The Kennel Master

Tommy Doehler has more than a decade of K-9 training and handling experience.

Tommy is currently a federally certified Kennel Master.

He was born and raised in the Rochester, N.Y. area.

In 1997, after enjoying five years on the Webster, New York varsity ice hockey team as a goalie, Tommy graduated from Webster Schroeder High School and enlisted in the United States Marine Corps.

After graduating from boot camp (Parris Island, S.C.) and other professional schools, he was stationed at Camp Lejeune, NC as a military police officer.

While at Camp Lejeune, Tommy was selected to attend the prestigious K-9 program offered for every service at Lackland Air force Base in Texas. He attended and graduated from the military working handler course (equivalent to what other dog trainers call dog training school) after receiving 436 hours of specific dog handler training.

While participating as a K-9 handler at Camp Lejeune, he was selected to work with the United States Secret Service as an explosive K-9 Handler. Tommy worked in protective details that included former U.S. Presidents Bush, Clinton, and former Vice President Gore, as well as numerous heads of state and many other foreign dignitaries.

He attended and graduated from the United States Air Force Phoenix Readiness military working dog course after receiving 96 hours of specific dog handler training.

Tommy was selected to attend the even-more-prestigious military working dog trainer/supervisor course at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, where he graduated from this course after receiving 158.5 hours of specific dog trainer/supervisor training. He says there is no comparison or equivalent he can make to this course in the civilian dog training educational community.

Tommy was promoted, upon completion of the trainer/supervisor course, to the Training Non-Commissioned Officer for the entire Camp Lejeune K-9 section and was in charge of the training for approximately 15 other dog teams at Camp Lejeune.

In September 2001, he was deployed to the Middle East to support American Forces with K-9 detection and patrol capabilities.

Upon finishing his enlistment, he worked with numerous government agencies in the Washington, D.C. area as a K-9 handler. Those agencies included the: Department of Justice, Defense Intelligence Agency, Internal Revenue Service, and Department of Labor.

In December of 2008, Tommy graduated from the Indiana Law Enforcement dual purpose explosive detector dog handler course located at Vohne Liche Kennels. Upon completion of this program, he was deployed to Iraq and worked directly for the Department of Defense, while supporting U.S. ground forces with K-9 support.

Trainer Q&A
Some people have three general thoughts after reading Tommy’s qualifications.  These are a few of the most frequently asked questions:

Q. Do you train normal (family) dogs?
A. The answer is yes, family pets are my only clients.

Q. I own a small dog or a breed of dog that I’m not sure you train. Can you train them?
A. The answer is yes. My ability to train dogs applies to any type dog regardless of breed, size, sex, or behavior issues. I actually like to have a broad mix of clients. If I trained the same type of dog(s) day in and out, it would get pretty boring.

Q. I read that you have a vast majority of your training and experiences in the military and other government agencies. Will you use mean or dominating (boot camp) style training on my little guy?
A. When I hear this I try not to laugh.  The answer is no.  I never have and never will.  Just because I received a specific type of training on a particular issue, it does not mean that I take it as gospel. I have always taken my formal training and adjusted it to my personality and style of training. When you read about my philosophy, watch my news story, and/or more importantly speak to me, you will quickly see that I have a unique personality and approach that allows me to be successful at my profession.