| Gina is a teacher in the city of Syracuse school district. She has also been a trainer for Blue Prints Dog Studio since 2001, teaching puppy kindergarten and Basic obedience. She loves working in a classroom setting, using her three dogs Maica, Kenzie and Kota for demonstration. Successfully she has trained one of her dogs Maica to be a friendly family dog after he developed some behavioral issues stemming from his breeding. In her classes, Gina feels it is important for students and their dogs to keep training fun while also inclusive of the entire family, including children. |
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Gina with
Maica, Kenzie and Kota
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Jackie worked for the airline industry for over 10 years and volunteered at many
animals shelters during that same tenure. She is now a full time employee at
Blue Prints and serves not only as a groomer, but also assists in our daycare.
She owns three dogs of her own and has always had a soft spot for the abused or
misfortunate animals. |
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Jackie, Tyra, and Nala |
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| Jason became apart of the Blue Prints team when he and his grandmother brought their dog to see Melissa for behavior issues. Jason had a knack for training his grandmother’s dog using positive reinforcement. Jason is a junior at Nottingham High school. He plans to continue his schooling and is leaning towards becoming a veterinarian or a veterinarian technician. He would also like to become a dog trainer. Jason is hoping to have a Great Dane in his future. |
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Jason and Cody |
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Kevin is a graduate of Nottingham high School; class of 2008. He attended his first year of college at Hartwick. He has since transferred to Onondaga Community College where he enrolled in the Pre-ESF program. Once he begins classes at SUNY ESF, he plans on majoring in Environmental Concentration with a minor in Cultural Anthropology. Kevin has two crazy Labrador Retrievers: Jake and Beans. He also has and Australian Shepard mix named Aussie. |
Kevin and Bella |
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Melissa Spicer is the co-founder of Blue Prints Dog Studio which has been promoting positive reinforcement training for almost ten years. Concentrating on animal behavior, Melissa modeled her training philosophy around trainers Ian Dunbar and Paul Owens, the (“Original Dog Whisperer”) and had helped many families and dogs better understand each other. She and her husband, David, currently own three dogs: “Maddy”, “Spunky” and “Spike” who live happily on their 200 acre beef farm located in Manlius, NY. |
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Melissa with Maddy, Spike and Spunky |
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Michael is currently completing his last year of high school. He is one of seven children and has always been an animal lover. In the past, Michael has assisted in raising puppies for Canine Working Companions. Previously, Michael worked at a restaurant but when he heard about the opportunity to work with dogs at Blue Prints, he gave it up to get involved in the animal field. |
Michael and Cody |
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Pamela brings over five years experience and knowledge of pet grooming, sitting and portraiture to Blue Prints. She is a certified obedience trainer and completed her apprenticeship in grooming in 2004 at a popular salon in southern New York.
Pamela has several pets of her own, including her Yellow Labrador, Simba.
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Pam and Simba |
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| Sam, is a graduate from SUNY ESF in Syracuse. He has always had an interest in animals. So much so, that he completed an internship at the Rosemond Gifford Zoo in 2007 and currently volunteers at a Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Manlius, NY. He currently owns an Australian cattle dog/lab mix named Knox. In the future, Sam plans to pursue a career in environmental education. |
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Sam and Knox |
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| Shannon moved to Syracuse in the summer of 2009 and is currently taking veterinary assistant coursework through the Animal Behavior College. She is not a dog owner yet but is eager to get a Papillion when the time is right. She currently owns two ferrets: Zero and Zoe as well as a cat named Oatmeal. |
Shannon and Simon |
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Star is a home schooled high school graduate. She has had a passion for all breed of dogs ever since she was a little girl. She currently owns two Salukis, one Borzoi, one Whippet and one Pharaoh Hound mix. In her spare time, she attends AKC dog shows with her dogs and has the opportunity to handle other’s dogs professionally. She puts a lot of time and effort into her own dogs as well as dogs in general. |
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Star and Voltaire |
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