My name is Sam Punchar. I've been working at The Dog School since 2000, but have been training dogs for as long as I can remember. I was never allowed to have a dog growing up so instead, each birthday, my parents gave me a book on dog breeds and/or dog training. I went to college at UVM and graduated in '00 with a degree in Psychology and Animal Behavior. I took a dog training and behavior course taught by Jamie Shaw in the Spring of '00 and went to a week long instructor training course in April '01. Both seminars taught me a ton about dogs and ways to succeed as an instructor.

I met Jamie through her boarding program when Penny was a pup and was amazed at her ability to train Penny to "come." When she showed me that it was through positive means I was intrigued and began to learn these new methods! That was where the relationship started and I have continued training my dogs (and many others) with these methods as well!

return to previous page