MANAGEMENT

Keith is a Mountain View, California native. He spent many weekends and summer days playing at his grandparents' farm in Palo Alto, formerly located across the street from Ming's Restaurant. He always grew up with dogs, and like many children, begged and pleaded with his parents to get a puppy. Keith feels fortunate to always have had a dog in his life. He even adopted an American Eskimo puppy, "Mo" during his semester break in college so he could have a dog with him all the time.

After finishing his college degree, he worked in the Valley for over 17 years in both the biotech and hi tech industries, in sales and recruiting. Keith's life changed when his dog, "Kimo" a rescue from the Humane Society of Silicon Valley started attending doggie daycare. He got to see first hand what a positive impact supervised dog-dog socialization, exercise and mental stimulation had on him. Keith would often find himself reflecting on a wonderful service doggie daycare is to both humans and their canine companions.

After much reflection, he took a hiatus from hi tech and entered Jean Donaldson's Academy for Dog Trainers. Keith worked with Jean, learning about dog behavior and training with the goal to develop the most comprehensive doggie daycare in the industry. After completing his Certificate in Canine Training and Counseling, he opened "A DOG'S LIFE, Owner Resource Center and Dog Spa" in April of 2004. "I am very proud of our incredible staff, and I am blessed with wonderful clients. Our unique approach focuses on an outstanding experience for all of our clients. We view our two and four legged clients as family."

ADL really is a Labor of Love for Keith. Not only did he want to develop the best place possible for client to take their pooches, but he also was very focused on creating jobs and careers for aspiring and passionate dog lovers. Keith does not believe that he should be making a living from A DOG'S LIFE, thus he has a career outside of ADL. However, Keith stays involved on a daily basis with coaching and directing the management team to help make sure that A DOG'S LIFE continues to be the premier place for dogs and their people.

Tracey Lee serves as the Director of Operations for A DOG'S LIFE and works out of both of our locations. Tracey Lee graduated with Honors from the San Francisco SPCA's Academy for Dog Trainers with a Certificate in Training and Counseling in 2004. Tracey Lee brings a breadth of experience with her to A DOG'S LIFE. "Obsessed with animals since birth," Tracey Lee graduated from Colorado State University with a degree in Wildlife Biology and a minor in Zoology. While in Colorado, Tracey Lee was an Animal Care Supervisor at Greenwood Wildlife Rehabilitation Sanctuary while also working at the Longmont Humane Society, where she discovered her passion for training dogs. Since moving back to California, Tracey Lee has worked in the Veterinary Services Department for the Peninsula Humane Society, assisted Nancy Weller's Puppy Classes with Sirius Puppy Training (before Nancy joined the ADL Team, that is!), and managed Nana's Doggy Daycare in San Jose.

Tracey Lee became a Certified Kennel Operator (CKO) through the Pet Care Services Association in 2007. The CKO program is designed to raise professional standards and improve the practice of animal care and business management within the pet care industry. It provides special recognition to those candidates who demonstrate a high level of competence and commitment to ethical standards within the industry. Certification is based upon submission of all required documentation and successful completion of both a timed closed book written exam and oral exam conducted by a panel of CKOs.

Tracey Lee has been a member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT) since 2003. The APDT is a professional organization of individual dog trainers who are committed to becoming better trainers through education. In 2008, Tracey Lee became a Certified Pet Dog Trainer (CPDT) though the Certification Council of Pet Dog Trainers (CCPDT). The CCPDT is an international testing and certification program for professional pet dog trainers. The CCPDT's certification program is based on humane training practices and the latest scientific knowledge related to dog training.

Tracey Lee is also an AKC Canine Good Citizen evaluator, a Member of the South Bay Trainers (a group of trainers and other animal professionals interested in the pursuit of humane and positive training), has attended many conferences, seminars and other continuing education programs on dogs and their behavior and has completed a course in Pet First Aid and CPR.

Tracey Lee has a soft spot for Great Danes, as she has shared her life with two of them thus far, and plans to continue that pattern. Currently, she shares her home with her two cats, Dr. Kovacs and Shiao Ho-Tzu (a handsome Red Tabby and a crazy Siamese). In 2004, Tracey Lee took a wonderful two-week long vacation to Bali to celebrate her sister's 30th birthday, and while there, she was seriously bitten by a travel bug. She now makes a point to take at least one major out-of-the-country trip a year, and has checked Aruba, Mexico, St. Martin and the Bahamas off of her to-do list, with future plans to go to the entire Caribbean and the Mediterranean.

Best Dog Trainer Favorite Silicon Valley TAILS Magazine

Nancy spent over 15 years in corporate administration, while simultaneously operating a Jazzercise franchise, before turning her passion for training puppies and dogs into her life's work. She received her Certificate in Training and Counseling (CTC), with honors, from the San Francisco SPCA's Academy for Dog Trainers in 2000. The Academy provides a comprehensive, leading edge education to trainers, behavior counselors and other companion dog professionals. After graduation, Nancy spent six years as one of the top trainers for Ian Dunbar's Sirius Puppy Training. In September of 2002, Nancy earned her Certified Professional Dog Trainer (CPDT) designation. She passed an extensive exam to become one of the first trainers in the world to have earned this internationally recognized accreditation. She continues to further her education each year through conferences and seminars. She is also certified in Pet First Aid and CPR.

In early 2007, Nancy joined A DOG'S LIFE to implement a premier Puppy Training program, taking clients' dogs from infancy to adulthood. Clients' dogs are then prepared to be "perfect" pet dogs, to take the AKC Canine Good Citizen test, to continue on to sports, pet-assisted therapy work, competition, etc. Nancy also offers group and private training for special interests such as multi-dog households, clicker training, AKC and International Conformation, AKC Rally Obedience, tricks, and more.

Nancy is a professional member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT) and is the co-Chairperson of the South Bay Trainers (SBT). Both groups provide ongoing education to their members. She has been a volunteer with the Humane Society Silicon Valley, training dog socializers and fostering numerous shelter puppies. Along with her husband and previous Delta-certified dogs, she has provided pet-assisted therapy services to nursing homes and a children's shelter. Both of her dogs, Iniki and Makani, are International Champions. Iniki is CGC certified and is an AKC Champion. Iniki's four pups are all International Champions and are currently being shown on the AKC show circuit.

In her free time, Nancy likes to experiment with new recipes, entertain friends, garden, go horseback riding, train her own dogs and travel when time permits.

Best Dog Trainer(2nd) Silicon Valley TAILS Magazine

Best Dog Trainer Silicon Valley TAILS Magazine

Best Dog Trainer Silicon Valley TAILS Magazine

Erin started working at A DOG'S LIFE Sunnyvale in 2007 after graduating from Santa Clara University, where she studied Psychology. In her search for a "Real Job," she simply could not find anything as fun and fulfilling as hanging out with dogs all day! Before moving to California for college, Erin attended high school on the outskirts of Atlanta, but spent most of her childhood growing up in a small town in Ohio. She would eventually like to go back to school to further her education, possibly in the field of animal behavior.

Always an animal-lover, her love of dogs stemmed from the two she grew up with at home, both large mixed breeds, one a lovable rescue, the other an adorable pound puppy. Erin doesn't live with any dogs currently, so she is happy to get her dog "fix" every day at work. Although she enjoys working with all sizes, Erin has a soft spot for the big dogs. "I think I identify most with their personalities. I really love hanging out with them, even if they're just lounging around. And they seem to appreciate my famous back scratches the most!"

Her favorite parts of working at ADL are the friendly, fun environment and the wealth of knowledge she's been exposed to since she started. "The people and the dogs are so intertwined; we know each of their personalities and individual quirks so well, it's like one enormous, mixed up, silly family. And we have such a good time playing and working together."

Erin is an Advanced Certified Pet Care Technician through the Pet Care Services Association and has completed a course in Pet First Aid and CPR.

Mika was born in Spokane, Washington and grew up in Yuba City, California. She has since lived in Nagano, Japan; San Francisco, CA, and a handful of other Bay Area cities. After finishing college at UC Davis and leaping into the busy working schedule of her adult life, she found that her childhood dogs, Peko and IG, have never been far from her mind. Having worked many different jobs, she often wondered if she would ever find a job that combined her love of dogs and working with people.

Enter A Dog's Life. Since she first started in Sunnyvale as an assistant manager, Mika has risen to manager of ADL's various locations. Mika is ecstatic about bringing her new puppy, Raja, a Bernese Mountain dog home in November 2011! The addition of her very own pup has been a long time coming in Mika's life!

In her spare time, she enjoys riding around on her Vespa and watching nature documentaries, especially those narrated by David Attenborough, as well as playing bocce ball and board games. Admittedly, she can also get sucked into watching entire seasons of TV shows in one sitting when she finds the time.

Mika is an Advanced Certified Pet Care Technician through the Pet Care Services Association and has completed a course in Pet First Aid and CPR.

Christina grew up in Warrensburg, Missouri, and calls her self a "Midwest girl." She moved to Mt.Vernon, Iowa to study Biology, Education, and Chemistry at Cornell College. After graduation, Christina taught high school science for a few years before moving to California so her husband could pursue his dream job in high tech. While she's interested in lots of different opportunities, Christina's ultimate goal is to have fun with her work and love what she does! Her favorite thing so far about ADL is getting to know each of the dogs an their unique personalities.

Christina came to ADL with previous dog experience, having volunteered in shelters during college. She's also owned pets all her life and has never gone long without a dog or cat in her household. She says they've all made wonderful companions. Christina and her husband currently own a Miniature Schnauzer named Lola, who loves living in California! Christina says that Lola misses the snow occasionally, but being able to dig in the sand at the beach makes up for it! Outside of work, exploring the Bay Area with her husband and pup are among Christina's favorite activities, as are reading and cooking. She's always testing out new recipes and can't imagine a day without cooking!

Christina is a Certified Pet Care Technician through the Pet Care Services Association.

February 2011

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