SteveBrooksK9U.com

Sheila took the scenic route to SteveBrooksK9U-—she arrived in March of 2007, after working for 20 years in accounting. But while columns of numbers filled her days, a great love and compassion for dogs always filled her life. Growing up in LA, the Iowa native almost always had a dog of her own—many of them Golden Retrievers.

“I always wanted to work with any animal, but never had the opportunity until recently,” she says. “It came to me much later than I had hoped, but I am finally where I want to be.”

She got to where she wanted to be by graduating with honors in 2006 from Animal Behavior College. While taking classes, Sheila helped lead dog training classes at Petco stores.

Sheila shares SteveBrooksK9U‘s philosophy of positive training. “What satisfies me the most about dog training is providing a healthier way for the dogs and their families to live in harmony,” Sheila says. “It is great to observe the reactions of the owners when they see that their dog has learned manners! It is especially satisfying if they have a dog that they were having difficulty with and they see a ‘new and improved’ pet that they will be able to keep. I love helping the more ‘complex’ dogs because they are the ones who really need us in order to survive from being given up by their owners or euthanized.”

Sheila has been married for 27 years to her high school sweetheart, a retired military veteran, and they have a grown son.

Sheila and her husband have a cat named Sammy and two aquatic turtles, Mr Dobbins and Nooshka. Right now, there’s no dog at Sheila’s home, but she has her hands full at K9U!

Anne has been at SteveBrooksK9U since August of 2006. Her favorite part of the job is finding homes for rescue dogs. Right now, Anne shares her home with three dogs: Belle, a longhaired sheepdog mix; Napoleon, a Chihuahua mix; and Sirius, a longhaired shepherd.

“I like working with dogs because I believe all dogs are good and deserving of loving homes,” she says. “Unfortunately, sometimes people can’t see past a behavior problem. Training can open people’s eyes to the amazing hearts and personalities of their pets, and can help dogs have more stable homes.”

And Anne doesn’t just say it, she wears it: her tattoo proclaims “All animals are equal.”

The LA native was graduated from the University of New Mexico in 2003 with a degree in English and theater. When she’s not at K9U, Anne pursues her other love: acting. She reports that her favorite dog movie is the 1972 caper comedy The Doberman Gang.

Although she’s partial to dogs, Anne also has a horse named Cleo (and some horse training experience).

Steve’s wife, Yasmine, is an integral part of K9U as well as a renowned stylist with 30 years experience in hair, makeup and fashion.

Yasmine was born in Iraq and moved to Chicago when she was 13.  But she didn’t stop there. She worked in London, New York and San Francisco during her tenure as an art director and teacher with the Vidal Sassoon Salon and Academy. She maintains a presence in the beauty industry today through a limited schedule at L Salon on LA’s trendy Beverly Boulevard.

It may surprise you to learn that, although she’s married to one of the country’s foremost dog trainers, cats are Yasmine’s first love. “When I got into dogs, it was a whole different love, especially when I met Steve. He trained my dog—or me, rather!—three times. The rest was history.”

Steve and Yasmine have been together since 1999, and were married in June 2006. Yasmine’s exposure to Steve’s work—and all those dogs—has definitely had an impact on her.

“I fall in love with all the dogs he trains. I don’t want them to leave. Dogs are our family. Learning dog training made me a stronger, more assertive person.”

Yasmine is a big part of the reason K9U has such a serene atmosphere. Her soothing presence adds to the aromatherapy, massage, candles and classical music programs that make SteveBrooksK9U unique among dog training facilities. Says Yasmine, “I have an innate way to relax dogs using my voice and my touch.”

Yasmine’s dog is a pit bull mix who joined Sven on the K9 Fusion CD to sing backup vocals and appears in the K9 Fusion music video.  

As the queen of K9U, Legali helps Steve with training by helping to make the new dogs comfortable, showing them how to act, and generally being the teacher’s pet (and we mean in that in a good way).

Perhaps the most unusual staff member at SteveBrooksK9U isn’t a canine at all. It’s Steve and Yasmine’s cat, Fuego Caliente. He helps by being a great distraction but also a great friend. In fact, Fuego and Legali are bunkmates.