The Pawsitive Packleader – Seattle Dog Training

We offer private (in your home) professional dog training and behavior consulting throughout the greater Seattle area. We recognize that every dog has individual needs based on their unique temperament and home environment, so our training is custom tailored specifically for you, your dog, and your lifestyle. No matter what the issue is, we will help you and your dog build the pathway to a balanced, stress-free friendship through humane, pain-free techniques. The Pawsitive Packleader prides itself on integrating our services with our never-ending devotion to research in modern animal behavior and our ability to turn scientific research into absorbable information that will take your relationship with your dog to an entirely new threshold.
Guidelines for Selecting a Dog Trainer

We offer genuine Lifetime Support for clients at no additional cost.
The Pawsitive Packleader breaks away from the misplaced emphasis on “dominance” and “obedience” in training. The most important factor in any relationship is a foundation of trust. While every owner may feel that he or she is capable of making their dog trust them, the truth is that not every dog will share the same view. It takes time, communication, predictability and consistency through a reward-based lifestyle for a dog to develop trust. The fundamental principle in our dog training is that rewards are not exclusive to food or praise. We teach clients the countless life-rewards that are available everyday and how to use them to work towards building trust and cooperation without being forced to have a cookie in your pocket. Training is an out-dated word for teaching, and The Pawsitive Packleader focuses on helping parents become teachers for their dogs.

If you have ever felt frustrated with your dog’s training, take comfort knowing you are not alone. Millions of dog owners across the country are met with the same feelings, many who take great pride in the energy they devote to training their dog, but who still are unable to accomplish their goals. The art of leading a dog in a positive, fulfilling path is not second nature and trying to weed out the good dog information from the bad is not an easy task. We live in a world saturated with quick-dog-fixes, but as so many discover, these remedies address only the symptoms of a dog’s behavior, not the causes. In order to successfully share a relationship with our dogs that is easy, fluid and stress free, we must understand and address the causes. By channeling your dog’s energy, not breaking it, you will discover a horizon of new possibilities for both you and your dog.

Meet the Team

Katie Borton, BA, CCS – Head Trainer

Katie’s passion for dogs began at the age of nine when her dog, Zucchini, taught her the importance of kindness, love, and attention. After reading books on dogs and volunteering with animals all through her childhood, Katie went to Oberlin College where she studied biology and organic chemistry. During her college years, Katie spent her free time volunteering at the local dog shelter—first as a dog walker and then eventually as the volunteer coordinator. It was then that she adopted her first soul-mate-dog, a pit bull mix named Butch who taught her so much about the innumerable ways that dogs can improve the human condition.

Upon graduation from college and excited to pursue a career in veterinary medicine, Katie worked as a veterinary technician. Despite her love of medicine, she discovered her passion was in the relationship with dogs. She left the veterinary field to start her own business called Merry Mutts. For 10 successful years, Katie combined her two greatest passions, mothering and dogs, as she ran off-leash dog park trips and boarded dogs in her home (with her daughter as her executive assistant!).

After adopting her second pitbull, Wookie, Katie was schooled in the ways anxiety can result in serious aggression. While striving to improve her understanding of Wookie and all dogs, their behavior, and the impact Katie can make on helping them integrate to our anthropogenic world, Katie enrolled at the Northwest School of Canine Studies to become a certified dog trainer and behavior specialist. She applied her newly gained knowledge to help Wookie to become a happy, well-adjusted, and wonderful boy – not to mention eliminating his aggression. In 2013, Katie sold her company and joined The Pawsitive Packleader to continue to grow and develop in a great company. Working 1-on-1 with dog parents and their dogs has been the greatest change in Katie’s dog career and by far the most rewarding!