About Enchanted Companions Dog Training

Enchanted Companions Dog Training states its position before it states its services: "Traditional training involves the use of fear, pain, and compulsion. Sadly, these methods are still prevalent in the world of dog training today, often being cited as the 'only' way to get an unruly dog under control. This is wildly untrue." The business offers "an ethical and compassionate alternative to the community of Rutherford County," working from "positive reinforcement techniques and the science of applied behavior analysis."

The trainer

Rin Rogers has been "training dogs professionally in Murfreesboro since 2018" and founded the business. Before that, "at the age of 20, Rin took on a contract to become the Head Animal Trainer and Enrichment Specialist at Kentucky Down Under Zoo," working with "wolves, dingoes, foxes, kangaroos, and exotic birds, as well as several species of farm animals." Rin also founded Not-For-Pawfit, "a community outreach program which offers free and low-cost training and training resources to those who otherwise couldn't afford it," and fosters for local rescue organizations.

Credentials

The site devotes a page to explaining each accreditation rather than listing initials, opening with the observation that "there is no formal regulation in the United States for dog trainers." Rin holds KPA CTP (Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner), CPDT-KA, completion of Behavior Works' Living and Learning with Animals under Dr. Susan G. Friedman, and Fear Free Animal Training certification, and is a member of the Association of Professional Dog Trainers and the Pet Professional Guild.

What they publish

Three formats are offered, each with its own scope. Private Lessons are "1.5 Hours, In-home or out and about," can "address any behavioral or obedience concern," carry "no minimum # of sessions required," and put the owner in the driving seat – the owner "does most of the training with guidance and homework from trainer." Day Training is one hour, in-home or out and about, with the trainer doing most of the work and the owner needed only "for initial session and transfer session"; it has a "minimum of 5 sessions required, 10 sessions encouraged." Boarding & Training runs one to three weeks with daily updates. The site is unusually explicit about what each format will not take: Board & Train "can address most behavioral/obedience concerns, excluding aggression, reactivity, and separation anxiety," and Day Training excludes "separation anxiety and some types of aggression."