About Our Western Washington Dog Training Company
Hi, we’re Walter & Hannah Wolfman, husband and wife + co-owners of Wolfman’s Canines!
Walter is our Lead Canine Behaviorist! Walter is a SIRIUS Accredited Dog Trainer through the ADPT (Association for Professional Dog Trainers), a member of the IAABC (International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants) as well as an experienced AKC Certified Evaluator. Walter was educated at the Dunbar Academy, which advanced and expanded upon the positive reinforcement principles that he had already been practicing for over 15+ years with his own dogs. The Dunbar Academy is a dog training program created by Dr. Ian Dunbar, a veterinarian, who received his doctorate in animal behavior & psychology at University of California, Berkeley. Dr. Dunbar researched the development of social hierarchies and aggression in domestic dogs. After he completed his certification and training, Walter apprenticed in 2021 under Kelly Dunbar (Co-founder of the Dunbar Academy). As an active member of the ADPT, Walter also adheres strictly to their LIMA (Least Intrusive Minimally Aversive) protocols.
Another part of Walter’s journey to co-founding Wolfman’s Canines is his experience in working with wolves! In 2019, Walter worked as the Co-Director of Animal Care and Chief Engineer for a Non-Profit Wolf Rescue in the mountains of Colorado that doubled as a housing project for homeless veterans with PTSD. He was not only feeding and caring for 13 wolves, he was also building and maintaining the enclosures they were living in. This experience gave Walter a lot of insight into where dogs come from and how to differentiate canine body language and behavior!
Hannah is our Administrative, Marketing and Communications Director as well as our Professional Canine Nutritionist intraining. Hannah is the one you will communicate with during onboarding and for scheduling. She tries her best to make becoming a pack member super easy and fun! Hannah has a degree in Cultural Anthropology with a minor in Psychology and loves seeing the similarities and differences between human and canine behavior.
It was in the mountains of Colorado, surrounded by wolves and sunshine, where Hannah (volunteer) and Walter (volunteer coordinator) met in February 2020 at the wolf rescue Walter was working. After a few short months (and a world shut down), they eloped! With their paths as wolf, nature and dog lovers firmly forged, Hannah and Walter moved to the beautiful state of Washington to start a new chapter. Wolfman's Canines started out part time in Everett & then in West Seattle. But the demand (especially for reactivity rehab) soon put a halt to Hannah's behavioral health career as well as Walter's electrician one. There were too many dogs to train!
In the fall of 2022, Hannah & Walter (expecting their first human pup!) moved to a farm in Ohio to be closer to family. Ready to come back to the mountains of Washington, the Wolfmans pack now live on Camano Island on their very own 7-acre “dog farm” with their human pup, Aurelia & dog pack🐶. We had quite a journey getting here. And we are proud to be the new favorite, family owned & relationship focused dog training company in Western Washington. Our mission is to help all family/companion dogs adjust to the human world- puppies all the way up to reactive adult dogs with a bite history!
