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Risa Davidson

After ending her career as a special education teacher, Risa Davidson decided to pursue her interest in dog training. However, the first two programs she worked with didn't click with her. While in the classroom, she had always worked to "catch the child being good and capitalize on that." These two programs were corrections based, which ran contrary to all she had learned. Soon after this experience, she saw an Our Companions flyer at the grocery store asking for volunteers to learn dog training. Five years later, she calls finding that flyer serendipity.

The approach of Marie Joyner, Our Companions Chief Operations Officer, "just made so much sense" to her, because it was based on the same positive reinforcement that her teaching had been. As Risa continued her work as a trainer, Marie discovered that in addition to having, in Marie's words, "a great gift for understanding positive reinforcement," her teaching experience came to help in other ways. Risa was able to utilize her classroom experience in evaluating students and developing curriculum into helping to develop both Our Companions' pet behavior evaluation and the Canine College curriculum.

Risa's out-of-school experiences also make her an asset to the Canine College . Risa has adopted two rescued dogs, Millie and Buddy, both of whom had fear issues to overcome. Marie's advice and the positive reinforcement techniques that Risa learned through Our Companions got her through several rough patches with her dogs. This means that when Risa talks with her clients, she isn't just speaking theoretically. She has walked the same road that many of the people in the class are still on, so she can reassure them that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and that using these techniques will make a difference in their dogs' lives. At the beginning of the classes, she says many clients are surprised that they don't get kicked out of class for the dog's unruly behavior. By end of eight weeks, most of those clients are surprised to see that their dogs have gone from "unruly to quite manageable."

In addition to her work in the Canine College , Risa also works with Our Companions dogs that are currently homeless, socializing and exercising them. She finds helping them to be rewarding as well because she knows she helps them find their forever homes. She acknowledges that worrying about the dogs is one of the challenges that come with the job, but when the training takes effect and the dog comes around, the satisfaction is well worth the earlier worry.

Risa's background, experience and enthusiasm for the training done at Our Companions have made her an indispensible part of the organization. Marie says, "We couldn't do it without her."

Previous Volunteer Spotlights

August 2009 - Deb Soricelli
June 2009 - Henry Petrofsky
March 2009 - Jacquie Roy
Dec 2008 - Gretchen Labau
Sept 2008 Todd Johnston
July 2008 Lyn Garson
May 2008 Daryl Carbone
March 2008 Sue King
Jan 2008 Jon Phillips
Dec 2007 Angela Pugliese
Nov 2007 Sara Zinn
Oct 2007 Ian and Kim Green
Sept 2007 Fern Golensky