Jack Fields our training director has spent over half of his life in the pursuit of training dogs. His family always had close relationships with their pets and Jack was one of those children who brought home every stray animal; so it was a natural progression for jack to eventually work with animals professionally. While many claim to be “Master Trainers”, Jack prefers the title “Student” as this keeps his cup empty and ready to be filled with new knowledge. He always says dog training is a journey, and it will keep him seeking better ways for the rest of his life. There are many good dog trainers out there who are excellent with dogs, but unfortunately they lack the good people or teaching skills. There are many good teachers out there, with good people skills, but they lack the dog skills. It is rare when you find a dog trainer who excels at both. He is that rare combination of Dog Trainer meets teacher.
Jacks’ career as a professional dog trainer and breeder spans over 24 years. He uses a wide variety of training methods and has trained dogs for a wide variety of roles. Jacks’ experience ranges from puppy development and kennel management to top level sport competition dogs. He has been or is currently employed by numerous city parks and community services programs teaching basic and advanced obedience. Over his career he has trained thousands of dogs and handlers. Jack has trained top level sport competition dogs in both the American and German style shows. He has been a club helper for severalSchutzhund clubs, and a trial helper.
In 1995 he worked as a helper for the North WesternRegional Championships. Having the opportunity to study under some of Americas’ “Schutzhund” greats (Dean Calderon, Less Flores) he has had the opportunity to work with several dogs that have represented the United States at the Schutzhund World Championships. Jack has also worked Police Dogs, and was a Decoy for the Western States Police Dog Trails in both 1996/97 and was picked for the Decoy team to work the Western States Police Dog Championships.
Mr. Fields is a certified Wheel Chair Assistance dog trainer and is involved in the selection, testing and training of wheel chair assistance dogs and Social Therapy Dogs as the Northern California Training Director for Canine Support Teams. Canine Support Teams offers Assistance dogs to people in need free of charge. Jack was part of the team that developed the animal assisted therapy dog program in Tracy California named Paws with Cause. An origination that uses dogs to help facilitate the recovery of patients and to use dogs in rehabilitation settings. Jack trained and certified the first program dog, and continues to oversee and consult for the origination now called Paws for Friends.
In 1997 Jack worked with his first Search and Rescue dog. A Pit Bull named Dakota. Always being one for the underdog Jack worked closely with the handler to ensure her success as Pit Bulls are not a breed normally associated with Search and Rescue. Dakota had over 100 deployments in her career and worked high profile cases such as the Laci Peterson case and was handpicked by FEMA and NASA for the Space Shuttle Columbia Recovery Mission, the team received numerous awards for their work. Dakota and handler are also featured in Magazines, and on an Animal Planet TV special.
Jack is a consultant for ICF (Institute for Canine Forensics), as well as CSST (Canine Specialized Search Teams: a resource of the Santa Clara county Sheriff’s/ medical examiner-coroner’s office). After working with several Search and Rescue Dogs Jack realized how vital this life saving work was and decided this is something he would like to do with his own dog. He says “It is one thing to train and consult; it is something very different to be the one behind the leash”. Jack is now a Certified Search Dog Handler with his Rottweiler Java through CARDA (California Rescue Dog Association). Java is one of about 5 Rottweilers in the United States to be certified in Search and Rescue at the current time (another breed not normally associated with Search and rescue). Jack or dogs he has trained have been deployed on high profile cases such as the Xiana Fairchild search, the Sandra Cantu search and the Gelardo case. Jack also has worked with and consulted for Disaster dogs for FEMA Task Force 3 out of Menlo Park. He was a lead instructor for SARCON (Nevada State Search and Rescue Conference) and has been selected as a lead instructor for SAREX (California State Search and Rescue conference). Jack has consulted, trained or given workshops for numerous county and or state agencies. When it comes to Search and Rescue Jack is sought after as a problem solver and has a history of helping teams get back on track. His unique methods and deep understanding of the dog human relationship makes him highly sought after no matter what the SAR genre.
In the private sector jack has given demonstrations and provides education programs for a Varity of public and private institutions from schools and day camps to the Boy Scouts of America with a focus on children's bite prevention programs, dog awareness, and dog training as a career for career days. He has given workshops in many different aspects of dog training from Schutzhund to Search and Rescue.
Jack consults, tests and helps to rehabilitate dogs for several animal rescue organizations like East of Eden, People for Pets, Smiley Dog Rescue and Fotos dog Rescue to list a few. It seems like Jack is always looking for another cause to help out with. He is that kind of guy.
Mr. Fields is considered an expert “dog character witness” by the California Judicial System and Jacks’ dog articles have been published internationally, and at the current time he is a regular contributor to The Total Rottweiler magazine. Jack has been instrumental in training the trainer and has launched many a dog trainers training career.
Jack has trained a lot of dogs, since 1996 it has been his only career; it has been all about the dogs. In his journey he has accomplished many things, but if you ask him he will say “I’m still learning how to do this stuff. His diverse dog back ground and excellent people skills helps bring a balance and deeper understanding to everyone who trains with him. His knowledge of the different training methods and his ability to understand dogs allows him to custom tailor training programs to the clients’ unique needs.
