Laurie Buffington
Laurie Buffington is the owner of and lead trainer at Dog Days Training Center in Berthoud, CO. Laurie is certified in multiple core areas of canine behavior and training including animal behavior, assessment skills, and learning theory. Laurie has passed the national board exam for Certified Professional Dog Trainers (CPDT).
Laurie has more than three decades of experience in dog training and has conducted numerous assessments for at-risk dogs on behalf of the Humane Society of Boulder Valley. She has been involved with the training of service dogs for three different service dog organizations and was the state trainer for Canine Companions for Independence.
Laurie and her colleague, Dr. Camille King, an applied animal behaviorist, have lectured on different occasions for the Colorado Association of Animal Control Officers. Topics included “Understanding Dog Body Language” and “Types of Canine Aggression.” Laurie and Dr. King have also presented a series of educational lectures for local veterinary staff focusing on canine aggression and anxiety disorders. Laurie also conducted an analysis and evaluation of a Dog Day Care system, with Camille Belpedio, for Camp Bow Wow Corporation. Currently, Laurie is providing staff training regarding dog behavior, handling, and safety issues for two local veterinary clinics.
Laurie has also been a sub-investigator in a number of professional research studies. She was an integral part of a study that researched at risk-behavior in puppies as well as another study that examined the usefulness of group playtime in reducing kennel stress in dogs. Laurie is a sub-investigator, along with Temple Grandin and Thomas Smith, on Dr. King’s research study assessing the use of a pressure wrap to manage dogs with anxiety. The study was conducted at Dog Days Training Center, which has been evaluated and board-approved by the FDA and ICACA to conduct professional research.
In addition to her many academic and training accomplishments, Laurie enjoys expanding her own horizons gardening and painting and always takes a large interest in birding on the Dog Days Property.
Publications
Belpedio, C., Buffington, L., Clusman, S., Prete, F., Sadler, A., Whittemore, L., & Mungre, S. (2010). Effect of multi-dog play groups on cortisol levels and behavior of dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) housed in a humane society. Journal of Applied Companion Animal Behavior, 4(1), 16-27.
Sally and Beckett
Sally became a staff member at Dog Days in 2017 after many years of being a student of Laurie’s. As a trainer, she enjoys the challenge of helping people learn to read their dogs and develop the partnership that is essential to success. Sally is a Colorado Native who has trained horses and dogs for the majority of her life. She worked for many years as a veterinary assistant for both equine and small animal practices in Northern Colorado. Sally is also an accomplished artist who specializes in animal portraits.
Sally’s young Portuguese Water Dog, Beckett, reminds her every day that dogs are learning from every interaction… and that most of the time they are one step ahead of us. Beckett keeps her learning and always on her toes. Learning how we can better understand and communicate with our animals has been an ongoing challenge and commitment for Sally in her personal and professional life.
Haley (CPDT-KA, ABCDT) and Owen
Haley became a staff member at Dog Days in 2022 after studying under Laurie for 5 years to train her very challenging King Shepherd, Syncro. She then took on a German Shepherd, Elliot, who had been relinquished to Laurie in 2021, which pushed her training to new heights. Haley has been a certified positive reinforcement trainer since 2005, but her more challenging dogs inspired her to get certified with The Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers as well. She is a Colorado native and also a Master Gardener. Haley works with several local dog rescues to help fosters and adopters learn better skills to handle the rescue process. She enjoys helping people problem-solve relationship issues with their dogs and discover new and better ways towards interspecies communication.
Haley’s youngest dog, Owen, also came to her through Dog Days last year and they are both lucky he gets to come to work with her regularly. This rescued Korean Jindo/Doberman/GSD/Staffy mix has pushed Haley’s training to the next level. Owen is a young, athletic boy-genius who is constantly pushing boundaries and limits and reframing how she has to approach their relationship. She is consistently finding new ways to accept and meet the challenges he brings to her daily, which keeps them both learning and growing!
Loyal Staff Members
Rosie
Rosie is a purebred German Shepherd, but she doesn’t know it yet (which is fine with us). She was relinquished to Laurie in 2023 and is beginning to realize she won the dog lottery. She’s a bouncy, happy girl who doesn’t take anything too seriously. She’s a wonderful presence to have on site at Dog Days because she makes everyone appreciate living in the moment and reminds us all to keep a brighter attitude in the present. She’s still a young pup with plenty to learn from Laurie, but she has an ease about her that brings us gratitude.
Staff Memorial Wall
Wiley
Wiley was a strong Border Collie who came to us because he bit someone, and had no other options. Laurie’s assessment of Wiley led her to conclude that he was another high-drive, energetic working dog who needed a job in order to be successful. Fortunately, we have lots of jobs, and Wiley got to work, run, and help with all the Board and Train dogs. He eventually developed into a happy, well-adjusted member of our team. He was a good dog and he will be missed.
Tristen
Tristen finally developed into a lovely member of the Dog Days team, although going through his VERY LONG adolescence (YEARS) was trying for everyone here. He was a constant reminder for all of us, what it is like to have a very challenging dog. So we can all be empathetic and sympathetic, and know what to do when we have to live with a challenging dog. He was a very high-drive dog, and getting him to learn to be calm, quiet, and not constantly moving and commenting was challenging — hence his nickname Twister. He was a good dog and he will be missed.
Flo
Flo never met a person she didn’t like. She was sweet as could be when she was introduced to people, and she is a working machine. She took her job as Homeland Security Director very seriously and was constantly watching to make sure everything in her world was safe, along with her other family members, Twister and Wiley. We called them Border Patrol or Homeland Security for obvious reasons. She had a small issue hoarding her toys. Her personal best was four toys in her mouth at once and 14 tennis balls under her bed. She was a good dog and she will be missed.
