Meet Cristina – The Heart Behind Fusion Dog Training

How It All Began

I have always loved dogs. I knew at a very young age that I wanted to work with dogs. 

I started working with professional dog trainers when I was 15 years old. The first trainers were all “pure positive” trainers.  I learned so much and worked with so many different breeds. All of the dogs were super friendly.   

I started my personal dog family with two lab mixes. Both are so sweet and easy to train. As I moved along in my training, I started working with more and more difficult dogs.

I also ended up bringing home an 8-month-old Mastiff named Dually. 

She ended up having some really intense fear and aggression towards people as well as becoming aggressive towards other dogs, including my labs.  This was a whole new level for me. 

She also would chase wildlife and not come back for hours.  At this point, there was not enough steak in the world to train these behaviors out of my dog, and my pure positive mentor was out of ideas. 

I quickly realized I needed new tools and sought out different methods of training to add to my bag of tricks.

I became certified in E-collar training and mentored with some of the most amazing trainers I know. 

Dually lived an amazing off-leash life and was able to be around dogs and people in a very structured way.  Those results would have never been achieved if I had not been brave enough to try out some new and different tools.

Once that all settled, life was not full enough, so I decided to add a Belgian Malinois to the mix. 

Anyone who knows what that is knows that this was a brilliant move, NOT! 

Gitmo was literally attacking my arm over food, day one, at 8 weeks old!!  On top of that, he had the most energy of any dog I had ever met. He was 2 years old for like 7 years! At this point, I had more education and more tools in my bag, so I was determined to work this dog from day one. Fast forward, and he is the friendliest Malinois any of our vets or friends have ever met! He has been a ton of work and has taught me SO much. 

I am sharing my story to say, I have been there too. 

I have lived with crazy puppies, aggressive dogs, anxious dogs, dogs that will not come when called, dogs that hate other dogs, and wild adolescent dogs. 

I get the struggles.

At the same time, I have experienced the rewards that training brings. I am privileged to be able to help so many people just like you and me. 

If I had not gotten help, I would not have lived a happy life with my dogs because it was stressful and hard. 

I now get to pass on all that I have learned to YOU.  

25 Years Later...

I have worked with countless breeds, with all sizes of dogs, and with all behaviors. 

My goal is to look at your dog as a whole from the inside out, there is nothing we don’t cover. 

I have an amazing network of vets, natural paths, chiropractors, and nutritionists that I work with to make sure there is no stone unturned when it comes to your dog's behavior. 

I use all tools and cater to you and your dog's individual learning style and needs. 

There is no one-size-fits-all. 

I have learned from the best and continue to learn so that I can bring you the best solid dog training methods and skills possible.  I have a very unique style and the amazing ability to read dogs. 

I am a very positive trainer who loves seeing dogs succeed.  I feel so honored to truly have the absolute best clients out there! 

Thank you to each and every one of you who have chosen me as your trainer and trusted the journey that training is.