Neal first successfully rehabilitated the skittish puppy he found on the street 7 years ago. This has fueled his passion for the care of dogs. Neal has worked at a kennel/doggie daycare and found it to be the most satisfying and rewarding job he has had. He is very experienced with supervising dog play time, having had as many as 70 dogs at one time (separated into several groups). Neal dog sits for friends and enjoys the bonding associated with each stay. Neal is not caught on the disc golf course without his dogs, Roxie and Zaida, following along. Roxie is even the mascot of GRU's Disc Golf Club! While attending GRU, Neal met his wife, Larissa, in a zoology class and assisted and her in the caring for Gracie, a rescue dog the couple took in. On January 1st of 2015 Neal & Larissa adopted another rescue pup, Zaida, who had experienced a great deal of trauma prior to being rescued. Neal was instrumental in her rehabilitation. It became increasingly obvious to his friends and family that Neal has more than just a love for dogs, he has a natural gift for working with them and dogs instinctively respond to him in ways that surprise their owners.
A light bulb went off, and with a lot of courage and prayer, Neal decided to change courses in his career path. Rather than go on to veterinary School, as was always Neal’s education goal, Neal has discovered that his niche lies more in the behavior and overall wellbeing of dogs. Neal decided to narrow his focus specifically to dogs and to concentrate his studies in dog behavior and training. Since this area of interest is something that he is passionate about, Neal is constantly reading and staying informed on the traditional proven methods as well as new trends in dog behavior, training and therapy. Neal’s personal approach is to observe and assess the whole picture affecting the dog’s well-being. Taking into account nutrition, exercise, discipline, affection, socialization and other details provided by his clients, Neal is able to devise a plan to balance and improve the dog’s well-being. The dogs that Neal has cared for and trained are very happy dogs, the floating-on-clouds kind of happy… hence the birth of his business, Kloud9K9. Dogs won’t be the only ones floating on clouds, owners and families will find dog ownership to be a little like walking on clouds with Neal’s help.
A light bulb went off, and with a lot of courage and prayer, Neal decided to change courses in his career path. Rather than go on to veterinary School, as was always Neal’s education goal, Neal has discovered that his niche lies more in the behavior and overall wellbeing of dogs. Neal decided to narrow his focus specifically to dogs and to concentrate his studies in dog behavior and training. Since this area of interest is something that he is passionate about, Neal is constantly reading and staying informed on the traditional proven methods as well as new trends in dog behavior, training and therapy. Neal’s personal approach is to observe and assess the whole picture affecting the dog’s well-being. Taking into account nutrition, exercise, discipline, affection, socialization and other details provided by his clients, Neal is able to devise a plan to balance and improve the dog’s well-being. The dogs that Neal has cared for and trained are very happy dogs, the floating-on-clouds kind of happy… hence the birth of his business, Kloud9K9. Dogs won’t be the only ones floating on clouds, owners and families will find dog ownership to be a little like walking on clouds with Neal’s help.