Hello! My name is Kari Bastyr, MS, CDBC, CPCN, and I am the founder of Wag & Train Dog Behavior & Nutrition. I love studying animal behavior and working with dogs who have severe behavior problems. I am certified by the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants, a Certified Professional Canine Nutritionist from the Feed Real Institute, a licensed VSPDT dog behavior consultant with Victoria Stilwell Positively Dog Training, a member of the Animal Behavior Society, a member of the Pet Professional Guild, and a professional member of O.D.O.R Service Dogs.  My chocolate Labrador, Birdie, is a gluten-detection dog who trained with Willow Service Dogs. I also completed an internship in gluten detection with Dawn Scheu, of Willow Service Dogs. I am a certified Pet Nutrition Specialist and have completed a Masters Class in Canine Nutrition.

In 1993, I received a B.S. in Applied Behavior Analysis, and earned a Masters Degree in Animal Behavior and Applied Behavior Analysis in 1995, both from St. Cloud State University in St. Cloud, MN.  While completing my coursework in St. Cloud, I began working with Dr. R.K. Anderson and Ruth Foster, co-inventors of the Gentle Leader, through Alpha Academy in Minneapolis. In 2001, I moved to Denver, Colorado and created Wag & Train because there were no reward-based trainers there at the time. I was the staff behaviorist at Alameda East in the mid-2000s, which was the home of Animal Planet’s “Emergency Vets”. In 2018, I expanded Wag & Train to Minneapolis after I moved back… I wanted to be near lots of water again!  I continue to volunteer my time with Big Dogs Huge Paws and Safe Harbor Lab Rescue in Denver, and I work with several rescues in the Twin Cities.

In 2014, due to health issues, I started down the rabbit whole of wellness and nutrition in my own life, and it bled over into my professional life. While I've always known there was a correlation between food & behavior when working with dogs, it wasn't until I really started learning about Leaky Gut and the gut-brain axis that my obsession peaked. In 2019, I started working on my nutrition certification, and completed my coursework and testing from three different schools. What a dog eats directly affects his or her behavior, so being able to add to my knowledge of diet, nutrition, supplements, and improving gut health to change behavior is essential for me. I treat the ‘whole dog’, including emotions, behavior, and how they are affected by the gut-brain axis.