Cathy Bruce has been training her own dogs and studying dog behavior long before becoming a Victoria Stilwell Positively Dog Trainer and a CPDT (Certified Pet Dog Trainer).  After completing a successful career as a singer/actress on Broadway, she decided to pursue fulltime her love of dogs. Seven years ago, she launched a successful in-home dog boarding business where dogs of many different breeds inhabited her house at any given time.  Following an apprenticeship and stint as a Staff Instructor at a dog training school in New York, where she taught classes in Puppy Obedience, AKC Canine Good Citizen Prep, and Competitive Rally Obedience, she then teamed up with long time friend and Animal Planet's Victoria Stilwell to run Dog Trainers of New Jersey.  There she taught in home private lessons for dogs and owners dealing with obedience and behavioral issues.  She continues to attend seminars and training workshops with trainers and behaviorists such as Suzanne Clothier, Ian Dunbar, Turid Rugaas, ethologist Ray Coppinger and Dr. Myrna Milani, to stay up to date on the most current positive based training methods.

Cathy teaches in-home private lessons and group classes for dog owners ranging the gamut from puppy training needs, such as housebreaking, socialization and dealing with destructive behaviors to more serious issues like dog to dog aggression and dog to children relationships.  Her background and specialties include conformation show handling, Puppy Obedience, Advanced Obedience and competitive Rally Obedience training.  Her facility Canine Country Academy, LLC is located in Dacula, GA.



Cathy is a Certified Pet Dog Trainer, Chair of the Member Relations Committee of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT), Chair of the Ethics Committee of the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants (IAABC), certified as an AKC Canine Good Citizen evaluator, and member of both the American Shih Tzu Club and Metropolitan Atlanta Shih Tzu Club.  Recently, she founded the Georgia Dog Trainer Forum, an educational and networking organization that includes professional dog trainers and behaviorists from all over the Atlanta area.  Her personal motto is “changing lives, one dog and one owner at a time.”