Today we’d like to introduce you to Katie Simmons.
Hi Katie, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Hi! My name is Katie! My husband, Nate, and I run our very own Dog Training business.
It all started with a dog of our own that had reactivity issues and bitten quite a few people and we had no idea how to tackle those issues or what to even do. A year later, after making the hardest decision to put our dog down, we had the opportunity to learn more about dogs and how their brains work. We were fortunate enough to go through a mentorship with a local Dog Training Company and got to do a lot of hands-on mentorship. Nate started learning about dogs before I did so I’d say Nate has about 5yrs of experience whereas for me it’s been a little over 3yrs. Seeing how we were transforming dogs and helping owners live a harmonious life together, we decided to branch off and start our own dog training endeavor together which is where we are today! We’re going into year 2 of this year of operating on our own and it’s been such a pleasure working with the clients we’ve met and getting to meet all the dogs that are struggling to navigate the world and getting them to a much better place, mentally.
From your puppy training, basic to advance obedience, off leash reliability, behavior modification and service dog training, we do it all. Teaching owners how to set themselves and their pups up for success in any setting around all kinds of distractions. We get dogs to enjoy life with them, not to just sit around the house and feel like you can’t take your dog out because the world is too overwhelming for your pup.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Absolutely not a smooth road. There were some hiccups along the way but Nate and I know that there is nothing we can’t get through with each other. Some struggles were the holidays—such as Christmas etc, so December was def a tough month for us, and trying to fund our business so we can push out more ways to expose ourselves to our locals around us, such as, ads, and other ways to promote ourselves.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Dog training. We specialize in reactivity and confidence building. We are known for rehabilitating dogs that are living a stressful life because everything around them is a lot for them to handle. We are most proud of the intimate relationships we create with our clients because even after training with us, we offer 24/7 support for any questions or struggles that our clients are still having. Knowing that my clients know they can always reach out to us and we will always be there to offer any sort of advice or guidance on their situation. What sets us apart from others is that we offer a community based platform for our clients to engage and ask any questions for free. We also offer exclusive tips and tricks in that platform that instagram doesn’t get to see and if clients are struggling with one thing, we don’t charge for coming over for 30 minutes just to go over whatever it is that is needed to be discussed. Lots of other training companies charge for any time they have even if it’s for their own clients. We believe that once you’re our client, YOU GET PERKS!!
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
I’ve always lived in San Diego, CA. Growing up, I was very outgoing. I didn’t have the best childhood but I took what I did from it and made sure it wouldn’t take a turn for the worse but the better. I’m a goofy person overall and I think that’s another trait that my clients admire because they feel like they can talk to me as a friend and not just this dog training professional.
As of Nate, he was very outgoing, very funny, definitely an extrovert, lol. Lived in Virginia til he was 5 years old and moved to San Diego, Ca when his father got stationed in north island (Coronado) and never left since!
Contact Info:
- Website: Heelsmartdogtraining.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heelsmartdogtraining?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61553799361657&mibextid=wwXIfr&mibextid=wwXIfr
- Yelp: https://yelp.to/zceAuwL53K
