a Viet
Nam Veteran. After the Military, Doug trained dogs for
the Los Angeles Police Department and worked police dogs
on the streets for several years. Doug started training
at Guide Dogs for the Blind in San Rafael, CA, where he
became licensed to train guide dogs by the State of California. Doug trained
approximately 200 guide dog and blind person teams. Doug
started his own dog training business called “The Dog Works”
which he and his wife currently operate today. They
teach obedience, agility, herding and tracking, as well
as, problem solving and behavior modification. Doug is a
licensed Judge for the American Kennel Club and a
trainer/member of the North American Police Work Dog
Association. Doug is currently a Patrol Sergeant for the
Clark County Sheriff’s Department where he started as a
k-9 handler: teaching tracking and narcotics detection.
He is also a Certified Humane Officer through the United
States Department of Agriculture here in Madison. Doug is
assigned to investigate the majority of animal
abuse/neglect complaints in the state. Doug will be assisting OccuPaws with dog training
and mobility instruction for our
trainers, as well as our blind students. Doug’s wife, Caroline,
was also a Guide Dog Instructor and is currently an
accomplished trainer/instructor/competitor in national
agility and herding events; having dogs ranked in the top
National Level. Doug and Caroline have two grown children
and live
on a 40 acre hobby farm in central Wisconsin. They
have sheep, beef, horses and of course, 6 Border
Collies.
Welcome to the
Family, Doug!
We will
have more information regarding our Formal Harness
Training Program and process in the very near future.
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