We recently connected with Darcey Shank and have shared our conversation below.

Darcey , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.

Honestly, what don’t we do differently from the industry standard? We offer so many different programs for the benefit of our clients. Many trainers have one area of focus, whether its obedience, rally, agility, behavioral rehabilitation, what have you. We try to offer a multitude of programs; this gives our clients options and the opportunity to keep coming back to trainers they know and trust – and ultimately love. We keep trainers on staff that have different areas of expertise, currently one that specializes in our behavioral rehabilitation and one that specializes in Service Dog Training, even though they may have a preference or a specialty they are still well versed in all areas of training that we offer.
One thing we think is extremely important is the free in-person/virtual assessments we offer. I want to be able to see the dogs and get my hands on the dog if necessary. My team and I want to be able to see how the owner and the dog interact with each other. In my experience there are four types of owners. The first is Brutally Honest, they will be forth coming with every question we ask them and if they are at their wits end, they’re not afraid to tell us.
The second is Honest to a Point. These owners are often afraid we won’t help them because of their dogs’ negative behaviors. It could be the dog has bitten another dog, a person, or they’ve been told by someone that their dog is dangerous. Many trainers will turn these dogs away, but we don’t. We have worked with some of the most dangerous dogs in the industry and have often been a dogs’ last chance at a normal life.
The third is the Owner who has been to another trainer and it either didn’t work, or they were taken advantage of, or whatever the case may be. These owners are often frustrated because they have already spent thousands of dollars for training that didn’t work out for one reason or another.
The last is the Brand-New Owner. This owner wants to do everything by the book and have a well-behaved, well-mannered dog.
We are here to help all of them. Regardless of their situation, their story, their dogs back history, etc. When a dog comes here it starts with a clean slate, does the team keep the dogs’ history in mind? They have to, they have to know what they are dealing with, but this doesn’t mean that it keeps our team from working with the dog or looking at the dog as bad or broken. Every dog that comes in is just a dog in need of some guidance.
Our assessments also give the clients an opportunity to see our facility. We have an open-door policy, anyone at any time (during business hours) is able to walk in and get a tour of the facility and talk to a staff member about what we do. This allows clients to see the state in which we keep the facility, they are able to see our kennels, and the dogs that are currently in our programs. There is no “behind the scenes” at Pawsitive Difference. Everything is out in the open for everyone to see. This is the first stage of our “Open Line of Communication” with our clients and our team.
Assessments also allow clients the opportunity to see how our staff would interact with their dog. It allows them to have a conversation about their struggles, the training they’re looking for and the training they need. All while our staff observes and interacts with the dog in front of them.
Many trainers now days don’t even meet the dog or the owner in person before starting a training regimen. We think it is the most important part of our process to be able to make an accurate training recommendation. It wouldn’t be fair to the client or the dog to put them into a program that isn’t going to work for them. Assessments is one way we keep that from happening.

Darcey , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

​I was born into the this industry 55 years ago to a mother who was a dog behaviorist and trainer, I call myself a behaviorist first and trainer second. I’m a former 4-H dog & horse leader, Search and Rescue k9 handler, Championed AKC Irish Wolfhound handler, AKC judge, and AKC certified tester for: Canine Good Citizen, Community Canine, Urban Canine, S.T.A.R. Puppy, Trick Dog, Family Dog, AKC Temperament Test and certified tester and observer for The Alliance of Therapy Dogs. I continually study canine psychology to keep up on current dog training for Pawsitive Difference LLC. Pawsitive Difference LLC has given me the ability to apply my 42 years of experience in multiple fields such as behavioral rehabilitation, basic, intermediate, and advanced obedience, Therapy Dog training, Service Dog Training, scent and detection work, protection training, and Schutzhund training. Through Pawsitive Difference LLC I have been able to provide training seminars for individuals and businesses, Shadow and Mentor programs and classes to help the community and train future trainers. I have trained not only my own Service Dog Meeko (whom I recently lost), but my husbands Service Dog as well. I have strived to stay up on current training as well as keep my trainers up to date on new techniques, because many trainers tend to get stuck in the past. I am incredibly proud of my trainers and the rest of my team for the continuous effort they put into their careers, our clients, and the dogs that come through our facility. It is extremely apparent that each member of our team cares about what they do, about our clients, and about the dogs they work with. They come in each morning ready to tackle the day and collaborate about each dogs training, not afraid to try new things or to think outside of the box to accomplish what needs to be accomplished.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

The business at the time was just me and the knowledge I had. I knew that I wanted to help people with their dogs. I started out by doing in home assessments and one on one private training with clients. I was in constant contact with my clients, answering questions they might have about training, clarifying concepts we had gone over in our one on ones, and scheduling out the next assessment, private, etc. Every training session was catered to the clients lifestyle and their dogs training needs. Everything was personalized. Through this I was able to build a close relationship with my clients. I was learning intimate details about their lives in order to help them establish a routine for their dogs. They knew they could text, call, email and I would be there to answer what ever question or concern they may have. Due to this relationship they talked about me to their friends and family and I was being contacted by friends of clients and friends of friends of clients. Word spread like wild fire because I took the time to foster those relationship with my clients while it was just me. Before I knew it I was hiring trainers and looking for a facility to move into. Our clients have always been our biggest source of advertisement. We have never spent a dime on TV ads, newspaper ads, etc. because our clients have done the leg work for us.
We built the reputation we have because we put in the leg work to really show our clients we care about them and their dog. They are not just a check for us, they aren’t just a means to an end, they are our bread and butter, the reason we are around and able to help the next person, the next dog.
For us, it has never been about the money, but about helping someone learn what their dog needs, and helping a dog learn how to be a well mannered, well rounded dog.

We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.

We have an open door policy. Each time a client comes in for training we make sure they know that we aren’t just there for duration of the training, like many trainers, but we are there for the duration of the dogs life. When I started off I was basically on call for my clients, and I made myself available for them if they were facing obstacles in their training. Even though we are larger now that still stands. Clients are not just a once and done thing for us, they come back for continued training and even with new dogs they bring into their home. Sometimes they reach out after a Board and Train to me or one of our trainers to talk through how the dogs transition back home has been and to touch base on areas they’re struggling with. More often than not we bring clients who are struggling with the transition back in for additional private lessons at no additional cost.
Sometimes clients will reach out months after they have trained with us because their dog is displaying a new behavior they’re not sure how to tackle. We always invite them in for a re-assessment and work with them to figure out how to approach continued training.
Many of our clients just continue to enroll in different types of training we offer. We’ve had many owners and dogs go through not just one of our classes but attend every class we have ever offered because they enjoy working with their dog and being in the fun environment we try to foster when doing training.
Our clients know that once they go through a program with us, there is no way of getting rid of us. We will continue to be there for the duration of their dogs life and continue to show them our appreciation and loyalty through whatever continued training or support they might need.
We love to hear from our former clients about how their dog is doing, sometimes we will get curious and reach out just to do a check in. Just to make sure that everything is still going well and no new or negative behaviors has popped up.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.pawsitivedifference.net
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pawsitive_difference/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Darcey.Shank

Image Credits
Shelby Kessler and Shelby Jo Photography