terriflorentino
Bio: I not only work with animals, I see them as part of my identity. I've had a natural affinity for them since childhood, and it carries into my professional and personal life. My love for animals led me to my career as the hospital manager at the Abington Veterinary Center, dog training, specializing in behavior and volunteer work with shelter animals. My hobbies, which include sheep-herding and obedience competitions. I grew up in Bucks County, Pennsylvania where I spent a great amount of time on my family’s farms and always chose to play with and write about animals. “There was no conscious time in my life where I decided I wanted to work with animals; it has always been a natural part of who I am. I remember when I was in sixth grade, my teacher pulled me aside and told me to stop writing (all her writing assignments) about animals. It was devastating. What else was there to write about other than animals?" When I was 16, I purchased my first horse, an appaloosa-Tennessee walker cross I named Duke. He was underweight when I purchased him, but after devoting my time to nourishing him to a healthy weight, he was ready to compete in gymkhana. “We were soulmates, He would have followed me to the ends of the earth, I adored that horse." Working with horses evolved into an interest in working with dogs. After earning a degree in business from Montgomery County Community College, I combined my passion with a profession. I'm the hospital manager at Abington Veterinary Center, where I oversee the day’s operations and manage staff, schedules and payroll. I instruct obedience classes, puppy kindergarten, Canine Good Citizen certification and Therapy Dog International. I've adopted a relationship oriented training approach and encourage positive and motivational training techniques. I also volunteer at local animal shelters, where I train dogs so they have an easier time finding their forever homes. “I feel I have been blessed with the ability to help the animals and make a difference in their lives." "Adopt the pace of nature; her secret is patience.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson
Terri Florentino 
Terri, do you have any suggestions for training me? http://ajoyfultraveler.wordpress.com/2013/11/02/any-suggestion-for-training-me-the-dog-owner/
What a beautiful header photo….what akind face your dog has.
I love your model on your headline photo. Thank you for visiting my site and the lazy Bob who does suffer a bit from Ellie’s constantly insisting he should try the Collie work ethos.
Awesome bio, Terri. Are you still in PA? We live in lancaster and are struggling to train our very reactive Aussie. The other four dogs are all well trained…the border collie most of all, but I can’t seem to get this Aussie on the straight and narrow. Lol. It’s partially my fault because I have a lot of anxiety and she is very protective. And, she was so sweet as a baby that I didn’t work with her like I did all of our rescues. We’ve been working with her for two years and paid thousands of dollars for training. I don’t know what to do. Any advice would be appreciated. We won’t give up. Lots of love! Thanks:)
Hi Kristina, I’d like to be able to help you with your aussie. Can you be more specific when you describe your dogs reactivity?
Sure! So, i cant tell how much of it is actually very reactive herding behavior and how much is insecurity or dominance. She is very loving with me, borderline obsessive. She only likes four humans. Anyone else who comes into our house will get bit. If a friend she doesnt know comes over, she will jump in their lap and lick and kiss and roll all over them, but the second they make a slight movement, she bites. It started with her only herding ankles. It has progressed to nipping hands, arms, and any body part really that moves past her too quickly. She doesnt do it to me or my wife or our neighbors, because they’ve watched her since she was a puppy. But, she is also very aggressive with the other dogs. She guards EVERYTHING, and she tries to keep them from coming near me. She is becoming progressively worse. We exercise her, give her a job, we have done sheep herding, we have done TONS of positive reinforcement training, and we have even stooped to dominance training…not full blown like shock collars or negative reinforcement, but blocking her space with our bodies and commanding her to roll over when she tries to go after another dog. She obeys my commands (in that way) perfectly, and she will roll over in a submissive position with no problem. But, she won’t stop guarding, growling, herding, nipping, and now this full out biting. I use the term reactive because she seems to snap…like a quick reaction, and then back to her normal self again. I have never seen any thing like it. I just dont know what to do. 😦
Hey, thanks for connecting. I just read your about and you made me remember my first dog and I was really little (four or five) so those memories are hard to come by.
Treasure those memories.