Credentialed, Competent & Caring

Our Team

Sarah Richardson, PhD, CPDT-KA, CDBC, CSAT

Founder and Owner,
The Canine Connection, LLC

Certified Professional Dog Trainer-KA
Certified Dog Behavior Consultant
Certified Separation Anxiety Trainer
Licensed Therapy Dog Evaluator

Dr. Sarah founded The Canine Connection, LLC in Chico, California, in January 2002, after moving to Chico to assume a faculty position at Chico State. When she arrived in Chico in the summer of 2001, she realized that there were no opportunities for people to learn about the power of positive training in the area - not surprising since positive reinforcement training was then very new to dog training everywhere - and so she set about creating ways for people and dogs to benefit from science-based, force-free training. Since then, she has helped generations of dogs (and now generations of people too) with their beloved canine friends. You see, she's not just a dog trainer. She's a teacher - of people and their dogs.

Dr. Sarah has been on the leading edge of dog training and behavior for over two decades. She was one of the first in the nation to become a Certified Professional Dog Trainer-KA (back in 2002). She is also a Certified Dog Behavior Consultant, a title currently held by only a handful of people in the nation. She has further expertise as a Certified Separation Anxiety Trainer. And she has been involved in therapy dog work since 1998 and is a Licensed Evaluator for Pet Partners, the premier animal therapy organization in North America. She is strongly committed to mentoring new trainers and is a mentor for CATCH Canine Trainers Academy. Although she has been professionally involved in dog training and behavior for over two decades, she regularly participates in continuing education opportunities with her academy of colleagues that hold the practice and profession of dog training to the highest standards.

Dr. Sarah’s own animal family has included many dogs and two dog-like cats. Her dog family has included (not all at the same time) a Labrador Retriever, three Greyhounds, four German Shepherd Dogs, four Australian Shepherds, a German Short-Haired Pointer, an Aussie-Brittany Spaniel mix, a Catahoula-Greyhound mix, a Dalmation-Lab mix, a Norwegian Elkhound mix, a Staffordshire Terrier mix, and… a Schipperke!

Click HERE to read more about Dr. Sarah’s certifications, background, and experience.

Training Team - Additional Members

Along with Dr. Sarah, our training team includes instructors of national prominence and assistants with expertise and enthusiasm. Together, we ensure that your training program is positive, progressive, and productive. Whether conducted at our center or your home, or through a group, private, or online format, our training program for you and your dog will integrate the most up-to-date approaches and customized support to help you achieve your training goals.

Ally Padgett

**Training Coordinator**
Ally grew up in Chico, surrounded by dogs, horses, goats, and other critters. She first came to The Canine Connection as a youngster, when her family brought their sweet Newfoundland puppy, Georgie, through our puppy program. As Georgie grew, so did Ally's love of training and she participated in several more training classes with her big furry dog. As Ally was about to finish high school, her family adopted a German Shepherd, Frankie, who also joined our training program - and at that time Ally did too, becoming one of our valued class and training assistants.
Fast forward to 2022 and Ally is now a senior at Chico State, majoring in Ag Business. After working at The Canine Connection for years, she has now assumed the role of our Training Coordinator. In this capacity, Ally oversees the administrative and client care aspects of our program. Ally can be reached at by phone or text (530) 228-2822 and at training@thecanineconnection.com

Alyssa Hosbach

**Instructor - Life Skills & Manners**
Animals have always been a passion of Alyssa's. To follow her dream of working with animals, Alyssa studied Animal Science at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. As part of her studies, she even had the opportunity to intern as a dolphin trainer in Bermuda for a summer! After earning her Animal Science degree, Alyssa went on to earn a Master's degree in Environment and Community from Humboldt State University (HSU). Drawn to the field of dog training, Alyssa graduated from the Dog Training Internship Academy (DTIA) in San Francisco then ran her own business providing private client consultations and teaching training classes at Berkeley Humane Society. She and her husband moved to Chico because of its promise to be a friendly place to raise their daughter. She and her family share their home with a lively Basset Hound puppy named Biscuit.

Nancy Kerns

**Instructor - Continuing Education**
Nancy Kerns is the founding editor of the Whole Dog Journal, a consumer-oriented, advertising-free national magazine that is a strong proponent of positive reinforcement-based training methods. For the past 22 years, she has been writing about the effectiveness and benefits of force-free, dog-friendly training, as well as reporting on up-to-date research about canine behavior. She is also a long-time volunteer and former board member of the Northwest SPCA in Oroville, and fosters for that shelter regularly, usually taking on any large litters of puppies that are brought into shelter care. In this way, she has raised more than 100 puppies in just the past few years. Nancy owns two dogs, both adopted from the NWSPCA, 11-year-old Otto and 3-year-old Woody, who serve as Grumpy Uncle and Fun Uncle to the foster puppies.

Suzanne Morlock

**Instructor - Agility**
What makes Suzanne an amazing agility instructor? She’s an addict. A complete agility addict. In 2012, Suzanne realized that her Australian Shepherd puppy, Stella, had turned the living room into Stella’s own personal agility course so Suzanne decided she should check out that sport. Fast forward seven years, and Suzanne has added two other Aussies to her agility team (Sunny and Gracie) and she and her Aussie, Sunny, are ranked as one of the top teams in the country! When not teaching her devoted agility students here in Chico, Suzanne and her three Aussies compete nationally and have earned numerous titles and championships. While the recognitions are great, Suzanne says she loves agility not for the ribbons but for the relationship it helps build with her dogs. Indeed, what makes Suzanne not only a great trainer of her own dogs and competitor with them but also a superb coach and instructor is that Suzanne recognizes the importance of fun, play, and teamwork in the sport of agility.

Esther Abshier

**Instructor - Dog Sports**
Esther is ALL ABOUT dog training! When asked to recite her top accomplishments in dog training, Esther had this to say: “In no particular order they are: my Puli, Harry Potter, was in the top five for his breed for agility six years in a row and was invited to the Agility Invitational six times. My Schipperke was in the top five for her breed and was invited to the Invitational too. My two Bull Terriers were the number one and two for their breed in the nation in flyball for several years. My Brittany was also one of the top flyball dogs in the nation for her breed for several years. My Puli earned his MACH title, and also some rally, obedience and flyball titles. I once raced in a flyball tournament and all the dogs on the team were mine! And recently, my dog Journey and I went to the Rally Nationals in Oklahoma - it was a grand adventure.” But that’s not all… currently, Esther and Journey, a Wirehaired Pointing Griffon, are certified as Mission Ready Area for Butte County Search and Rescue and her new puppy, Sailor, a Lagotto Romoangolo, is already proving talented with search activities too. And if that’s not enough to keep her busy, Esther has nine beautiful grandchildren! We are thrilled to have Esther on The Canine Connection training team!

Dog Care Team - Daycare and Boarding

Our gifted dog care team brings years of experience to their supervision of your dogs. Each Dog Care team member completes a 16 module training program as part of their work with us, the only training program of its kind in the dog care industry. Our dog care team loves dogs, is skilled with dogs, and feel privileged to care for your dogs here at The Canine Connection.