Casey Newton is the founder and owner of Wonder Puppy, a puppy parenting center in Portland, Oregon. At Wonder Puppy, Casey develops innovative course curricula by applying her knowledge of animal behavior gained from her studies of psychology, as well as her more than 10 years in the field. From teaching playgroups and group classes, to creating instructional dog training booklets and custom training products, Casey has led Wonder Puppy to become Portland’s premiere puppy training school.
Casey’s love of animals began when she was a child in Tennessee, caring for her own family’s pets. Growing up, her “siblings” were the Dachshunds, German Shepherds, and Borzois that her parents bred and showed. Casey’s path was set, and she earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology, with a focus on Animal Behavior, from the College of Charleston. During her third year of study, Casey took the golden opportunity to intern with Ethologist, Dr. Gordon Burghardt, at the University of Tennessee Comparative Behavior Program, where she studied snake and chicken behavior. At Wonder Puppy, Casey uses her animal behavior background to specialize in puppy play and social development, as well as boundary training.
When not at Wonder Puppy, Casey serves as the Curriculum Director of Whole Dog Academy, a non-profit dedicated to improving human-canine relationships. Casey also shares her knowledge by educating trainers, puppy parents, and the general public through her easy-to-follow, step-by-step training videos. In 2011, her “Coming When Called” video, which focused on “targeting” for effectively teaching the recall cue, earned her an award from the Association of Professional Dog Trainers. In 2012, Casey spoke at the APDT USA Conference, where she will again speak in October. Casey’s teachings will go international in 2014, when she’s a featured speaker at APDT Chile. Casey has, in the course of her career, worked with everyone from families and their rescues, to professional athletes, musicians, and TV stars. Recently, she was a set trainer for “Animal House,” an aspiring TV show that builds animal shelters, and for the popular IFC TV series, “Portlandia.”
Recorded OnDemand lecture: Puppy’s First Twenty Weeks