About the Owners

Beth Ostrowski Parks
Nationally Certified--Professional Dog Trainer, CPDT, KA
State of Ct-- Certified Professional Dog Trainer (since 1994)
Member --Association of Pet Dog Trainers (since 1999)

The Founder and President of It's PAWSible! Dog Training Center and Day Camp.  I have been involved in dog training since 1993. I specialize in training groups of people with puppies or adult dogs. My clients are looking to build a special bond with their best friend. I also do one -on-one consultations with people and their dogs who are having trouble with aggression, fear, separation anxiety or other behavior problems. My passion is helping people train their "shelter" dogs who were adopted from shelters or other homes where they were neglected or abused. I am an advocate of rescuing animals and did my own Greyhound rescue for several years.

In the past, I spent quite a bit of time volunteering at local shelters like Thomas J. O'Connor and Dakin and the old Pioneer Valley Humane Society.  Currently I spend many, many hours a week running my own business with our classes and dog day camp and our on-line services.  We have a staff of 8 employees here as well.

Although I am busy and fulfilled with the business, I am always striving to learn more about dogs and consistently study new ways to teach gentle, but effective dog training to my clients.  One thing that I learned a long time ago is that there are many ways to teach or get in touch with a dog's mind.  I just love what I do because no two days are the same!

With any extra time I have, I compete in agility with my two awesome dogs, Shumai (4 year old Doberman Pinscher) and Phlip (8 year old Australian Shepherd)   However, what I love most about my dogs is to go hiking with them as often as possible. I learn a lot from watching them and being with them.

What I love most about my work is to watch owners who have what they consider a "problem" dog, learn how to communicate effectively.   They can then learn to work together to form a common bond. I've seen great things that my clients call miracles happen here at It's PAWSible!

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Wayne Parks
Wayne got involved with dogs when Beth did. At the time it was simply by default, but he has grown to love the business and is big participant in lots of behind the scenes work at It's PAWSible!. Frequently he is in the office answering the phone, making appointments or signing up people for classes. He also helps manage the day camp employees and the day camp area. He is the chief engineer of our training facility, day camp area and our beautiful 12 acres of land.   He is in charge of maintaining the details, big and small of our place. He is a very busy man! In his rare spare time he enjoys powerlifting and martial arts. In 2004 he earned his Black Belt in Uechi Ryu Karate.  In 2007, he travled to Texas and earned his second degree Black Belt!

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About Our Instructors

Erika Sautman
When finally in a place where Erika could own a dog, she chose to adopt Reece, a two year old Rottweiler. At the time she and her husband Steve were living in Alabama where obedience classes were hard to find, so she used books to help her train. Reece learned all the basics and a few tricks! Erika soon began to volunteer her time at an animal shelter. It was a rewarding experience that taught her about caring for and managing homeless dogs.

After Erika and Steve relocated to Massachusetts, Erika missed her work at the shelter and looked for a way to help. She started volunteering for North East Rottweiler Rescue (NERR), and decided to try fostering. Enter—Kayse! Erika thought this cute young Rottweiler wouldn't be in the foster program for long.

Erika quickly realized she was in for a big challenge with Kayse. She started working on the basics, but quickly realized she needed professional help! She also discovered a lump on Kayse's ribcage. Sadly, she was diagnosed with cancer and was no longer able to be adopted. Erika decided to keep Kayse as her own dog. She also decided to try a class at It's PAWSible!

Walking into the It's PAWSible! Training Center, Erika knew she came to the right place! Not only was the center state of the art, but the trainer's were excellent as well. Then she saw Beth's Doberman, Treasure. He blew her mind. He was so calm and well behaved. Treasure demonstrated the finished product of what was being taught and helped motivate the class to work hard. Erika saw what was possible with patience and practice.

A few months later Beth was looking for apprentices to learn how to teach dog training classes. Erika saw a wonderful opportunity to develop her own skills and a way to help people develop relationships with their pets.

Erika spent a year as an Apprentice Trainer. Attending several classes a week she developed her skills in teaching the basics to others. She also worked in the It's PAWSible! Dog Day Camp where she encountered dogs of all sizes and personalities. She continued to work with Kayse, too. Amazingly, Kayse's cancer was gone, and her gusto for life was making it necessary for Erika to keep taking classes!

Erika became a Trainer in 2005. She loves teaching classes, and watching people move from puppy class to the advanced classes. She finds it exciting to see the bond between the dog and their owner develop. Kayse has also developed so much! She can be seen demonstrating the finished product of many behaviors taught in Basic Obedience Class.

It's PAWSible! Has greatly enjoyed watching Erika blossom into a wonderful trainer that the clients absolutely love!

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Bonnie Henderson
Bonnie is a Certified Pet Dog Trainer through the Association of Pet Dog Trainers and has owned her own dog training business, A Better Canine, since 2001. In addition to teaching pet dog classes and doing behavioral consultations, she also instructs agility classes at It’sPAWSible!.

Bonnie is one of the few top agility competitors who can also teach & inspire  at all levels of students. She has helped countless students achieve their agility goals and emphasizes having a solid foundation, as well as maximizing the use of reinforcement for learning and motivation. Her positive outlook and understanding of how both people and dogs learn, along with her ability to break skills down to all levels, enables teams to grow and become successful. She specializes in helping handlers and their canine teammates overcome performance obstacles and achieve success in training and competition. At the same time, she injects fun and play into her classes.

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Click here to meet our Day Camp Staff!

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Directions to It's PAWSible!

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