Get to know more about Shannon Malmberg
As an avid runner, Shannon began her dog training journey in 1988 by volunteering with Project Safe Run, a personal protection-dog organization for women athletes, while she completed degrees in journalism and political science at the University of Oregon.
Upon graduation Shannon moved to Vancouver and worked as a civilian decoy with the Vancouver Police Dog Squad from 1991 until 2003: a “hired bad-guy” to assist in the training of young patrol dogs in tracking and criminal apprehension. Hiding in dumpsters, running down dark alleyways, and getting bitten by German Shepherds gave her an insight into working with high drive dogs and dog aggression.
It was here Shannon truly got the dog training bug.
She founded her company Zen Dog Canine Training Ltd. in 2002, teaching dogs and their people across Vancouver and the lower mainland. To date she has worked with close to 10,000 clients on a broad range of issues from puppy raising to behavioural cases, and all things in between.
As a professional dog coach, Shannon is enthusiastic and creative, committed to teaching in a way that is positive for both humans and dogs. She has a gift for bringing dogs and their people closer together while meeting the needs of each client she works with. Shannon stays current with science-based methods and is a lifelong student in all things dog.
My Great Dog Story
She tirelessly attends multiple seminars and on-line coursework a year, getting the opportunity to work with some of the world's leading dog trainers in developing her own craft. Shannon is driven by her passion to learn more and do better by the dogs she lives and works with. She also has a keen interest in building relationships through toy/tug play, and understanding canine nutrition, fitness and body conditioning, rounding out her understanding of dogs' needs.
Shannon is recommended by breeders, veterinarians, rescue organizations and related industry peers for the work she does. She currently shares her life with two amazing border collies and can be found in the agility ring or out in nature.
About the company
The company targets specific classes and personal coaching for rescue dogs, as well as reactive dogs, puppies, adolescent and adult dogs, honouring their unique stages and transitions in life. Zen Dog is committed to positive reinforcement-based strategies when working with clients and their dogs and seeks to engage the learner with effective game-based methods so that learning is fun for all.
What do Dog Owners think?
I had the good fortune of attending Shannon's classes and also had multiple private sessions. Shannon is extremely knowledgable and passionate about dogs/dog training. She is first class!
Very happy with the training, tools and help that Shannon provided during our one on one sessions. She gave me so much info on behaviour and was very patient with every question we had. I feel like I have so much more confidence with my reactive Daisy , and slowly we will be able to influence and correct her behaviour issues. Highly recommend , her follow-up with emails/ videos and website were all excellent . Thanks Shannon!
Shannon is the best! More than 12 years ago, I was searching out a dog trainer, after purchasing a 'wild child' 6 month old German Shepherd puppy. Lucky for us, we found Zen Dog Training and Shannon has been with us every step of the last 12 years! We still do training as often as possible and keep learning all the time! Thanks to Shannon's gentle guidance and coaching, we are a great team!
We had a great training experience with Shannon! Our focus was to work on mild reactivity, focus and recall, and most of all to build a stronger bond with our rescue dog and explore awesome things we can do together. She taught us what we needed and more, is very thorough and a wonderful teacher! Highly recommend
We went through puppy kindergarten, grade 1, and grade 2 with Shannon and cannot recommend her classes enough! Her patient and positive approach to training has absolutely helped us through some growing pains as new puppy parents. We left each course with the confidence to build on our pup's training and navigate ongoing behaviour with a supportive approach that truly has enhanced our relationship with our pup.
I am so happy we chose Zen Dog Training with Shannon!! We did the puppy classes, grade one, grade two and now we are moving to skills and drills! It’s so exciting to see where my pup started and where we are now. Shannon is very knowledgeable and she does not only teach commands and obedience, but also how to bond with your dog. Not only I really enjoy the classes, but I feel supported as a first time dog owner. Thank you Shannon!
We can’t say enough about Shannon and Zen Dog training. Earl of Oxford has successfully completed Puppy Kindergarten and we have now moved outside for more in Puppy Grade 1. Thanks for sharing your knowledge, patience and tips with us. The other added bonus of working with Shannon for puppy school was you get access to the Simply Natural shop and the expertise from Charmaine, Elizabeth and Caroline. We had first hand thoughts and tips on nutrition, grooming, vet visits and more. All made easier if you needed anything after the class from what we had learned, you could buy before heading home. Win Win. Shout out to all! Earl has many more classes ahead, as we - thanks!
Shannon is a professional, understanding and extremely knowledgeable trainer! I’ve had dogs my whole life but didn’t realize that there was so much more to learn about bringing up a well behaved and happy dog. My dog has learnt many useful habits from her class and he loved every second of it. Highly highly recommend!
My Cavalier, Pippin, and I did Shannon's Puppy Kindergarten and Puppy Grade One classes. Both were great. I appreciated the small size and indoor setting of Kindergarten, and the chance to play on some agility equipment as well as learning some basics. Puppy Grade One was outdoors - that made it much easier to translate the exercises to the real world. Shannon is a great teacher - patient with both the dogs and the humans, always willing to answer questions and tailor suggestions to your specific breed of puppy, and sends out weekly lessons and videos that we can review. I highly recommend her classes.
Shannon is a master. Her alternative methods make her training very special and unique. She empowers the dog and the owner to have a healthy relationship based on respect for one another, and choices, versus fear-based training. I highly recommend Shannon if you are getting a new puppy or trying to integrate a second dog into your home. The education she provides will last a lifetime.
I was really impressed by the depth and breadth of knowledge by Shannon and her assistant Isabelle. They really covered all the bases and were awesome in keeping calm in the class (hard with so many puppies around!) and Mugi (@pekoe_and_mugi) really benefited from every class. We took the Puppy Kindergarten, and we're definitely going to take Grade One! (and likely Grade Two, and further). Built an excellent foundation for him to become a better pup. My only qualm is the size of class (with all the humans too!) in the size of the where the course takes place, but the pet store (Simply Natural Raw Pet Foods) have experts in dog nutrition and it was awesome to get their feedback about food from them throughout the course. So a pro and a con for this, and it's up to the handlers to decide if that'll impact their experience. Made for keeping our pup under control but it's also good training for him.
Remy and I love coming to Saturday classes! Shannon is knowledgeable and kind. We trust her expertise. Saturdays are a wonderful way to supplement our own training and stimulating for my dog :)
