Positively and VSA: What's the Difference?
Both sites are go-to resources for dog geeks, but they serve the needs of two distinctly different types of dog people.
Over the past couple of decades, Positively and the Victoria Stilwell Academy have become pivotal go-to resources within the dog world. But why two different websites? What sets them apart from one another, and which one will best meet your needs as a dog lover?
The answer to that depends on you.
But first, here’s the inside story of how these two powerhouse websites developed into equally vital resources for two different types of dog people.
How It Started
Since she began her professional career working with dogs over 30 years ago, Victoria has always been passionate about educating people and the dogs they live with.
When Victoria’s first TV show, It’s Me or the Dog, initially hit the airwaves in the UK and the US in 2005, the internet was a different place. There was no YouTube or Facebook, and Google was still in its infancy. Relatively few TV shows or public figures had websites back then, and a somewhat clumsy online tool called MySpace suggested the beginnings of what would evolve to become known as social media.
It was in this online environment and during the explosion of It’s Me or the Dog into the worldwide consciousness of dog lovers that victoriastilwell.com was born as the predecessor to Positively - a fan page and early online forum to discuss all things dog training. As Victoria’s profile continued to expand, that site evolved into an early version of Positively.com - a website designed to curate training and behavior advice from Victoria and her peers within the positive dog training community.
Fast forward to late 2023, when Positively.com matured into the fully-realized online tool that it is today, featuring thousands of pages of content including Victoria’s blog, expert contributor articles, videos of It’s Me or the Dog, the Positively Podcast, and online trainer search. The current version of the site also provides a platform for the powerful collection of completely new free and low-cost online dog training courses for everyone from guardians (how Positively describes ‘owners’) to pet professionals and those working in shelters and rescues.
Since its founding as a simple fan page for enthusiasts of her early TV work, Positively.com has always been a resource designed to offer support, community and knowledge for people who live with and love dogs. And that’s still what its mission is based on today.
So What Is the Victoria Stilwell Academy?
Since the first episode of It’s Me or the Dog aired in the early 2000's, Victoria has been asked two questions more than any other. The first is “Can you come train my dog?”, and the second is “How can I become a dog trainer, too?”
In an effort to answer the first question, Victoria established a global licensing program called Victoria Stilwell Positively Dog Training - or VSPDT. This was a tool through which Victoria was able to help identify other like-minded positive dog trainers who shared her training philosophy and experience level to draft off of the success of her TV show. Clients don’t always know what labels to use to describe dog training tools and methods, but if they could point to how Victoria trained dogs on TV and recognize that a professional trainer in their local area was endorsed and licensed by the woman from the TV show whose training resonated with them, it was a win/win.
The VSPDT designation welcomed already-practicing professional trainers to join a network that is still recognized today as one of the premier collections of training professionals in the world.
But in regards to the second common question - “How do I become a dog trainer?” - Victoria recognized the global need to create new generations of professional positive dog trainers. To address this need, she assembled an elite educational development team whose goal was to fill a gap in the world of professional dog trainer education. The result of that work? The Victoria Stilwell Academy for Dog Training & Behavior. VSA was born.
While a handful of dog trainer schools had begun to develop, many were focused on outdated compulsion-based methods, and others offered fragmented sections of dog trainer education. Victoria founded VSA to fill a need for a comprehensive learning experience that went beyond just training a dog to do - or not do - something. Instead, the Academy’s flagship Dog Trainer Course was developed from the ground up to provide a holistic approach to becoming an elite training and behavior professional with the skills, knowledge and confidence to solve real-world problems for both dogs and people.
In 2015, VSA launched its flagship Dog Trainer Course, and VSA has provided professional training certification to thousands of current and aspiring trainers around the world continuously ever since.
So Which One Is for Me?
Both Positively and VSA focus on education, but while VSA serves primarily those interested in working with dogs professionally, Positively is for all dog people.
The online courses at Positively represent Victoria’s commitment to promoting the latest concepts and approaches in science-led, positive training. The courses were built with dog guardians - people who live with and love dogs - in mind, but all animal care professionals can learn from them as the content goes beyond just teaching dogs to sit, stay and come when called.
Positively and its library of free and low-cost courses has evolved into a leader among the voices calling for a progressive, enlightened approach to not just training dogs, but rethinking how we live with them. Respecting the dog’s life experience while balancing the need for realistic, effective solutions to behavior issues is central to Victoria’s Positively Philosophy.
While Positively is centrally focused on serving dog guardians, there are many professionals who benefit every day from the content, ideas, and resources on the Positively website as well.
VSA was founded specifically to support the needs of working professionals - both current and aspiring: people who work with and interact with dogs every day as part of their work.
Whether it’s volunteer counselors working in a rescue shelter, a dog trainer serving the local community, or a doggie daycare operator or dogwalker needing to incorporate professional training and behavior concepts and methods into what they offer, VSA is essentially a vocational school that helps both aspiring and veteran pet professionals supercharge their knowledge, skills, confidence and experience working with dog training and behavior.
What Should I Do Now?
If you live with, work with, or just love dogs, sign up for a free Positively account today and take the Positively challenge by enrolling in one of Victoria’s two most popular free courses: The Positively Pillars and The Harmony Model. Whether you’re a guardian, a professional, or both, these two courses give you a great overview of the Positively course ecosystem and provide a roadmap for which courses and resources best fit your needs.
If you’re a pet professional (or you want to become one), enroll in VSA's new free preview course, What Is Positive Training. It is the entire actual first lesson from VSA’s flagship professional offering, the Dog Trainer Course. After experiencing what it’s like to learn with VSA during the preview lesson, you’ll also get a flyby overview of the other courses available to fellow professionals at VSA. But as a pro, also be sure to dig into the courses at Positively (VSA students get a discount on Positively courses) to challenge yourself and continue your dog knowledge journey there as well.
Regardless of which platform you engage with first, you’ll find a rich community of judgment-free, like-minded dog geeks like you ready to celebrate what it means to live your best life with dogs… Positively.
