Training and working with dogs has been the trajectory of Martha’s life since she was 16 years old! Martha loves working with dogs AND their people, and is always fascinated and awed by these incredible companion animals. Dog training is an ever-growing career and there is always more to learn and to improve as a professional. Martha holds a BA in Psychology from Grand Valley State University, where she also studied the psychology/biology of domestic animals, and Spanish. Martha is certified in the Cynopraxis/Principles of LIMA and as a Professional Dog Trainer and through the IACP, and is certified as an evaluator for the AKC Canine Good Citizen testing.
Martha is the owner of Kim’s K-9 along with her husband, Justin, three sons and three beloved dogs, an english springer spaniel, a plott hound, and a black lab.
Kim is blessed to be able to follow her heart's passion: dogs. Now retired, she was once the kid who always brought strays home, and her love for animals has only grown. Kim has been happily married for over 30 years, has two grown children, two furry grand-dogs, and two amazing grandkids. She has shared her life with many truly awesome dogs. Currently, she has one adopted dog - a tiny beagle named Squirt.
Though Kim is no longer a part of the team at Kim's K-9, her impact is felt every day through the knowledge, skills, and values she's passed on. We're grateful for everything she's taught us and wish her the best in her retirement!
Jolene has a beautiful heart and has discovered a huge inner strength in leading the dogs through her calmness and joy. She has big aspirations to go into the Veterinary field and is so excited about learning everything she can about dogs in the meantime. She is a calmness in the storm, and a stable rock when chaos begins!
At home, she takes pride in her beautiful son, Chester, who is five years old and full of spunk!
Spencer has an enormous love and passion for animals and joined our team from his amazing work experience at John Ball Zoo. He has taken this education, knowledge and passion for animals at large and decided to funnel it in for you and your beloved pets. That being said, at home his life is still a zoo! He keeps bunnies, cats, lizards, among many other types of animals. This guy just can’t get enough!
Alanna is one of our full-time superstars! She leads staff, clients and dogs with kindness and an enormous smile every day. She is going on five years with Kim’s K-9 and we don’t know what we’d do without her!
Alanna’s favorite activities are doing one-on-one activities with the dogs like personal playtimes and hikes, as well as bringing out her creativity to organize our social media! She’s an amazing example of integrity and authentically cares about every dog that steps through our doors.
In her free time, she enjoys sharing the snuggles of her mom’s fur-babies, Nina the husky, and Rasta the husky-mix.
Sam is an amazing example of talent-in-the-rough. He graduated in 2021 from National K-9 Academy under Kim’s K-9 and is recognized by NK-9 as a Professional Dog Trainer and is certified through the IACP. He is passionate about animals and has an amazing gift for seeing each dog’s uniqueness and working with every client’s personal needs and goals. Sam works tirelessly towards helping dogs and their owners find joy and fun in their relationship through solid training and education. He has a small yorky-mix dog at home named Mac.
Beck is an amazing addition to our training team! She comes from an extensive dog background, mentored under Martha here at Kim’s K-9, and is currently completing her BA in Psychology while serving our dogs and clients through reliable obedience work. She is a certified Associate Dog Trainer under the IACP and a valued addition to our social media team.
In her spare time, Beck is incredibly creative and can not keep herself busy enough with any new hobby she can think of! Her creativity has added so much value to the company already and we can’t wait to see what great ideas she comes up with next! At home, she has three little family dogs - Mable, Chewy and Pip, as well as her two sugar gliders, Chunks and JuJu.
