Liz Purkaple (VSA-DTC Online, CPCFT) has been teaching dogs’ owners in pet manners and canine musical freestyle for almost ten years. She competes with her two English Springer Spaniels in musical freestyle, scent work, rally obedience, barn hunt, and agility. She is certified in canine fitness and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in animal science and behavior with a concentration on dogs and cats.

Liz enjoys watching owners see their dogs do things they couldn’t imagine. The desire to teach people to communicate and coexist with another species is what drove her to become a trainer and start Power Pups. Working with sports dogs and seeing injuries from unconditioned dogs prompted Liz to learn about fitness and conditioning to help prevent injury to her own dogs and her students’ dogs.

Liz’s first dog taught her the importance of positive reinforcement training in dealing with her resource guarding and medical issues. Her priority in dog sports is to compete well with a happy dog in the ring. She has worked with world class trainers to learn methods of teaching dogs precision behaviors without corrections. Liz is dedicated to continuing her own education and doing the very best for her students and their dogs.