Canine
Unleashed
STAFF
TRAINERS
"TRAINING SAVES LIVES"
Canine Unleashed, located in Richmond, Kentucky, was founded in 2005 by Tommy and Vickie Dillon. Tommy and Vickie first got into canine training in 1996 and fell in love with it when one of their beloved pets developed behavioral problems that they did not have sufficient knowledge to fix. The search for help was on. What began as a family necessity turned into countless hours of training and learning that soon flourished into a love affair with canine training.
Today, the mission of Canine Unleashed is to provide professional and personalized services to fit the unique needs of each client and their pet, not only to provide value to the owner, but enhance the life of their pet as well. Through their studies Tommy and Vickie learned there is no "one size fits all" training method that works. Here at Canine Unleashed, we believe that each pet--owner relationship is unique. Because of this unique relationship, the training should be customized to fit the client’s needs.
Tommy Dillon
Owner / Head Trainer
Tommy grew up in Winchester, Kentucky, went to Eastern Kentucky University for a degree in Psychology and graduated from Flagler University with a degree in Business Administration. He is a wonderful example of how varied life experiences can be a recipe for a talented trainer who has superb communication skills with dogs and their owners.
After his apprenticeship in 2000 with David Harris at Animal Resorts and Training Center (ARTC), Tommy also worked for PetSmart in 2004 as the top area trainer for central and west Florida. While at PetSmart, Tommy earned his nationally recognized Certified Professional Dog Training Certification (CPDT). Canine Unleashed was born out of necessity when PetSmart would not allow Tommy to train dogs with major behavior problems.
Eventually Tommy wanted to move back home to Kentucky. David Harris believed in Tommy's abilities and brought him back as the General Manager and Trainer at a new business adventure, Protection Dog Sales, a multi-million dollar training/boarding facility.
Tommy's passion for teaching people how to better communicate with their dogs stems from a long career in coaching. His teaching experience includes 18 years of coaching college basketball in which he worked for such legends as Billy Donavan (University of Florida), Happy Osborne (Georgetown College), and Travis Ford (Eastern Kentucky University). Tommy's years as a Head Coach enhanced his ability to analyze, break down and teach new behaviors. For pet owners, this means focusing on dog-friendly training, enrichment, and consistency. Tommy has helped train many dogs who went on to achieve AKC obedience and IPO titles. More importantly, he has helped many struggling dog owners achieve success within their own homes by teaching "manners" that allow for owners and their pet companions to live together in a peaceful environment.
Vickie Dillon
Groomer / Trainer
Vickie grew up in Lexington, Kentucky surrounded by a loving family and great friends. A constant hard worker, Vickie earned her degree with a 3.6 GPS in Sociology from Eastern Kentucky University. The hard work she put into education is only matched by her hard work in learning Grooming and Canine Training. While Vickie will not admit it, she is one great trainer. She took Dixie, her German Shepherd, titled her at nine months of age and beat out Tommy with his companion. Dixie and Vickie crushed them twice and placed first at the AKC registered events.
Vickie has continued working hard at learning new ways of training and has a very eclectic style. Her belief is in short intermittent sessions anywhere and everywhere. Her main specialty is in our boarding school training program. She loves to have the dogs visit our house and learn the basic manners that the pet owners endeavor to have. Vickie also admits that she has used her training skills on her husband, without his knowledge (of course). Her philosophy is "make it fun" so that they do not know they are being "trained".
Add even more to Vickie's attributes as Vickie is attending and will soon to be a Graduate of the internationally renowned Nash Grooming Academy located in Lexington, Kentucky. Once finished Vickie will be a full time groomer at Canine Unleashed.
