Andy Winther grew on a dairy farm in Denmark. Andy gained experience in animal training at 10 years old through equestrian handling and horse training skills. Horse training quickly became a passion for Andy; at 20 years old, Andy was hired as a rider at Denmark’s largest Dressage facility, Blue Hors Dressage. Over the next 3 years, Andy worked with some of Europe’s most prestigious horses, riders and trainers, and soon thereafter, Andy was lured to the US to train horses in New Hampshire and West Palm Beach, Florida.
A riding accident cut his equestrian career short; Andy entered college seeking new horizons, and obtained 3 degrees. Training animals continued to burn brightly; in the summer of 2010, Andy adopted a Whippet and began to adapt his successful equestrian training techniques to dogs. The experience provided new understanding, insight and excitement to training, so in 2012, Andy sought a greater challenge by obtaining a border collie to elevate his skills and sensitivity to a new level.
Andy’s new-found enthusiasm is in understanding K9 motivation, teaching dogs to think (a/k/a tricks), competing in agility sports and continuous improvement. Andy’s background as a dressage rider has provided an invaluable foundation for understanding the do’s and don’ts of dog training.
For both horses and dogs, Andy emphasizes that any animal behavior that looks fancy to us starts with really simple and fun beginnings for them.
