Cynde Van Vleet Peer-Recognized Skills & Knowledge

Founder and Owner

Cynde Van Vleet, CPDT-KA, has been a professional dog trainer for several decades (in dog-years, that is) offering group and private instruction. She owns and manages I C PawsAbilities, a company she founded in Orange County, California.

Cynde is certified as a professional dog trainer through the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers (CCPDT), the first to offer a national certification program for dog trainers. Since the program's inception in 2001, CCPDT has expanded to offer knowledge and skills based examinations covering animal training and behavior. Candidates who pass the CCPDT's examinations earn specific designations which may be used after their names. All certificants must earn continuing education units to maintain their designations. They must also adhere to a strict Code of Ethics in their practices.

Cynde is a Professional Premium Member of the Association of Professional Dog Trainers (APDT), a professional organization of individual trainers who are committed to becoming better trainers through education.

TTouch Practitioner & Mentor

Cynde is also a Guild-Certified Tellington TTouch Practitioner, Level 3. Cynde is frequently called upon to teach at week-long Tellington Method trainings throughout the United States.

Professional Mentor

Cynde frequently includes Animal Behavior College students in her client visits, workshops, and animal-rescue work. In doing so, she takes them beyond the book-learning they have mastered and teaches them the subtleties of animal interaction and understanding.

"Canine Good Citizen" Evaluator

Cynde has been qualified by the AKC (American Kennel Club) to test and certify dogs for its nationally-recognized "Canine Good Citizen" program. This certification identifies dogs that have the training and behaviors needed to be reliable, well-behaved members of their households and communities.

Guild Charter Member

Cynde's gentle and respectful training methods qualified her to become one of the first 50 members of the Pet Professional Guild (PPG), a worldwide organization that provides a professional registry, representation and education to ‘force-free’ pet care providers and the public with an emphasis on building collaboration among ‘force-free’ pet professionals.

Animal Behavior Professional

Cynde is a long-time member of the Association of Animal Behavior Professionals (AABP), an international community of animal behavior technologists strongly committed to non-coercive methods.

Director of an Animal Rescue

Cynde sits on the Board of Directors for Fur-Ever Home, a Southern California animal rescue group, where she also provides pro-bono behavioral consults and evaluations for incoming and fostered dogs and cats.

Author & Writer

Cynde is an active and frequent contributor to several online forums focused on positive training, animal nutrition, and humane awareness. She also writes articles for several nationally-circulated dog-related magazines.