Vivian S. Tjeng, CPDT-KA, ABCCT, ABCDT

Founder, Certified Dog & Cat Trainer

It all started with a dog named timmy

I have always had an immense love for all types of animals.  I primarily grew up with dogs, but I also had heavy interactions with cats and waterfowl from a very young age. 

After spending a few years exploring options in the medical field, I turned my focus onto my own dogs.  They were struggling with issues many of my pet parents experience today.  I had one dog in particular, an American Eskimo Dog named Timmy, that proved to be my biggest challenge. Smart as a whip, but very distrustful and combative towards strangers and other animals. His cautious nature not only made others nervous, but the stress of it all also lowered his and my quality of life.

Once I started spending my spare time on Animal Planet, most of the time watching trainer Victoria Stilwell from It's Me or the Dog work her magic on troubled dogs, I realized that I didn’t have to live such a careful life, that I could change things for me and Timmy and his pack. It wasn’t long before I decided working with animals full time was where I needed to be.

How I got my start as a pet trainer

I attended Animal Behavior College in 2006, graduated the following year and became a certified dog trainer.  After participating in the HSPCA's training program as a dog training extern, I was hired by the PETCO in League City, TX, in the spring of 2007 to lead their dog training program.

My contributions in the pet training industry

By 2009 I worked to shape PETCO's local dog training program as a district dog trainer and company dog training mentor.  My job was to not only provide examples for training to pet families but to also educate other trainers in learning theory and effective dog-handler communication.  

When I left the company at the end of 2016, four years after becoming Alief Petco’s lead trainer, I had by then worked with hundreds of clients and several pet adoption groups from all over Houston and surrounding areas.  I offered my expertise through group classes, one-on-one sessions and AKC Canine Good Citizen certificate training.

Today, I remain a practicing dog trainer and am a mentor for student trainers at Animal Behavior College.  I am also a member of the Association of Professional Dog Trainers and am additionally recognized by the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers. I regularly take continuing education courses from reknown dog trainers and behaviorists worldwide.

In 2018, after participating in a nearly year long cat behavior program with ABC, I officially became a certified cat trainer. You can frequently find me at the Sugar Land Animal Shelter either training and socializing the cats that live there.

How the holistic concept for Wholistic Woofers & Co. was born

As I mention in the video, it’s important to treat pet training as a holistic experience.  One needs to find the right set of dog obedience skills, and gain an understanding of how exercise, proper feeding, emotional balance, socialization and enrichment activities create a happy pet.  At the same time, one should look onto himself or herself for consistency, patience, persistence, empathy and optimism for the sake of the pet.

Over the years I encountered again and again this lack of balance in many of my families' relationships.  Sometimes this happened for reasons beyond anyone's control.  (These were the ones I would refer out.)  But more often it was due to missing ingredients in the holistic training process.  Many times the breakdown would be environmental (significantly limited space, excess distractions), physical (inadequate exercise, bodily discomfort), maybe nutritional (which may also lead to bodily discomfort like allergies, gas pains or jitters).  The rest of the time, however, the breakdown occurred from underdeveloped human-pet interaction, comprehension and socialization.

The limitations at my previous job made it hard for some of my dogs and their families to achieve the balance they needed.  There were space concerns and excess distractions, which punctuated stress in certain dogs. But there was also this sense many of these families needed something more personal, quiet, and relevant to their home situation.  When a pet cannot translate what they learn in class to their home life and vice versa, it brings down optimism and patience for both parties. Training and relationships suffer as a result.  In-home training was not a service I could offer while a PETCO trainer, so there was not as much I could do for these families. I knew that needed to change.

Because I wanted to to help make training and relationship-building fun, relaxing and nurturing and nourishing, all the while increasing compliance amongst my pet families by giving them options to suit their needs, I created Wholistic Woofers & Co.

There’s a good reason photography and treats are part of my services

Even though dog training was my main business, I moonlighted as a professional photographer and a custom confectioner.  When putting Wholistic Woofers together, I had in mind the concept of combining these ventures under one roof.  (Obviously, I traded in my confection recipes for healthier dog and cat-friendly ones.)

As for how these are relevant to the dog training process?  In a way they do contribute to my overall goal.  The photography is a way to help pet parents see how amazing their pets are when captured in the right light.  Not to mention, it's another way to test a pet's ability to sit, down, stay and focus. 

The treats are something to supplement the training process.  You want something that is healthy yet delicious for the pet to eat.  Food is a prime motivator for a majority of dogs and often cats. When used properly, it can supercharge the training process.

I also have thrown in pet cake baking into the mix.  It's more of a feel-good item than anything else.  Because I'm an artist at heart, I wanted to still be able to work my cake decorating magic in a way that was safe and healthy for dogs and cat.  Plus, I found many of my clients were disappointed in the fact that Houston offered few options in this area.  So for me, it was logical for my company to fill that need.

The bonus here is that as a PETCO employee, studying pet nutrition was a requirement, so I got very familiar with what to look for in my pet foods. I expanded my knowledge in the area by getting a certificate in pet nutrition with ABC. I continue to stay abreast of nutrition news, specifically through sources like Dogs Naturally Magazine and Planet Paws with Rodney Habib and Dr. Karen Becker.

What can we expect to see from the company in the future?

My goal is to expand on what we already have to offer. Specifically, I want for residents of Sugar Land and the surrouding areas to have a unique set of programs to explore. AKC Community CGC & Urban CGC, AKC Trick Dog, Canine Freestyle and Fit Dog Club are among options our dog training students can consider. For our feline families, we hope to eventually offer cat education classes to complement our existing cat in-home training program.

We have now secured a brick and mortar training center in Missouri City! You can now train with us one-on-one at 1100 FM 1092 Rd. (Murphy Rd.) As a perk, you can now purchase our preferred training equipment, foods and treats and calming aids on the spot.

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