Duke Ferguson
NePoPo® Gold Certified Professional Dog Trainer
Cetified High Performance Coach
I was born with a passion for the outdoors and animals both wild and domestic. I have worked with dogs since I was in diapers but at the age of 12, I knew I wanted to work with animals. I have been training dogs for hunting and retrieving since the age of 13.
As soon as I graduated from high school I attended College to become a Fish and Wildlife Technician and Conservation Officer.
While attending The Atlantic Police Academy’s Conservation Enforcement program in PEI, I was placed as a Conservation Officer in Nova Scotia where I had the privilege to work with the departments K9 Unit. It was one of the best experiences of my life and increased my desire to work with dogs at all levels.
I am a graduate of Animal Behaviour Canine College in California where I studied Canine Behaviour and became certified.
In 2005 I graduated from Canada West Canine Centre in BC where I studied all levels of obedience, utility, kennel management, temperament testing, dog care, behaviour problems, personal protection, attack dog training, police k9, support dog training, tracking, detection training (drugs, bombs), security and guard dog training. Upon graduating from Canada West Canine Centre I received a certification in Canine Obedience & Kennel Management as well as becoming a certified Master Trainer.
My fourth certification in dog training was at the No Limitations School for Dog Trainers now called Sit means Sit in Colorado and Las Vegas. While there I became certified in the specialized humane use of a remote collar.
I've spent the past 27 years studying dog training methods and applications from some of the best dog trainers and schools around the world and continue to do so.
I am the first Canadian to certify in the use of the K9 BSD (Behaviour Shaping Device) for passive alert training for scent detection dogs.
My desire to continue my education brought me to Belgium in 2015 where I attended Bart Bellon's NePoPo School for dog trainers. For three weeks I studied and trained one on one with Bart and Michael Bellon. After passing all tests I became a certified NePoPo® Gold trainer.
I am the creator of Dog Training Genesis, a comprehensive, interactive step-by-step dog training and rehabilitation video training program that is helping people all over the world produce great training results with their dogs.
I am the owner of Unleashed Potential K9 Academy® where I train and coach students in my professional dog trainer certification. I love to help dog trainers reach a higher level of performance in all areas of their lives.
Duke’s Blog:
How to Fit a “Dominant Dog Collar” for a Reactive Dog
In this article, I want to show you how to properly fit a dominant dog collar, or what I simply call a slip lead. This type of collar is highly effective for calming reactive dogs, especially those who are leash reactive or tend to freak out around other dogs. It’s a great tool to help your dog … [Read More...] about How to Fit a “Dominant Dog Collar” for a Reactive Dog
Building Confidence in Soft-Mouthed Dogs: A Training Session with Koal
Hey there, it’s Uncle Duke from Unleashed Potential. Today, I want to share an actual training session I had with Koal when he was about a year old. Now, Koal is doing great, but he is a soft dog and back then, he struggled with his retrieves. He was hesitant and not very assertive, especially … [Read More...] about Building Confidence in Soft-Mouthed Dogs: A Training Session with Koal
Building Confidence in Nervous Dogs: Tackling Food Bowl Anxiety
Hey there, it’s your trainer and coach, Uncle Duke from Unleashed Potential. Today, I want to address a common issue many dog owners face: dogs being nervous of different tings and sounds. We normally think about loud sounds like guns and fireworks, but some dogs are nervous of metal food bowls or … [Read More...] about Building Confidence in Nervous Dogs: Tackling Food Bowl Anxiety