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In 1998 Barbara adopted her first dog named Cabal.  He was a 9 month old Chihuahua from Chihuahua Rescue & Transport in NH.  He came to her with cherry eyes and a ton of behavioral problems.  She worked at a veterinary hospital at the time and had a lot of support and was up to the challenge of helping this dog.  Barbara noticed shortly after that he had unusual explosive aggressive episodes.  He was fear aggressive towards people and other dogs and was fearful of everything in his atmosphere.  Through a lot of diagnostic work he was eventually diagnosed with a chemical imbalance.  With a plan of action in place Barbara set to work to socialize this dog so he could enjoy life.  Though he was a managed dog throughout his life, he had a very successful performance dog career and enjoyed many things from hiking and vacationing with his family.  Cabal is the reason Barbara became a trainer.  She realized there were so many dogs out there that needed help and not enough people that knew how to help them.  He taught her so many lessons.  Cabal started agility when he was 1 1/2 years old.  He competed successfully until he was 8 when he had to be retired.  He had gone blind due to an illness called PRA which is common in Chihuahuas.  When he retired he was the 9th ranking Chihuahua in the country.  Throughout his life Cabal and Barbara did many sports together including obedience, tracking and carting.  Sadly Cabal passed away when he was 9 years old due to a lung tumor.

Cordelia is a Chihuahua that Barbara adopted from Saving Grace Rescue in NC when she was 7 years old.  She was rescued from a puppy mill that no longer needed her since she was not producing puppies anymore.  She was very sick and Barbara only expected her to live 6 months or so.  Barbara decided Cordelia deserved a good home even if it was only for a few months.  Cordelia's teeth were rotting out of her mouth, she had no hair and had an auto immune disease.  Cordelia is 12 years old today and does absolutely nothing except what she wants!  She is the princess.  She comes to trials and is the cheerleader.  She enjoys traveling and hiking but sleeping in her big comfy beds is her most favorite past time.  She recently started growing hair since moving to GA a few months ago.  Guess the south agrees with her!
December 2006, Barbara adopted a Miniature Poodle named Mystery from Shenandoah Animal Shelter in VA.  Mystery's original owners had purschased him as a "fashion accessory" to sit on their sofa and look pretty.  Mystery had other plans.  At 10 months old he found himself left at a shelter.  Their loss was Barbara's gain because he has been an amazing agility dog.  He started his agility career in 2008 and has been extremely successful.  He is now working towards his MACH (Master Agility Champion) title.  He has been a pleasure for Barbara to train and always making her laugh.

In 2000 Barbara adopted a 11 month old Rottweiler named Taelyn from Northeast Rottweiler Rescue.  Taelyn was tiny girl and very athletic.  About 2 months after Barbara had adopted her she started exhibiting extreme dog aggression.  Barbara did intense behavioral rehabilitation to stop this behavior so Taelyn could have a career in performance sports.  Taelyn started agility at about 2 years old.  She was very successful in agility, accumulated titles in Obedience and Rally and did well in tracking and carting.  Taelyn retired from agility when she was 7 years due to a shoulder injury.  She then went onto to therapy work.  She was a member of Caring Canines in Richmond VA and also a member of the R.E.A.D. group which sends dogs into schools to help children with reading.  She was a favorite among both groups because of her steady and calm temperament.  Barbara also used her extensively in her own business to help other dogs with their aggression towards dogs.  When Taelyn was 8 years she contracted encephalitis and almost died.  By a miracle she is still with us and will turn 9 years in Nov.  She is slower and grayer but still the perfect breed representative.

The newest addition to the family is Brazen.  She is a Border Collie that was purchased at 7 weeks old from Thompson's Border Collies in New Kent, VA.  Barbara had no intention of getting a Border Collie but while visiting the farm to evaluate a puppy for a friend Brazen made it very clear that she had picked Barbara.  There was an instant connection between the two of them.  Though Brazen has not been an easy puppy, she has reminded Barbara that each dog is sent to us for a reason to teach us something.  Brazen has taught Barbara a lot already and will continue to teach her many things.  Barbara is really learning how to truly enjoy the journey with her.

In May 2010 Barbara adopted Blitz a 10 month old male Border Collie from Bimmer's Border Collie Rescue.  He is a wonderful steady boy that enjoys training of all kinds. He is going to have a wonderful career in agility but is also having a blast spending time in the pool. He has decided that swimming is wonderful!