Alicea Schaeffer graduated from Purdue University in 2003 with a BS in Veterinary Technology.  Since then she has actively devoted herself to the field of behavior.   She is a Certified Pet Dog Trainer (CPDT), as well as a Karen Pryor Academy Clicker Training Partner (KPA CTP).  She attended and then assisted with the DOGS Course at Purdue University and is one of the first Veterinary Technician Specialists in Behavior.

Alicea offers puppy kindergarten, elementary, agility, free-style and adult obedience classes that have an open enrollment.  She assists the veterinarian in all behavioral consultations and performs behavior modification when necessary.   She guest speaks at a local community college on learning theory and positive reinforcement techniques.   She has instituted many techniques in the clinic to benefit the pets and their parents.  All of her employees know to lead with treats and kindness rather than restraint which vastly reduces the amount of stress that an animal experiences in each visit.  She is continuously educating herself, her clients, and her employees on the latest developments in the field.  Her work in behavior is not limited to dogs; she also works closely with cats, horses, birds as well as some reptiles and exotic furry friends.

Alicea lives in Franklin, IN where she has been the head technician for a busy 2.5 doctor practice for more than seven years.  She shares her home with seven dogs.  On her days off she enjoys hiking with her Jack Russell Terriers or lounging with her retired Greyhounds.

I graduated from Morehead State University with an associate of applied science degree in 1997. I have been employed as an RVT at Avery Animal Hospital for the past 9 ½ years where I teach a puppy preschool, kindergarten and kitten social class. I strive to contribute to the behavioral health of our patients on a daily basis through client education, staff training, and assisting the DVM with behavior consults. My background was attained through completing Purdue University’s DOGS! course and the DOGS and CATS course, Clicker Expo, veterinary conferences, self study and through skills learned during teaching positive reinforcement obedience training for 5 years. My future plans are to achieve a behavior specialty status, continue to learn from my peers at SVBT, and promote the human animal bond by creating awareness and a passion for behavioral health in the public and veterinary communities.

Shannon Trouba, LVT is a 2003 graduate of the Bel-rea Institute of Animal Technology in Denver, Colorado. After attending a continuing education seminar on animal behavior she was hooked on it. Since then she has strived to increase her knowledge of training and behavior by reading, attending seminars like the DOGS! Course and involvement in organizations like the SVBT.  She has been an SVBT member since 2003.

She currently works as a licensed veterinary technician at a small animal practice in Gretna, Nebraska. She has been teaching puppy socialization and training classes since 2004.
She and her husband have 3 young daughters, Sidney, Charlotte and Josephine. They also share their home with a shiba inu named Misha, a husky mix named Jericho and a cat named Squeeky.

Bio coming soon.

My name is Kait Hembree. After living in Bozeman, MT as a CVT there for almost 13 years, I have recently moved to Reno, NV to pursue my behavioral training passion. After graduating from Montana State University, I began my career as a CVT. While working in the veterinary world I found myself focusing more and more on behavior modification techniques with cats and dogs both in and outside of the hospital. It had, in fact, become my calling card in the local community of Bozeman. However, I was offered an opportunity with a new veterinary hospital, Advanced PetCare, in Reno, NV which is allowing me to pursue that passion even more by working as a veterinary technician, but by also establishing and managing their in-house training program. I am also currently in the process of applying for my VTS-Behavior and completing my KPA certification.

I stay pretty busy between working, training, and studying. However, when I am not doing one of those, then I love spending time with my kids; Delta, a 4 yr old Chesapeake Bay Retriever and Jake, a 15 yr old Golden Retriever. You can generally find us camping, hiking or swimming somewhere in the Reno area.

I attended the SVBT Conference last fall in Vegas and met so many fantastic people and made so many great connections that I wanted to become more involved. That was just one of the reasons I decided to run for the SVBT board. I am thrilled to be serving on the board for the SVBT and am looking forward to its future.

Lori Tyler graduated from SUNY Delhi with an AAS in Veterinary Technology in 1996 and from Cornell University with a BS in Animal Science in 1998. She has worked as an LVT in a variety of settings- from academia, shelter medicine and private practice. She is the past- president of the New York State Association of Veterinary Technicians and currently runs a dog training business, boarding kennel and Doggy Daycare.

I graduated from Columbia State Community College.  My career choices have offered variety including private mixed practice, biomedical research, animal shelter management and finally college of veterinary medicine.  I became interested in animal behavior after I realized that positive reinforcement is the key to success with all species.  I completed the Purdue Dogs! Course in 1999 and have attended training and behavior conferences and workshops annually since.  I also offer pet dog training and accept veterinary referral for canine and feline behavior modification through my private service, COSTOG.  When I’m not helping others with their pets, I enjoy conditioning and training my hounds for competition events, hiking and cycling.

Donna Dyer is a graduate of Bel-Rea Institute of Animal Technology in Denver, Colorado and is licensed to practice as a veterinary technician in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Donna’s interest in animal behavior developed while studying indigenous wildlife in East Africa as part of her zoology curriculum at The Ohio State University, leading to several years as a volunteer keeper and docent at the Denver Zoo. For the last 16 years, she has focused her efforts on companion animal behavior.

Her experience is varied and includes developing and implementing training programs for dog owners and veterinary professionals; working as a research assistant on several canine behavioral genetics projects at the Center for Neurobiology and Behavior, at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry; serving as editor for a scientific working group tasked with establishing consensus-based best practices for the use of canine/handler detection teams and setting standards for their certification; serving as the first editorial assistant for the Journal of Veterinary Behavior: Clinical Applications and Research; co-authoring more than 10 peer-reviewed publications and owning and operating a home-based editing business. In addition to running her editing business, Donne currently is training people to implement a large government- run program.

Donna has served for ten years on VMAT2 as part of the National Disaster Medical System. She is also on the National Veterinary Response Team 2, formed after Hurricane Katrina.

Donna is a co-founder and past president of the Society of Veterinary Behavior Technicians.