So You Want A Dog: What You Most Need To Know About Finding The Perfect Pup (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781987656381)

Cheryl Schaeffer has had a passion for dogs since early childhood. She grew up in a home where her parents would not permit pets other than a few goldfish. It may surprise some people to learn Cheryl grew up to be a dog trainer and behavior expert as well as a pet sitter given the lack of pets in her childhood home. But for those who have known Cheryl since her childhood, she was always eager to be surrounded by animals. At age 8, Cheryl started walking Scottish Terriers for a neighbor. She was always happiest when dog walking time came around. At the home of people with pets, Cheryl tended to look for the animals because she felt the connection with those animals even at a tender age. As an adult, Cheryl took the advice of friends and started a pet sitting business. Where once she cared for animals for free, she was soon a busy pet sitter, taking care of dogs, cats, fish, birds, and turtles...a job she has continued for over a quarter century. Along the way, Cheryl learned to shape the behavior of dogs. This skill came from something within Cheryl, something natural and instinctive. She added to her skills by speaking to others who had well-behaved dogs, reading books, watching videos and TV programs. Today, her methods are eclectic. Her focus is on changing the poorly behaved dog into a well-behaved member of the family. Cheryl has a strong background in rescue including as a volunteer in a municipal shelter where she was half of the volunteer behavior assessment team and where she trained shelter dogs. During this time, Cheryl was hired by a trainer to work in his business, thus allowing her to increase her knowledge and skills. Eventually the years of hard work, study and intensives with world-renown trainers and behavior experts led to having her own private practice. Today Cheryl trains dogs as the owner of Sit, Stay, Love Dog Training. Her focus remains the poorly behaved dogs. In addition, she does basic obedience and puppy training. Her goal is to help people and their dogs have a happy relationship. What makes her happiest is when she can solve a problem with a dog in a single session...and that has happened...more than once! As an additional service, Cheryl loves to help people find their new canine friend. When she is not working with dogs or cats, Cheryl enjoys listening to music, participating in social events, learning new languages and surfing the Internet to quench her thirst for knowledge.