Sam Valenza, Jr.

Sam had just made settlement on his first house and he was thinking about getting a dog of his own. Having grown up with german shepherds his whole life, it only seemed right to get another shepherd. After speaking with his sister in-law, Sam promised her he would read the book, “Cesar's Way” by Cesar Millan. After reading the book Sam adopted a 5-month old german shepherd, Bandit, from Garden State German Shepherd Rescue. As an avid runner and health junkie, Sam began training and treating his dog in the same manner. Bandit has grown into a fabulous family and working dog, however, Sam's desire to continually educate himself about how and why dogs react the way they do was just getting started.

What started out as simple obedience training turned into researching different methods of dog training to get Sam more motivated to work. As he accomplished each step, he continually looked to challenge Bandit and himself more and more with different activities. Sam began researching canine behavior, and began to see other methods that are more appropriate other than the ways of Cesar Millan. He read book after book devoted to the history of dogs and how they are genetically wired. As his knowledge and experience began to plateau his training capabilities, Sam turned and started working with Joe Nick K-9 Training in Vineland, NJ and from there his skills blossomed. Joe used his 35+ years experience training every sort of dog, from bed bug detecting dogs to working law enforcement and military dogs. Working side-by-side with Joe for over 4 years and counting, Sam has gained the experience needed to begin pursuing his new found joy.

Sam also volunteers and gives back to the rescue that gave him his best friend. Sam took on the role as President and spent countless hours helping Garden State German Shepherd Rescue, restructuring their foundation and rebuilding. Sam spent time fostering and training dogs in preparation of reaching their final destination in adoption. He also helped coordinate events, took care of all their social media needs, and their fundraising. Sam has also helped several local rescues in the Philadelphia area with training and fostering dogs. In mid-2016, Sam stepped down as president because of his time restraints with his full-time job.

The more Sam learned about dogs, the more he realized that training and helping dogs is something he wanted to pursue as a career. His next step was to evaluate how to further his education and advance in his knowledge of training dogs to do specific behaviors. Sam pursued a Master’s Degree of Science in Canine Studies at Bergin University in Santa Rosa, Ca. In 2019, he graduated, and now uses the knowledge and training he obtained to better prepare himself to accommodate his clients in the best way possible.

Sam is a certified Dog Training Professional through the Certified Council for Professional Dog Trainers, Therapy Dog Evaluator through Therapy Pets Unlimited, a Canine Good Citizen Evaluator through the American Kennel Club (AKC). He is certified in Pet First Aid and CPR through Pet Tech™ and PET Emergency Education, LLC. In addition to this Sam is an avid Canine Conditioning Coach.