Before Chantel Clark ever taught a dog to sit or stay, she just wanted to take her dog everywhere with her. She couldn’t because he wasn’t trained.
Now, Clark is helping others build the bond that has become her life’s work.
To 22-year-old Clark, her business, Chantel’s K9 Command Training, has been her passion for the past seven years.
The business has eight people on the team, and their mission is to “foster a bond built on Trust, Obedience, and Freedom in all environments,” their website says. There are three trainers, including Clark.
Services through CKC are offered in Cedar City and St. George, though CKC is open to boarding or training in other areas. Clark has trained dogs as far as San Francisco.
Clark got her inspiration from dog trainer Cesar Millan. His television shows and values in taking care of dogs are what inspired Clark to become a trainer. Through training books and mentorships, Clark is a self-taught dog trainer. She wants owners to be able to bring their dogs to parks and stores, and to be calm and relaxed.
She started training dogs, including her own, in high school after she moved to St. George from Canada. She has grown her clientele through social media and being recommended by past clients. She has found her fellow trainers through training their dogs.
“We just take care of our clients. And we make sure they’re taken care of, and so that always gives back to itself,” Clark said.
CKC offers a wide range of services, including private training, group training and service dog training. When it comes to service training, psychiatric training is offered.
“We have a really fun community… I think it’s not just a business to us,” Clark said.
Though Clark loves training dogs, not every day is easy. She said some of the hardest parts of the dogs is parting with them when they have completed training.
“I’ve cried a couple of times when they go home and stuff like that, or when we’re done,” she said. “It’s also the clients, they’re really amazing people.”
When approaching a dog that is harder to train, Clark focuses on progression. Challenging the dog to be out of their comfort zone will make them better. She has trained all types and ages of dogs. Even with a client’s dog that was 14-years-old, Clark says any dog can be trained.
CKC has many goals for the future, including building a training facility. In order to do this, Clark is looking to continue to build a clientele and to train more staff.
She is also working on building more of a social media presence, posting training videos and sharing their work through videos. Clark wants to continue to show proof of the success their dogs have with training.
For anyone who is looking to be a dog trainer, Clark said start volunteering at animal shelters to gain more experience. Having exposure to dogs and getting to know personality types is a great way to start.
To contact Clark or other trainers part of CKC, visit their website for services and pricing information.
