Dog Training, Done Right at The Dog Wizard Atlanta

Anthony has been a cornerstone of the Atlanta Dog Wizard team for nearly a decade, bringing
both expertise and heart to every client he serves. As an Atlanta native, he combines his
passion for helping people remove frustrating communication blocks with their dogs and his love
for the city he calls home. Whether tackling complex aggression cases or fine-tuning the
manners of a happy go lucky Goldendoodle, Anthony's approach is grounded in years of
hands-on experience and an intimate understanding of life with dogs in Atlanta.

Before joining The Dog Wizard family, Anthony was already immersed in the dog world working
with local shelters and running his own dog walking business. Like many trainers, his journey
began with his own pup Becky, whose unique needs inspired him to learn everything he could
about behavior and training. That journey transformed Becky's life, sparked a career, and set
Anthony on the path to helping countless other dogs and owners thrive together.

While much of his career has focused on aggression issues and behavior modification,
Anthony's real gift is helping people achieve the lifestyle they want with the dogs they call family,
right here in the city he loves.

Fun fact: Before trading in the stage for the training field, Anthony spent over a decade as a
stand-up comedian. You might still catch him making a guest appearance at a local comedy club
from time to time. Just don't ask him to tell you a joke on command!

Cameron has had a lifelong connection with animals, but dogs have always held a special place
in his heart. From an early age, he was drawn to their loyalty, intelligence, and unique
personalities. Over the years, Cameron has built extensive experience in the dog training world
spanning everything from shelter and rescue work, to managing complex behavioral challenges
like aggression, to preparing service dogs for life changing partnerships.

His training philosophy blends patience, clear communication, and a deep understanding of
canine behavior, helping owners and their dogs build strong, lasting bonds. Whether he's
guiding a puppy through its first steps of obedience or helping a reactive dog feel safe and
confident, Cameron's goal is always the same, to help dogs and their people live their best lives
together.

When he's not working with dogs, you might find Cameron making music, a creative outlet that
reflects his belief in the harmony that comes from understanding and connection. Whether it's
with a melody or a four legged friend.

Sam grew up just south of Atlanta in a lively home filled with pets and four older brothers. His family always had at least two dogs (the neighborhood limit!) along with a variety of animals, from chinchillas to bearded dragons and cats. From a young age, Sam knew he wanted to work with animals but wasn't sure exactly how.
During the Covid pandemic, as his university shifted to online classes, Sam began working at a boarding kennel. Starting in playgroups, he quickly worked his way up to manager within a year. Although he enjoyed working with the dogs, he felt there was more he could do to help them. It wasn't until he attended a dog training school that Sam found his true calling. After a year training through the kennel, Sam decided to join the Dog Wizard team full-time, where he could make a real difference.

When he's not training dogs, Sam loves spending time with his own pets: a Pomeranian named Inuyasha, a Bull Herder named Tetra, a Great Dane, three cats, and a foster dog. Sam is committed to learning as much as possible about dog training and hopes to use his skills to help shelter dogs find forever homes by teaching them how to thrive in the human world.

Co-owner of The Dog Wizard Atlanta, John, was born into a family with working breed dogs. His interest in studying dog behavior began at a young age, with his grandfather's dog "Pep?, who had a close bond with John. Pep was a border collie who did not allow certain people to get near John, and John wanted to know why. John Hayes'' dog training career over the last 10 years has blossomed from hobbyist training into various facets of the dog training community professionally. Aside from his strides helping families train their pets in obedience professionally, his time spent researching canine behavior and competition obedience provided the opportunity to begin service dog work. John was a member of a team in Knoxville who helped train the world's first Addison's Disease Alert dog. John has since gone on to train Therapy Dogs, PTSD Service Dogs, Emotional Support Animals, Police K9 Narcotic and Paraphernalia Detection dogs, Diabetic Alert, Psychiatric Alert and Support, Mobility and Autism support, and SAR dogs. He is also one of a limited number of trainers certified to train cancer detection dogs through the InSitu Foundation. John is an IACP Professional member, certified with the AKC for Canine Good Citizen. He is an AKC Judge, and is certified to perform evaluations through Therapy Pets Unlimited, and Canine First Aid and CPR.

Susan graduated from The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a degree in Business Marketing and Entrepreneurship. Early in her career, she was a photographer at Walt Disney World, where she met her husband, Anthony. They decided to move back to their hometown in Chattanooga, where she focused on developing further customer service skills in various hotels around the scenic city.

Susan was able to grow her business skills for many years, including other jobs in credit and billing. The position she once loved at a locally and family-owned concrete business was bought by a larger company, and she felt less at home.

Deciding what direction to go next, she considered what career would actually make her happy. Her love of dogs (and all other pets) helped her jump into the customer service side of the veterinary world. Working at the clinic she got to experience a variety of animals from dogs and cats, reptiles, and other exotic pets.

Every day at the animal clinic was an amazing experience, but it came with a lot of emotional hardship. Susan was introduced to The Dog Wizard as a client first. Her personal training experience with Kota, a husky mix who was surrendered at her clinic job and needed lots of love, healing and training, introduced her to a close knit team of trainers who shared the same passion about helping owners and dogs connect; a passion that was equally shared. When presented with the opportunity, she decided to join The Dog Wizard customer service team.

Brian had always had dogs in his life, and with frequent moves from state-to-state throughout his childhood, he developed an early understanding for dog behavior as he helped them acclimate to each new home. As a child, he had family SchnauzerPoodle mixes, “Cookie”, “Candy”, and later on “Mandy” and “Skippy”. As a college graduate he took in “Ginger”, a BoxerLab mix that was rescued off the streets of Denver. It wasn’t until Brian got his Belgian Malinois “Ripley” that it all started coming together. While he took a large part of training and learning about breeds in his earlier years, having a performance working dog sparked the passion to dive further into learning dog behavior on a deeper level.

As a nurse for over 16 years with experience in both the OR and ER, Brian traveled the country as a travel nurse. His dog Ginger was always by his side. Whether it was at a brewery, camping trip, cross country road trip, she was his right hand pal. Ginger lived a long and happy life long into her senior years. After she passed, Brian focused his efforts to find his ideal working-dog partner. He found the Belgian Malinois fascinating, and when the time was right, “Ripley” joined his family. The healthcare world changed significantly over the past few years, and Brian wanted to leave healthcare behind but still utilize his skills in a meaningful way. Ripley opened those doors. Training her, shaping high end competition-style obedience, and working with client dogs quickly became the life he’d dreamed to have.

Brian wants to use that passion to help owners and their dogs truly have their lives sync together. Whether they want that perfect heel to work in the ring, or just want their dog best friend sitting at a brewery patio with them, Brian believes that the cohesive relationship is the key to the picture-perfect life that all dog owners want when they grow their pet families. Brian is a member of the International Association of Canine Professionals, and an AKC Certified trainer. He also enjoys earning certificates with Ripley, participating in AKC Scent Trials and tracking and trailing.

When he isn’t training dogs, Brian enjoys riding his bike, brewery hopping, tending to his vegetable garden, and attending CFC soccer games.

Rob was born and raised in Atlanta and started his journey as a dog trainer in 2020. He has always been a "dog person" from his Boxers growing up, to his beloved Pom and Shih Tzu, and now the proud papa of a Rottweiler princess named "Peaches''. "Beckett" the Pom had many health issues and "Bobo" the Shih Tzu was diagnosed with Cushing's Disease. Taking care of the two of them was challenging and rewarding and helped Rob understand how much a dog's life can be improved through confidence and reducing stress. Rob adopted his Rottie as a puppy so she could be his helper with training and a good example for her large, intimidating breed.

The Covid pandemic changed many things for many people, and that's how Rob wound up becoming a dog trainer. After working in the corporate world and training humans, Rob switched to dogs and discovered his true calling. Rob traveled to the Fort Collins Dog Wizard and received his training and certification in late 2020.

Since jumping into the Atlanta Dog Wizard family, Rob has developed a passion for teaching the Freedom program (on-and-off-leash obedience) and a knack for puppy training. Rob believes dogs are one of life's greatest gifts and that their happiness starts with proper training, providing the foundation for a long, healthy life as a calm, confident house dog.

You can find Rob around Atlanta hosting Group Support Class at the park, or at a hardware store celebrating a graduate dog's Big Day Out. He is so happy to have found work that makes him truly happy and helps make life better for dogs and their humans.