Rising Stars: Meet Romario Romain

Today we’d like to introduce you to Romario Romain.

Hi Romario, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
Our 3-year-old Cane Corso named Saint is what sparked our passion for dog training. My wife and I both grew up with dogs ranging from a breed of Malinois, american staffordshire terriers, German shepherds, chow chows, and more. To say, we were well-versed in being dog owners was an understatement. However, when we got our Italian Mastiff, we were challenged in a way we were completely unprepared for.

We both thought this would be a breeze since we’ve been experienced owners in the past; unfortunately, this was not the case. Saint was a perfectly social puppy, but once he hit about 10 months old, his behavior took a turn for the worst. His genetics kicked in and unleashed the inner guardian in him. He started to resource guard my wife, myself, and his environment. He used to be a dog park dog, and that too came to an end when he started to show some reactivity. With a dog of his size and nature, we started to feel hopeless.

We didn’t have a social life anymore because of him, it got to the point where we could no longer have visitors because he would be just so unruly. He gave us no choice but to dive head-first into the training world. I started with a wonderful mentor who taught me so much valuable insight on dog training, I learned so much from her. I then started to work for a training company in Brighton where I expanded my knowledge even further and discovered my true passion for this art. After a year of hands-on experience and absorbing knowledge, we decided to open our first franchise location in Indianapolis Indiana.

Our goal was to help families with dogs like Saint become confident in their relationships with their dogs and be able to obtain a somewhat back-to-normal life. We know the struggles of owning a reactive dog and how much stress it can add to a person’s life, we want to help those people overcome these obstacles and create an unforgettable experience for them. Relationship building is the key to success with our company, not only with the dogs but with our human clients as well.

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?
Our journey is a rollercoaster. It constantly has its up and downs. Being two very young entrepreneurs who have grown up working the traditional 9-5 has been an extremely hard concept for us to grasp. My wife especially has been very dependent on a reliable income, so making that transition of being self-employed was very hard for her, and rightfully so, being an entrepreneur is not for the weak-minded.

However, as with any business, competition is out there and it is up to you to make your brand well-known and represented. Even though our business fluctuates, we enjoy every moment and trust in the process. Faith is what keeps up motivated and knowing our true value and what we bring to our clients is all the motivation we need to keep succeeding.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I love being a dog trainer. Being a science major with a Bachelor’s in Biology, understanding the concepts and methods within this training realm is fascinating to me. There is so much knowledge to be learned, and so much evolution, it’s never-ending and that’s what I love the most; learning something new every day. I am also heavily invested in the sport dog world as well. My malinois, Moni, is what got me invested in decoying and bite work. I am currently trying to become a certified decoy so I can elevate my talents that much further. I believe what sets us apart from other trainers is being open-minded.

We are a well-balanced company and use all methods, we find what works well for our client dogs and train accordingly. We are not opposed to learning new methods, we understand that all dogs are not the same so equally they can not be treated as so. We also understand the wants/needs of our human clients, but we will not be unrealistic with them. Being blunt from start to finish is what we take pride in, we aren’t a company that just wants your money and will sell you a fake dream.

We will tell plain and simple what expectations to have from our programs and how to be successful in them, even when the truth is not what clients want to hear.

What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
Denver offers so many wonderful dog-friendly experiences. From outdoor events, breweries, and hikes, everything about Denver is beautiful and we love that dogs are taken into consideration. Our family is very social, and the last thing we want to do is to keep our dogs at home while we get to experience some awesome events.

Being able to bring our entire family to these experiences makes it that much more enjoyable for us, and that’s what we strive to do with our clients. Have them be able to take their dogs out to these events as well and not have to be worried or stressed out about it, to enjoy the moments. I can’t say we don’t have a least favorite like about Denver, we’ve had nothing but great experiences thus far.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://thedogwizard.com/locations/co/denver
• Instagram: @thedogwizarddenver
• Facebook: @thedogwizarddenver