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Wynona Karbo, CPDT-KA

Wynona graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a Bachelor’s Degree in Experimental Psychology from Reed College in Portland, Oregon. She is a Certified Pet Dog Trainer.

At Reed, Wynona studied under Dr. Allen Neuringer, a well-noted psychologist in the field of experimental analysis of behavior pioneered by B. F. Skinner, the founder of operant conditioning. Skinner invented the operant conditioning chamber which made possible much of the research that clicker training is based on.

During her college years, Wynona volunteered in the Washington Park Zoo’s education outreach program. 

Prior to attending Reed, Wynona completed a year internship at the San Francisco SPCA. She worked in the animal behavior department counseling pet owners about their pets’ behavior problems and training shelter dogs. She also worked in the SPCA’s education department, adoption outreach program, and pet-facilitated therapy program. In the evenings, she assisted with dog training classes at Sirius Dog Training, owned by Ian Dunbar, DVM. Dr. Dunbar is a respected animal behaviorist, author, and the founder of APDT, the Association of Pet Dog Trainers.

After Reed, Wynona worked at the Oregon Regional Primate Center. She spent two years conducting behavioral research on infant rhesus macaques and was listed as a contributor on several journal articles. Wynona the took time off to raise her own human primate, her son, Alex, and started a pet boarding business, the Mutt & Me, B&B. (Her son likes to joke that he was raised by wolves.) Wynona operated this business and fostered dogs for 7 years before moving to Seattle.

Wynona currently lives with her son and two dogs: Xena is a Beagle mix, a former foster dog who became part of the family. Billy is her new rescue dog.

If you are in class or private lesson at Ahimsa with Wynona and would like to contact her specifically about that session, you can email her at wynona@doggiezen.com. For general questions about Ahimsa, please contact us at info@doggiezen.com, call 206-364-4072, or use our contact form.