Animal Training Academy

Mary earned her undergraduate degree in biology from the University of Chicago and a master’s degree in behaviour analysis from the University of North Texas. She consults with people and their pets, working mainly with dogs and horses. In addition, Mary teaches online courses for professional animal trainers and others interested in the science of behaviour through her company, Behavior Explorer.  Mary has taught classes at the University of North Texas as an adjunct instructor. Her interest in instructional design led her to convert an upper-level undergraduate class into a self-paced, mastery-based course using Dr Fred Keller’s Personalized System of Instruction.  In 2019, Mary and Dr Jesús Rosales-Ruiz published their first book, PORTL: The Portable Operant Research and Teaching Lab. Mary’s primary research interests include studying the process of shaping and developing better methods for teaching both people and animals. She is a full member of the Association for Behavior Analysis International and has presented her research at the organization’s annual convention.  Mary likes to share stories of her animal training adventures on her personal blog, StaleCheerios.com For all the links mentioned in the episode CLICK HERE >>> https://atamember.com/2023/03/06/mary-hunter-2/

Alexis Davison - Bio Alexis has been a professional dog trainer since 2001 and began developing Un-Chase!® in 2012 to help clients and students seeking solutions to their dogs’ chasing behaviours. Since then, she has helped countless dog lovers curb their dogs’ chasing behaviours and shared her innovative approach with dog training professionals all over the world. Training Credentials Alexis is a nationally accredited Dog Behavioural Trainer with a Certificate IV in Dog Behavioural Training, a Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner (KPA CTP), and an internationally Certified Professional Dog Trainer (CPDT-KA) through the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers.  Trainer Educator & Speaker Alexis is a Karen Pryor Academy faculty member, charged with teaching the KPA Dog Trainer Professional Program in Australia and New Zealand.  In addition, she is a coach for KPA’s Dog Trainer Comprehensive course and dog*biz business consultant. Alexis regularly speaks at dog training conferences, seminars, and workshops sharing her experience and unique Un-Chase!® program with fellow dog training professionals.  For links visit here >>> https://atamember.com/2023/02/27/alexis-davison-2/

Alexis Davison - Bio Alexis has been a professional dog trainer since 2001 and began developing Un-Chase!® in 2012 to help clients and students seeking solutions to their dogs’ chasing behaviours. Since then, she has helped countless dog lovers curb their dogs’ chasing behaviours and shared her innovative approach with dog training professionals all over the world. Training Credentials Alexis is a nationally accredited Dog Behavioural Trainer with a Certificate IV in Dog Behavioural Training, a Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner (KPA CTP), and an internationally Certified Professional Dog Trainer (CPDT-KA) through the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers.  Trainer Educator & Speaker Alexis is a Karen Pryor Academy faculty member, charged with teaching the KPA Dog Trainer Professional Program in Australia and New Zealand.  In addition, she is a coach for KPA’s Dog Trainer Comprehensive course and dog*biz business consultant. Alexis regularly speaks at dog training conferences, seminars, and workshops sharing her experience and unique Un-Chase!® program with fellow dog training professionals.  For links visit here >>> https://atamember.com/2023/02/13/alexis-davison/

Nicolette Canzoneri has a Masters of Science in Environmental Sciences, focusing on free-choice learning and behaviour change. Her thesis, Theory of Action for Pro-Environmental Behavior Change at Zoos and Aquariums, uncovered gaps in program design and implementation where zoos targeted conservation-focused behaviour change in their human zoo visitors. These gaps Nicolette discovered were common for many AZA-accredited institutions and served as the basis for creating her new venture EnvARK. Nicolette also holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with a certificate in Applied Behavior Analysis, as well as an Associate of Science in Exotic Animal Training & Management, Animal Behavior, and Wildlife Education. Her expertise includes behavioural science, social science research, informal learning, science communication, and behaviour-focused program design. For links CLICK HERE >>> https://atamember.com/2023/01/30/nicolette-canzoneri-2/

Bex and her family live on a small farm in beautiful Bay of Plenty, New Zealand. Under her business Positively Together, Bex teaches humans in NZ and around the world how to inspire behaviour change in their horses and dogs. In addition, Positively Together hosts classes where youth can experience the power of positive reinforcement and see learning and communication in action, as they work hands-on with friendly trained sheep, horses, chickens, dogs, cows, pigs and more.  Bex is a KPA Certified Training Partner and has been training animals with positive reinforcement for over 20 years, with a long-standing interest in clicker training for horses. However the youth programs and multi-species focus have been growing rapidly since 2018 and have become a special passion.  Positively Together offers “Junior Animal Trainer” classes, “PupStars” classes for kids and their dogs, and a series of very popular online Zoom classes for home-schoolers.  The flagship “Next Gen Trainers” membership for tweens and teens remains the heart project, with the monthly workshops and strong community providing a safe anchor for kids during the challenging teenage years. The focus for all the youth programs is on animal welfare and trainer skills, and the underlying values of compassion, consent, confidence, resilience and respect – for animals, and for humans.  Over the years the videos of these classes posted on Positively Together social media pages have prompted enthusiastic enquiries from trainers around the world wanting advice on how to design and launch similar programs. Bex has guided many people through this process one-on-one, but  as a firm believer that, as Dr Friedman says, “All of us are smarter than one of us”, a new idea was born.  Therefore, launching in 2023 is a BRAND NEW offering from Positively Together – “Shaping the Future”.  This is a coaching collective and community where those of us who are interested in teaching kids and animals can come together to share ideas and advice, gain support, get inspired, and ultimately get started with changing the world!  If you have a special interest in this field, in any capacity, we would love you to join us. For links visit >>> https://atamember.com/2023/01/16/bex-tasker-2/

When standing in front of a giraffe training partner, Amy is acutely aware of how lucky she is to have been surrounded by such amazing people and animals throughout her life.  All of those people have led her to her current role, which is the Senior Animal Behaviorist for the International Center for the Care and Conservation of Giraffe.  The organization is run by the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, and partners with Dr. Susan Friedman and The Behavior Works Team.  She's dabbled in field research, veterinary nursing, and zookeeping. While exploring all of the options of where she could best focus her time and energy to make a difference, she discovered the science of behavior change! ABA has changed how she's wors with both animals and people throughout the years. She enjoys coaching training sessions, running giraffe workshops, and continuing to learn from others. For links visit here >>> https://atamember.com/2023/01/02/amy-schliz-2/

When standing in front of a giraffe training partner, Amy is acutely aware of how lucky she is to have been surrounded by such amazing people and animals throughout her life.  All of those people have led her to her current role, which is the Senior Animal Behaviorist for the International Center for the Care and Conservation of Giraffe.  The organization is run by the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, and partners with Dr. Susan Friedman and The Behavior Works Team.  She's dabbled in field research, veterinary nursing, and zookeeping. While exploring all of the options of where she could best focus her time and energy to make a difference, she discovered the science of behavior change! ABA has changed how she's wors with both animals and people throughout the years. She enjoys coaching training sessions, running giraffe workshops, and continuing to learn from others. For links visit here >>> https://atamember.com/2022/12/19/amy-schliz/

Nikki Morrison has been in the animal training field for over 20 years. Starting off working with sea lions at the age of 19, where she established a passion for animal behaviour, training and welfare. She then moved on to become Animal Training Coordinator for a wildlife park in England, working with several species ranging from a variety of big cats, primates, small mammals and birds. She also started the UK’s first sea lion swim program and internship program here. After a 6-month sabbatical trip, spending time researching animal training programs around Australia, Nikki went on to work with dolphins in the Caribbean for a couple of years before being asked to help start a trailblazing penguin training program in Dubai. This earned Nikki’s team several international awards and recognitions and ultimately led to an offer of work as Director of Animal Training for a worldwide zoo and aquarium consultation company. At the peak of Nikki’s career, however, sadly, she gave up her role to move back home and care for her terminally ill mum. During this time, Nikki also supported re-evaluating a local sea lion facility and operation, which led to a new pool and advanced research on stereotypical behaviour in sea lions. Nikki is now working with Guide Dogs for the Blind, supporting the puppy development operation in Scotland and Northern Ireland, as well as running her own consulting business to continue her passion for supporting zoological facilities to integrate animal-centred training programs that positively impact zoo operations in many ways but most importantly, the lives of the animals and their primary caretakers. For links check here >>> https://atamember.com/2022/12/05/nikki-morrison-2/

Nikki Morrison has been in the animal training field for over 20 years. Starting off working with sea lions at the age of 19, where she established a passion for animal behaviour, training and welfare. She then moved on to become Animal Training Coordinator for a wildlife park in England, working with several species ranging from a variety of big cats, primates, small mammals and birds. She also started the UK’s first sea lion swim program and internship program here. After a 6-month sabbatical trip, spending time researching animal training programs around Australia, Nikki went on to work with dolphins in the Caribbean for a couple of years before being asked to help start a trailblazing penguin training program in Dubai. This earned Nikki’s team several international awards and recognitions and ultimately led to an offer of work as Director of Animal Training for a worldwide zoo and aquarium consultation company. At the peak of Nikki’s career, however, sadly, she gave up her role to move back home and care for her terminally ill mum. During this time, Nikki also supported re-evaluating a local sea lion facility and operation, which led to a new pool and advanced research on stereotypical behaviour in sea lions. Nikki is now working with Guide Dogs for the Blind, supporting the puppy development operation in Scotland and Northern Ireland, as well as running her own consulting business to continue her passion for supporting zoological facilities to integrate animal-centred training programs that positively impact zoo operations in many ways but most importantly, the lives of the animals and their primary caretakers. For links check here >>> https://atamember.com/2022/11/21/nikki-morrison/

April Sunshine Hawkins Bio Whether she is co-hosting the Marketing Made Simple podcast, on-stage speaking, or facilitating a StoryBrand private workshop her goal is to help people make marketing easy and make it work. For the past 5 years, April Sunshine has worked with clients from just about every industry and trained marketers from all over the globe. The StoryBrand Framework works for billion-dollar brands, nonprofits, churches, startups, and B2B companies. She is excited for you to take your StoryBrand skills to the next level to make your next marketing project a success. Outside of her position on the StoryBrand team, April Sunshine enjoys being outside hiking or playing pickleball with her husband, Brent, binging podcasts, and meeting up with friends for an adventure any chance she can get.