Donna Toews (CPDT-KA, CNWI) has been
training dogs and their humans for many years. A life
living and caring for animals, and 20 plus years
volunteering with breed rescue, naturally steered her to
learn and apprentice in the training field.
In 2004, she created her owner-operated business, Reflection
Pet Services, for training and
petsitting. Her ongoing professional education includes
seminars and hands-on workshops with top international
authorities on animal behaviour and canine training. She
is certified (CPDT-KA [2009]) with the Certification
Council of Professional Dog Trainers and (CNWI [2012])
with the National Association of Canine Scent Work™. She
is a UKC Nosework judge [2017] and a licenced CKC
Scentwork Judge.
She is proudly a LIMA Being "Cultivating
conditions for Compassion" member who sits monthly
with trainers from around the world in discussion for
change.
She made a choice to offer common sense dog training
methods where the use of aversives are not necessary. When
dogs work for what they want and avoid that which they
don't, it's elementary to change behaviours.
Donna became interested in K9 Nose Work®
in the fall of 2009 and attended her first US seminar with
the co-founder in January 2010. Many other seminars
followed and excited to share this sport with others, in
February 2011 Donna brought Ron Gaunt to Canada for the
very first time to demonstrate the sport of K9
Nose Work®. She participates in the sport by
teaching classes, judging, presenting clinics, hosting
events and volunteering.
As the first trainer to present K9NW classes in Canada,
she is also the first Canadian K9 Nose Work® instructor to
title a dog and the first International team to earn NACSW
ELT-CH
title. Her dog and partner Edge! is the first
English Cocker to earn NACSW NW3 Elite status.
Donna volunteers with area shelters and rescue groups to
assess and rehabilitate their adoptable dogs. To promote
successful adoptions, she offers new adoptors of
shelter/rescue dogs an assessment and training session.
She is the author of Introduction to Disaster Animal
Response whose curriculum is being taught in
Western Canada by CDART (Canadian Disaster Animal Response
Team) and was part of a disaster animal response
consulting team for the Canadian Federal Government in
2007. Her efforts as a specially trained volunteer
disaster responder include Firestorm 2003, Katrina 2005,
Freshette 2007, Apartment Fire 2007, BC Wildfires 2017 and
2021, Townhouse Fire 2022.
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