Debbie Zimmermann
Dog Trainer
K9 First Aid & CPR Certified
Animal Masseuse

Debbie’s dog experiences started as a child with three family Pekinese.  She quickly started learning about dog behavior when the two females started fighting over the attention of their human mom; this is considered resource guarding and can be very dangerous to family and dogs if allowed to continue.

As Debbie continued through college, she was introduced to a rescued American Akita.  She dove further into the breed with her first puppy Rosie.  At 14 mths, Debbie soon discovered just how important training was for a puppy, especially for one that would turn out to be 100+ lbs.  After basic obedience, Debbie wanted to spend more time with Rosie and in 1999, discovered agility.  Rosie was pivotal with Debbie’s choice of further education in animal massage, that eventual turned into a side business.  This opened a new door of learning about anatomy, movement, and behavioral issues.  

In 2002, Debbie took the animal massage to dog conformation shows, agility shows, breed rescue and shelters, as well as equine rescue and shows.  Starting in 2006, Debbie attend the Westminster Dog Show in New York.  She worked out of the Pennsylvania Hotel for several years doing animal massage on some of the top dogs in the US.  
Working with Agoura Animal Shelter, she volunteered to work with animals that were evacuated from shelters, boarding facilities, and ranches due to wildfires going through the mountains and canyons in 2006 and 2007.  Debbie is constantly learning through her hands-on-work with all these different animals.

Working with rescues gave Debbie the opportunity to foster two Akita puppies that were seized from a difficult situation in 2009.  She socialized and taught them basic obedience skills to make sure they were ready and well-balanced for their forever homes.

Debbie’s personal Akitas have competed and titled in agility, nosework, and treibball.  Treibball is a sport that combines herding and soccer together, which is open to all breeds of dogs.  She recently added a Belgian Tervuren to the mix, a breed that has high energy and a strong work ethic.  He is also competing in all three sports and continuing with on-going obedience.  

Her goal is to help improve the bond between the owner’s and their dogs.  Her training gives a common ground for humans and their dogs to communicate and allows them to participate in more things together.