Michelle Smith's journey to animal training began over 25 years ago as a Marine Mammal Trainer at the Aquarium of Niagara. Today, she is the owner of Clicks Dog Training LLC offering fast, effective and fun dog training that is a positive experience, reliable in real world situations. Michelle's professional career started with animals, later specialized in humans and today is the perfect combination of both.

 

Certifications: KPA-CTP

 

Designations: Owner & Professional Dog Trainer

 

Job Title: Owner & Prof Dog Trainer

 

Training Equipment: Clicker, treats, target mechanisms, husbandry equipment, enrichment objects and of course, toys!

 

Training Philosophy: All of my training is conducted with a marker and rewards (positive reinforcement), which is my choice methodology as it's science-based, progressive, force free and humane.

 

Locations Served: Greater Cincinnati, Ohio (specifically within 20 miles of Loveland, Ohio)

 

Languages: English

 

Michelle Smith is the owner of Clicks Dog Training, LLC. Following her five years of Marine Mammal Training, her professional career shifted to 15 years in Corporate Human Resources and Communications. When opening Clicks, her intention was to bridge a passion of animal behavior with experience in human talent development. Michelle is a Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner (KPA-CTP). She trains with positive, quick, and effective reward-based methods to modifying behavior, without the use of choke chains, pinch collars or shock collars. The KPA training methodology is the same that she used when working in the Zoo and Aquarium field. When not working with her clients and their dogs, Michelle volunteers weekly at the SPCA Cincinnati. Utilizing her experience with clicker training through operant conditioning and positive reinforcement, her animal training skills are valuable to the Shelter as she supports the socialization, enrichment and adoptability of the dogs. Michelle's formal education includes a B.A. in Biology, M.S. in Public Relations and a Masters Certificate in Creativity and Change Leadership. This academic variety lends well to the science of dog training and working with people and their beloved pets. Michelle also has the following certifications and memberships: Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner (KPA-CTP), Fear Free Dog Trainer Professional and Fear Free Shelters certification. Through her continued education, Michelle is fully committed to staying up on the latest science-based dog training approaches through attending annual conferences and participating in web-based training. ​