Pet professional

Patrick returned to Kansas last year and landed a position at Wagmore Canine Enrichment in Lawrence, which is owned by fellow Jayhawks and trainers Jerri Johnson, c’95, and Jeannene Loewenstein, d’83, g’88. In December she enrolled in the popular Karen Pryor Academy, which offers a six-month online training course that culminates with an in-person workshop in June, hosted by Wagmore. The comprehensive program covers modern behavior and training methods, including the use of clickers, a proven technique that conditions dogs to associate a desirable behavior with a crisp sound and a reward, most often a treat. It’s one of many tools Patrick uses as a positive reinforcement trainer, also known as a fear-free or force-free trainer.

“We’re getting behavior; we’re not punishing behavior,” she explains. “We’re not using any type of chains or prongs or electronic shock to get our dogs to behave. We’re using what we know to be the best way to help animals give behavior, which is by reinforcing it so that they get good consequences. And in the case of dogs, food is a good consequence.”

Patrick teaches the Puppy Start Right and Surviving Adolescence classes as well as a Basic Manners course for those with dogs 6 months and older. At Wagmore’s daycare facility, she coaches pups who need extra help with their socialization and training skills. She rounds out her workweek by teaching group classes on Sundays at Camo Cross Dog Training in Topeka.

Patrick admits that her biggest challenge isn’t necessarily the furry critters she helps train—it’s their owners. “In our society now, we just want quick fixes,” she says. “The biggest complaint that we as positive reinforcement trainers get is that it’s not happening fast enough. So, communicating with people in a way that makes sense to them and that we can get buy-in is a challenge. The rewarding part of that, though, is seeing those who do buy in and say, ‘Oh yeah, this is awesome. This is a great way to train my dog.’”