by Julia Howe

Liz Weir is the quintessential dog lover. On a beautiful sunny May Day, Weir bounces down her driveway with a bright orange leash casually looped around her neck. Six dogs in the nearby play area are begging for her attention. She greets each one by name as a big and genuine smile sweeps across her face: she is clearly in her element.

"I love animals, I always have," Weir said. "As a kid I wanted a cat so badly that [because nobody else in my family wanted one], I started volunteering at local animal shelters at age 13."

She has been on a roll since. Although she went to school in California for landscape architecture, Weird always knew that animals, specifically dogs and cats, would play a large role in her life.

It all began one day when she took in a stray...

"I just fell in love with this dog right away," Weir said of the pup she rescued off the streets of California, "but she needed some serious training."

Weir was looking for a new kind of dog training, though.

"I didn't like how most of the training techniques I saw involved jerks and tugs," Weil explained. "I was thinking, 'I love my dog, I don't want to hurt her'! I figured there must be a better way."

That's when she discovered clicker training. Clicker training is a non-physical form of dog obedience training that advocates positive reinforcement and corrects undesirable behavior with the sound of a clicker.

"It's the same method they use with killer whales and dolphins," Weir said. "Dogs can only relate a behavior to a consequence for one or two seconds, so if you have a click as a consistent sound, it works really well if you have good timing." She added, "It's especially good for fearful dogs or dogs with bonding issues."

After a few lessons in clicker training, Weir decided to become a certified dog trainer, and in the midst of her graduate studies in landscape architecture, took a six-week course in canine training and earned her certification.

"It was a great program run by two incredible women," Weir said.

After that immersion in the land of dog training, Weir's desire to run her own kennel grew. It didn't take much time to realize her dream.

In July of 2009, Weir and her husband, Garth Kauffman, became the owners of Prima Dogga on Webster Road in Shelburne (formerly O'Neils). With renovations throughout the property and the ability to board up to 22 dogs and eight cats per night, the couple stays busy.

"Sometimes it's more like running a farm," Weir says,  "If you do it right, the dogs go out during certain times, they have a particular feeding schedule, we play with them, we walk them, and we just keep going -  seven days a week."

But she's not complaining.

"I've been working in kennels and doggy daycares for years," Weir explains, "I was so grateful when the opportunity to run my own came along."

Since taking over the kennel, Weir has added doggie daycare as a new service on the 10-acre property. Weir also trains dogs and offers a variety of package options for dog owners. Owners can simply drop their dog off for the day or a few nights, or they can request the special "love" or "play" packages (some dogs need a little extra quality time).

Other changes are being made, too. Kauffman, Weir's husband and business partner, has been converting the kennel from a dingy old dairy barn into a bright, comfortable, clean space for dogs to spend the night.

The kennel has private rooms for dogs with cot-style beds and a couple of large family rooms for dogs that prefer to stay together.

"It's definitely a work in progress," Weird says, "But we're happy with what we've done so far and looking forward to making it even better."

Weir's favorite part of the job?

"Just being around the dogs," She says, "They make me happy and that's what it's all about for me."

To inquire about dog daycare or boarding offerings, you may contact Prima Dogga at 985-2248.