Holly McArthur is a certified professional dog trainer and behavior counselor who has studied animal behavior, training and learning theory for more than a decade.  She completed  the Marin Humane Society's Canine Behavior Academy and the Advanced Academy and is committed to staying up-to-date on the latest science-based training techniques and theory through courses and conferences. She is certified through the Certification Council of Professional Dog Trainers and is a member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers, the Behavior Education Network and Doggone Safe, a bite prevention program. She is also an AKC Canine Good Citizen Evaluator and certified in Pet CPR and First Aid.  

Holly left a successful career as an entrepreneur to work with dogs and their families in shelters and through her business, Optimist Dog Training, because she is passionate about keeping people and pets together.  She knows that if dogs and their humans don't understand each other it will be the dog that will lose -- ending up in a shelter or as an outcast in the backyard away from his pack.  Thanks to her background as a communications professional, she finds creative ways to help clients understand their dog's behavior.  Her skills are tested everyday thanks to the adoption of Bean, a poorly socialized, fearful, bully of a terrier mix with severe separation anxiety.  She lives with a large brood including horses, chickens, cats, birds, twin daughters and an incredibly patient husband.  Her motto is:  "Think Positively. Train Positively."