Hi, I'm Julie, the Cat Teacher.
Pictured here with me is my assistant, Jones. We’re into creating cat training tutorials that are fun and easy for EVERY cat to learn. With everything from training tools to step-by-step tutorials, we make the training process achievable and more joyful for you and your cat.
Like many people who come to work as a professional trainer, it all started with a very special dog, Tyson. Very soon after Tyson entered my life in 2004, it was clear he had significant behavioral challenges; lunging at children, attacking skateboarders, etc. Because he was so difficult to even take for a walk, Tyson became my project. This led me to find clicker training, which I used to teach Tyson how to be calm around his triggers.
Realizing its potential, clicker training became woven into all other aspects of my professional and personal life. The clicker was a small and powerful tool that I carried everywhere.
I returned to school and earned my Master of Science in Cognitive and Behavioral Ecology at Memorial University in Newfoundland. Then, I became an Associate Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist (ACAAB).
A little black kitten who showed up at my doorstep sealed my fate. Despite our plan to temporarily foster and find him a forever home, Jones had other plans. Jones boldly explored the house, befriending our antagonistic dogs and our upstairs cat. Before long, Jones was following around his two canine companions and busting into their training sessions.
When I saw Jones eagerly participating in our trick training, I was amazed by what a motivated and quick learner he was. Curious to see if this was just a Jones thing, I repeated this experiment with my other cat Mackenzie, and she was equally enthusiastic. She became bolder and more confident, even in socializing with our dogs.
Once I saw what an excellent benefit clicker training was for enrichment and building a cat’s confidence, I decided to create Cat School.
Cat School is built on a foundation that every indoor cat deserves to live an enriched life while at the same time becoming confident and comfortable with normal life events such as vet visits and moving. I became an animal behaviorist to share the most progressive science-based methods to improve the welfare of all animals.
Thousands of students have learned from our clicker training lessons and proven that cats are trainable and love the enrichment and activity that training provides. We can’t wait to see you show off all the skills and tricks your cat learns at Cat School. Happy Training!
