Check Out Sarah Walsh’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Walsh.

Hi Sarah, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
As a child, I always had a strong interest in animals. I used to love coming home from school every day to watch Steve Irwin teach me about exotic animals on TV. My favorite field trips in school were the ones we took to the zoo and local wildlife rehabilitation centers. I begged my mom to volunteer with me at my local animal shelter when I was too young to go on my own. I was the kid that spent her Saturday catching lizards out on the rocks near my house from sun-up to sun-down. I put together multiple PowerPoint presentations to convince my parents that getting a dog was the smart move to make.

Animals have always made sense to me. So naturally, it came as no surprise to my family when I told them I wanted to pursue a career involving animals!

Many years later and I LOVE what I do! How many people can say that about their jobs? Being a professional dog trainer can be hectic, the burnout is very real, and learning how to make a living successfully in this career wasn’t easy…but I figured it out, and love it, nonetheless.

Connecting with animals has always come easy to me, but I also have a passion for working with people. Being able to work successfully with people is actually the majority of my job! In order to create change in the relationship between dog and owner, I need to be able to effectively communicate and connect to that owner to then understand their dog. Most of the time, the dog is the easy part about my job! Getting through to people in a way that resonates with them is more of the challenge.

Early on in my training career, when I was still harnessing my coaching skills, I was looking for a new project. That is where my YouTube channel was born! I started the channel as just something to do, as at the time, I was about to make a big move from Wisconsin back to Colorado. I’m not someone that can sit still without something to work on for a long period of time, I’ve always got something in the works! The other aspect that interested me about starting a channel is talking on camera used to really intimidate me! It was awkward and never felt natural, but I wanted to learn how to do it to in turn make me a better trainer in real life. And man, oh man did I end up getting that and so much more from it!

I had no idea at the time that this channel would grow into what it has today. My account reaches about 30,000 people on a monthly basis, gaining roughly 300-400 subscribers per month.

Channeling my people skills into video form was an interesting shift and getting comfortable watching myself on camera took a very long time to get used to. But, it really paid off in all the individuals and organizations that my channel reached and really helped. Those success stories and the connections I made and continue to make that I never would have otherwise with people are the reason that I keep going with it.

My YouTube channel is a side hustle alongside my main dog training job. Training is not cheap, and unfortunately that means that not everybody can access it. Part of a goal that I had for my YouTube channel was being able to bring people a taste of how to effectively work with their dogs at home for free. I cover a range of topics on my channel, but the thing that people to come my channel for the most is to learn all about mental enrichment. Providing outlets for our dog’s brain is equally as important as exercise daily for them, but this is a relatively new concept in the dog world. On my channel, I have many videos that discuss what mental stimulation and enrichment are and easy ways you can implement them into your dog’s daily routine.

I love the balance that I have with growing my skillset in my main career, that in turn, ends up also helping to grow my YouTube channel. The more experience that I gain, the more I can help my followers online as well.

Today I am really happy with where I am at, I live for my work instead of working to live. I think that’s a pretty great way to go through life!

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I wouldn’t say that getting to where I am at was a massive struggle, but there absolutely were ups and downs.

I would say the biggest struggle was really figuring out how to make the jump to dog training as my sole income. Early on, I maintained other part-time jobs to make up the supplementary income that I needed to pay the bills. Not having the luxury of a salary is a tradeoff of working in this industry, and not knowing exactly what the next paycheck will hold can be a little anxiety-inducing. Figuring out what was required to get me to a comfortable place each month took a while. But once I got there, it felt like I had won the lottery! I could successfully do what I loved while also meeting my financial goals.

My ongoing struggles lie in the work itself. Each client is different in what they need to succeed. Coming up with different strategies to help them through the training is where the challenge lies. This struggle is also my absolute favorite part about my job and a large part of why I do what I do. It always keeps me on my toes and requires a lot of critical thinking. Everyone needs something a little different, even if the case itself is almost the same as a previous one. This is the part where figuring out the person comes into play. Making those connections and discovering what works for them as individuals ultimately decides how we proceed. It is a challenge, but that challenge is why I love the job.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a certified professional dog trainer! I currently work as the supervising trainer at K9 Wisdom Training and Consulting, LLC in Loveland, Colorado. I teach group classes one night a week, but the rest of my week is mostly dedicated to private training clients, where I work one on one with people and their dogs.

I like working with and specialize in a variety of cases: puppies, basic manners, unruly behavior, to name a few, but working with on leash reactivity and dogs who lack confidence about the world is what I am really passionate about. I am also working my way towards specializing in aggression in dogs under the guidance of my wonderful mentor, Cathie Lee.

Working with these behaviors cases is extremely rewarding, and it feels good knowing that I have the skill set to be able to help make life easier for a family and the dog. These dogs deserve every bit of a chance to live their best lives. Anyone out there that has lived with a dog that displays on leash reactivity, aggression towards humans or dogs, shutdown, scared behaviors, separation anxiety, etc. knows how hard it is to live with that dog. These behaviors cause massive stress and change the way that their owners have to live their lives. I can help to change all of that! Training and behavior modification is not simple, it is not a quick fix, and it can be taxing on everyone’s emotional state, but it is worth it! I help people and their dogs, and I am very proud to say that.

We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
I define success as being not only comfortable with where you are at in life but being happy with your life.

I love waking up in the morning knowing that I am making big differences in small ways. I love that I can do that. I love that when I take a break and go on vacation, I find myself missing the “daily grind”. I love what I do and who I choose to live my life with. That to me is success.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.k9wisdomtraining.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahcertified/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sarah.walsh.9022662
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9K_VHBK7r5FyXiJYIfgLNA