Good Boy

Inside the house of a new client, Denise Holmes goes through an evaluation to figure out the best way to train the couples' new puppy. Lots of questions pertaining to how they live their life, their daily routine and how active they are, all play a part in how Holmes decides is the best way to go about training. Once Holmes has figured out that the couple is an active, outgoing family, she starts to get to work.

“Honestly, I train people and not the dogs,” Holmes said.

Holmes, a University of Arkansas graduate, has always had a love for animals. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in microbiology and a minor in psychology. She thought she wanted to be a physician at first but decided that was not the path she wanted to go on. So instead, she took a job at a local pet store and worked as one of the trainers there.

“I have always been a dog lover. I grew up with dogs and I was always the one to train them. I loved doing it, so I decided to make a career of it.”

After getting into arguments with other trainers about their clients going to Holmes, she decided to quit. But it wasn’t in vain because all of the clients followed her. This is when she began her journey of becoming a professional dog trainer.

During the success of her training, Holmes has created multiple programs throughout the Northwest Arkansas area. She developed T.A.I.L.S. (Therapeutic Animal Interventions Lift Spirits) in 2001 which was the Arkansas Children’s Hospital's first animal-assisted therapy visits. The point of the visits is to provide room visits and act as a 'prescription'. The children forget that they have an illness and focus on the animals.

She also created, Sit. Stay. Read! in 2002 which was the first animal-enhanced reading program in the Fayetteville Public Library, and BARK (Behavior and Respect through K9’s) which is a program based in the Washington County Juvenile Detention Center.

“Dogs make us better people. And if I can use them to put smiles on people’s faces and make their day better, that is what I’m going to do,” Holmes said.

What has made Holmes so popular in the area has been her willingness to work with any type of dog. On her website, she establishes that she has worked with deaf dogs, aggressive dogs, and even dogs that need to learn how to act when a newborn is brought into the home. She is not likely to push you and your dog away, no matter how big of a problem you think your dog has.

Holmes reflected on a time where she had to work with a small dog that was afraid to be in the living room of their home. After spending time with the dog and watching how she entered the room, Holmes figured out that the dog was afraid of a painting in the room of a bald eagle. Taking the time to understand and take a step back and observe, allowed Holmes to figure out the problem at hand.

Holmes understands that each dog is as unique as their owner; that is what makes them great life companions. And “tools-not-rules” is her motto for training. What works for one dog might not work for another, but “positive reinforcement is almost always better than punishment.”

Many people over the Northwest Arkansas area are clients of Holmes, but one, in particular, is the Northwest Arkansas Bully Haven.

Located in Springdale, Arkansas, Bully Haven is a non-profit rescue that is made up of volunteers and foster homes to help rescue bully breeds. The rescue relies heavily on foster homes because they do not have a facility to house the dogs that they rescue.

Founder, Cheryl Gibson, found Holmes and decided that she would be the best person to train the bully breed dogs that they rescued.

“In rescue, we had a couple of dogs that needed some training. We like the fact that Denise uses positive reinforcement training versus other styles of training,” Gibson said.

 Another client, Jennifer Moore, found Holmes to be the perfect trainer for her and her dog. After a few sessions, Moore said she saw an immense difference in how she and her dog interacted with one another. She reiterated that the positive reinforcement is what got their relationship to that point.

“If you want that relationship with your dog, you have to be willing to put in the work. It doesn’t happen overnight, but with enough work and love, you and your dog will create a very special bond. And I thank Denise for allowing me and my dog to get to that point,” Moore said.

When asking both women how they would describe Holmes’ style of training, they both said, “compassionate and positive.”

Along with training, Holmes has also created a blog titled, ‘Travel Tails’. This blog is dedicated to the trips that Holmes and her terrier-mix, Henri, have taken over the years. In the blog, Holmes describes the places that they travel to and where are the best places to take your dog.

“I always stay and go to places that allow dogs. And then in my blog, I tell people how dog friendly they actually were and how much me and Henri enjoyed our time,” Holmes said.

Holmes encourages traveling with your dog because it allows for even more bonding between the two. This bond is what allows pet therapy to work. Interacting with a pet can help physical and mental issues, while releasing endorphins to create a calming effect.

With her spunky attitude and positive communication skills, Holmes has made the lives of pets and their owners better and full of love.

“My goal as a professional in the pet industry is to help my clients understand and build a relationship with their pet that will enrich both of their lives,” Holmes said.

Holmes's three words that she lives by for training is "Love. Trust. Teach."

"I truly believe that’s the way it is, that’s the order of things. You can’t teach anyone, anything if they don’t trust you, they just aren’t going to care what you say. But if you have an honest, genuine love for them, they will feel that, and they will, eventually and sometimes with work, trust you," Holmes said.