Mid Coast Today

Prism recently took the Advanced Animal Training course at Unity College with Professor Dr. Ruth Greaves for the Advanced Animal Training.

My name is Prism and I currently reside in Smyrna, Ga. Before starting at Unity College, I was a dog trainer turned middle school teacher. With my master's degree in Animal Science and Behavior, I am currently hoping to establish a Therapy Dog presence within my school district as well as establish a non-profit that uses rescue dogs as animal-assisted therapies and interventions for recovering addicts. I chose Unity College because it aligned with my future aspirations while giving me the ability to complete the degree through an online environment.

As I have embarked on this journey, I have learned more ways to understand and analyze a dog's mind as well as gained insight into strategies and methods to use within my dog training practice. The thing I loved most about the Advanced Animal Training class, was the in-depth ways we learned to utilize all four quadrants of reinforcement training. It gave me the vocabulary needed to support my training philosophies.

My future goals and aspirations are to hopefully spark change surrounding therapy dogs in school systems throughout Georgia as well as end the stigma around mental health, substance abuse, and rescue dogs. Anchor Dogs, Inc. is a non-profit that stands by the slogan of "Rescues rescuing Rescues." 

Original source can be found here