About Karyn
Karyn Garvin refers to herself as a professional dog trainer and animal behavior specialist. There are only a handful of people in this country today who have been training dogs professionally for as long as Karyn has. “Professionally” being the key word here. This has been her livelihood, working at it six days per week since 1977. She was a professional dog trainer before it was really even known as, or considered, a profession.
As a young child, she moved with her family from Iowa to India, where she was deeply affected as she experienced the harsh realities and living conditions of that country. She was left with a burning desire to help others, and to make a difference in the world. That experience, along with her college studies in behavior modification, contribute to making Karyn the trainer she is today.
Much of what drives Karyn is her commitment to saving pets’ lives. Too many dogs and cats are relinquished by their owners because of behavioral issues that were not dealt with effectively. Karyn has discovered numerous opportunities to be instrumental in the field of pet training through her own inventive solutions.
A key way in which Karyn measures her own success is by finding needs and filling them. She found just such an opportunity on September 4, 1993. She was called to a customer’s home to help them with a 13-year-old male poodle that had been marking in the house his entire life. What Karyn discovered was that all of the traditional methods of managing a male dog that marks would not work here. This dog had containment phobia, which meant that restricting his area had even more grave consequences for the owner. The wife had given up on trying years ago, but it was her new husband who came up with the idea of calling a dog trainer.
Karyn still remembers the very moment that the new solution came to her. She was sitting at the customer’s kitchen table and asking the universe … “God, what am I supposed to tell these people?” … It was then that the idea flashed into her mind. In order to continue giving this dog its freedom, he would need to be diapered. Even this thirteen-year-old poodle was managed quickly after peeing on himself only three times.
Karyn then went on to create the first professionally retailed diaper for male dogs, the MarkOut® Wrap, and wrote the training manual, MarkOut® Marking. She marketed this new product and method of training over the internet: www.MarkOut.com. Today, diapering a dog is a well-known method in the dog training world. Her product, the MarkOut® Wrap, is still the male diaper of choice promoted by dogs.com, the official pet partner for the American Kennel Club.
When pot-bellied pigs were all the rage in the 1990s Karyn was inventive in running the world’s first pot-bellied pig obedience class. She was there to help these pet owners learn how to live harmoniously with their new pets. You can still view the documentary video by going to our YouTube channel.
In 1998 she expanded her dog training business to include the Invisible Fence® Brand solution, and became a dealer for Southern Arizona. As she grew familiar with the standard training procedure for Invisible Fence® Brand dealers, she found a need for a better way of training here, as well. Once she had developed, tried and tested her new method of training dogs and cats, she shared her method of training through the Invisible Fence® Brand network. They adopted this new method of training known as the Perfect Start™ Method, which is used by dealers across the United States. She was also fundamental in authoring the Perfect Start™ training manual. Karyn has since turned ownership of the Tucson Invisible Fence® brand dealership over to her son Robert Garvin. www.InvisibleFence.com
Soon after opening her Invisible Fence® Brand dealership she discovered another need. As a dealer, she found her business servicing more “Houdini dogs” than she had ever encountered as a dog trainer. Owners, looking for solutions to keep their escape artists contained, often contact the Invisible Fence® Brand dealer. While the Invisible Fence® Brand is part of the solution, dealers still needed to understand the condition thoroughly in order to service these clients correctly. It was only then that Karyn coined the term “containment phobia” and created the distinction between containment phobia and separation anxiety. Her article was first published in the Invisible Fence® Brand “Dog’s Life” newsletter in 2003. It was later published in the International Association for Canine Professionals “Safe Hands Journal.” This was an important advancement in the treatment for containment-phobic dogs. Prior to this, behaviorists were identifying the problem as separation anxiety, and the techniques for treatment would not work.
Her business today, Garvin’s Pet Plaza, represents an integrated group of businesses, each one offering unique solutions to create harmony between people and their pets:
Garvin’s Dog Training
Barkin Garvin’s Dog Day C.A.R.E
Garvin’s Pet Door’s
Garvin’s Online Store
In 2010 Karyn authored her first book.
She did not begin her journey as a writer because she loved writing but rather as a way of sharing her life’s lessons as well as her dog training experience. She presently has her heart set on making a difference to the dog training industry with her new message in her upcoming book: Divine Dog Training: Taking the Integrated Approach.
Her online blog, created in 2010, is DogBehaviorTalk.com. Karyn also writes semi-monthly articles for a local pet newspaper called “The Pet Enthusiast” and has been published in other recognized pet journals. She is regularly consulted and referred by veterinarians. Throughout her career, Karyn has proven herself time and time again as a thoughtful and dedicated leader.
Karyn with Ceasar Millan The Dog Whisperer
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Karyn with Father Christopher from Monks of New Skeet
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Karyn with Jeff King
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Karyn with Joel Silverman
Author of “Take 2, Training Solutions for Rescued Dogs” to be released in November 2011. |
Karyn with Mary Mazzeri
Mary Mazzeri is co-founder of the International Association of Canine Professionals and is endorsed by the National Association of Dog Obedience Instructors. |
Karyn with Cyndy Douan
Cyndy Douan is owner of Georgia Dog Gym, and co-founder of the International Association of Canine Professionals. |
