By TR Robertson
Kate Abbott, Director and Trainer for Kindred Spirits Canine Education Center in Vista, knew from an early age that she wanted her life to be involved with dogs in some way Kindred Spirits at 1920 Shadowridge Drive.[/caption]. She said her father was in the Air Force, and she moved around a lot, but always had a dog. She remembers at age nine teaching her Pekingese to salute, so when they drove on the military base, the dog could return the guard’s salute. She also remembers taking her dog to school for show-and-tell and demonstrating all the tricks she had taught the dog.
With more than 35 years of experience in a variety of jobs involving dogs, Kate now runs a business dedicated to teaching people how to communicate with and build a relationship with their canine companion. She said one of the major problems people have with dogs is that, according to a survey, over 80% of dog owners have never taken a class on training their dog. Kindred Spirits offers a variety of classes covering everything you would need to know to establish a positive, worthwhile relationship with the dog you own. She said every dog is unique and can present challenging moments during the different training sessions. The programs they offer are effective, results-based steps for the training process, and the classes are tailored to fit the individual needs of each person and each dog.
Kate said you care for, teach, and train your kids, so why wouldn’t you care for, teach, and train the dog you own? One statistic, the Humane Society pointed out, was that 1 out of 10 pets adopted from shelters are no longer in their homes after 6 months. At times, these pets are “mismatched” with the person who adopts them. During COVID, it was reported that many people went to shelters and adopted pets during the year-long pandemic, only to return several years later to find the shelters full again with these pets, as they realized they just didn’t fit into the family’s lifestyle once things began to return to “normalcy”. Kate is trying her best to “train” humans how to “train” their pet. She said her grandfather used to say, “A weed is just a flower in the wrong place”.
Communication is the key to establishing a good relationship with your dog. The variety of classes offered begins with establishing this relationship. Anyone interested can visit their website at www.kindredspiritsdog.com to sign up for any of these classes. Those offered include Puppy, Basic Obedience, Intermediate, Canine Good Citizen, Trick Training, Rattlesnake Avoidance Training and Service Dog Training. As a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization, part of its mission is to provide aid and training to enable owners to train their own dogs as their service dogs. The website clearly outlines each class, dog age requirements, and specifically what the classes will work on with the dog and the owner. The group classes allow dogs to learn to socialize, focus and be motivated. Individual appointments can be scheduled for those wanting to train their dog as a service dog. Also available at Kindred Spirits is a gift shop with doggie merchandise, including gifts, toys, games, books, and much more.
Kate’s background includes working as a veterinary technician, protection and security dog trainer, working as a therapy dog handler, working as a service dog trainer, behavior consultant, teaching group obedience, private training, Board President of Love on a Leash therapy dogs, and co-author of How to Train Your Dog – A Relationship-Based Approach for a Well-Behaved Dog, available on Amazon. She said she had also worked, prior to working full-time in training dogs, in the corporate world, educating those involved in training manuals. All of this would lead to the development of a philosophy of making your dog part of your life, not a problem in your life.
Personally, I have had several dogs go through training with Kindred Spirits, the latest being our feisty mini-Bindi. We did a Basic Obedience and an Intermediate series of sessions, and we are glad we enrolled her and us. Kindred Spirits is located at 1920 Shadowridge Dr., phone number 760-630-4824. They accept puppies aged 8 weeks to older dogs. Remember, you chose to have these dogs in your life, so why not make the most of it and learn the best way to communicate with your dog and establish a lasting relationship that will be good for both of you?
