If someone could truly talk to the animals, it just might be Peggy Moran Pachl.
The 34-year-old dog trainer and behavioral specialist from Lemont seems to have an instinctive understanding of the canine world, which has earned her respect from area vets, colleagues and pet owners.
“Although it has become more acceptable to seek dog training help, there is no licensing or formal certification of trainers,” said Pachl, who started training animals on her own at age 13 while pet-sitting.
“I stumbled on my own methods and came to conclusions different from what I was reading at the time,” she said.
Pachl is behavioral consultant to the American Dog Owners Association (ADOA), the largest organization promoting responsible pet ownership in the country; a writer for Dog World magazine; and consultant to the Veterinary Medicine Teaching Hospital at the University of Illinois in Champaign.
“Peggy knows animals and has a good working model in her head of how they think,” said Lawrence Schwartz, a retired clinical psychologist breeder in Oregon and national secretary of ADOA. “She is superb at analyzing and changing our human behavior to help solve problems we have with our animals.”
Although she has conducted workshops and classes at suburban park districts in the past, she now runs her training and behavior modification classes primarily out of her home and through the Lemont Park District.
“Everything a dog does seems appropriate to the dog,” Pachl said. “People often project their own thoughts or feelings onto their pets. I want to promote more understanding of the way a dog thinks.”
Animals can develop behavior problems for a number of reasons, according to Pachl.
“A good behaviorist can recognize symptoms that can indicate an organic problem, and these should be examined first,” she said.
Using a crate or dog cage to confine an animal with a behavior problem will not cure the problem and may make it worse, the trainer said.
“The dog cage is our high-tech answer to owning a dog,” Pachl said. “The dog is literally living in a no-man’s land right in a person’s home.”
Pachl conducts 11 training classes a week, does private consulting three days a week and gives in-home evaluatuions of pets with specific problems.
“The greatest results come to the families who get involved in training and incorporate the dog into the family’s daily life,” Pachl said. “The best owners are consistent and offer positive reinforcement.”
