January 14, 2002

 

To Whom It May Concern:                                                                                                    

 

I have been a student of Stefanie's for approximately two years here in Wisconsin. She is truly phenomenal at what she does. My Stanley is a rescued Miniature Pinscher and is a difficult and extremely high status dog to say the least. With Stefanie's patient and insightful help he is now a very well trained dog and this has been accomplished using all positive reinforcement training methods. Steffie seems able to read dogs' behaviors and respond appropriately in ways that are almost uncanny. She can work doggie magic!

 

When I first started working with Stefanie she was teaching Clicker. We took two semesters and Stanley loved it and responded like a duck to water. She then began teaching "Bridge and Target" which was a technique I had never before heard of. It's what's been used to train the marine animals at Sea World, etc. At first I thought this sounded like a bit of a stretch but once I witnessed the training first hand realized just how amazing and far reaching these techniques were. I’ll let her explain it to you but suffice it to say it works in much smaller and more precise increments than any technique I've ever been exposed to. It's akin to playing the game of "hot and cold" with your dog...always giving signals to let him know if he's going in the right direction. I took two additional >courses of B&T just because Stanley loved it so much and it was such a wonderful, stimulating experience for him. This is a training technique you can continue to expand on for the life of a dog...there's just no end to what you can teach them to do.

 

 As you know, dog training is as much about training people as it is about training dogs. Stefanie is just so great with people. She's warm, patient, understanding and always so helpful and positive. When I'd be getting frustrated in class, she'd just know and be right there to provide encouragement. Everyone in all the classes I took absolutely adored her.

Also, I knew I could call her any time to discuss problems or ask advice. She was always there for me both inside and outside of class.

 

I am the Regional Coordinator for Miniature Pinscher Rescue in Wisconsin. At times I would bring fosters as guests to class just to get a sense of their sociability level and see if they were relaxed in a high-stimulus setting. Stefanie was always so gracious and welcoming to them and always took time to get to know them and their story. She has also referred people to me when she knew of a MinPin in trouble or in need of being rehomed.

 

 Over the years that I have known her she has always been flying off to training seminars all over the country. She is constantly striving to learn new things and share them with her students. Dogs and dog training are her life. She's passionate about what she does. She is, hands down, the best trainer I have ever known. Her empathy and ability to connect to both dogs and people is truly a gift. I was very sad to see her leave Milwaukee and wish her all the best in her future pursuits. Our loss, your gain.

 

Mary Weissler Student and RC for IMPS WI