About

Julie Schmitt, a Guide Dog Mobility Instructor (GDMI) and a Victoria Stilwell Positively Dog Trainer (VSPDT), has been a professional dog trainer for over sixteen years. Julie’s goal is to educate dog owners that having well-behaved dogs is a life-long process that can be enjoyable, rewarding and easily achieved. She will give you the tools to begin this process and continue to guide you along the way.  She believes positive dog training methods are most humane and effective and that these very same practices can be applied to improve a person’s relationship with family members, friends and coworkers alike.

Julie’s career began teaching basic and obedience classes at a Humane Society in Northern California. After working at the Humane Society, Julie joined Animal Behavior and Training Associates as the District Training Manager where she supervised and trained all associate dog trainers, taught obedience classes and conducted private, in-home dog training sessions.

In 1996, Julie began training guide dogs at Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc., in San Rafael, California. She completed a three year intensive apprenticeship and is now a licensed Guide Dog Mobility Instructor in the State of California. She is also a member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers.

In 2002, Julie and her family moved to San Diego where she established Out N’ About Dog Training. Most recently she was privileged to be approved as Victoria Stilwell Positively Dog Trainer by Victoria Stilwell herself, star of Animal Planet’s hit TV series It’s Me or the Dog and a passionate advocate for positive reinforcement training methods.

Julie lives in La Mesa with her husband, who is a veterinarian, and their two daughters. They also have two terrific dogs, a fish and a gecko. Julie has a passion for her work and a love for animals that is evident in her training style.