About Golden Paws

At Golden Paws Dog Training, we believe a well behaved and socialized dog leads to a happy home! However, we also know some dogs need more attention than others when it comes to behaving. There are many reasons a dog may act out including medical reasons, fear, lack of confidence, and lack of trust. We want to ensure the root of the problem is identified, not just the symptoms, and focus on that.

Michelle Turner, CCTBS, CACTP, CAATP

Mandy German, CCTBS, CACTP

It was a long and winding road to get to where I am able to follow my passion. I spent over a decade in the U.S. Air Force traveling the world. Although it may not seem like this has anything to do with where I ended up, this experience allowed me to see the difference between the symptoms of a problem and the root cause of a problem. I realized this concept did not only apply to human problems and human processes, but also to dogs!

I have always loved dogs and since 2009 I have rescued four from different circumstances; each dog had their own personality and their own set of behaviors. Trying to identify what caused their different behaviors led me to receive my certification in canine training and behavior as well as my certification in advanced canine training. I learned many behaviors could be retrained and refocused by identifying and focusing on the root cause. But I also learned some behaviors might just have to be managed!

​Dogs have always been a big part of my life, especially rescue dogs.  My husband and I foster with a local animal rescue and we have fostered nearly 40 dogs of varying ages thus far!  We currently have 4 rescue dogs of our own - Molly (hound mix), Pickles (beagle), Jupiter (beagle), and Fozzie (hound mix).  Working with so many different dogs through the foster program helped me realize my passion for dog training.  Fostering has allowed me to work with dogs of different breeds, personalities, and all ages too! 

I attended Animal Behavior Institute for certifications in Canine Training & Behavior as well as Advanced Canine Training.  I share Michelle's philosophy of first identifying and treating the root cause and not just the symptoms.  We don't believe in "quick fixes" and our positive, reward based methods create long lasting results.  I am so excited to be working with Michelle and Golden Paws Dog Training!