Meet Doug & Elizabeth Simpson | Co-founders of Tenderfoot Natural Dog Training.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Doug & Elizabeth Simpson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Doug & Elizabeth, what do you attribute your success to?

Authenticity. We love what we do, and we do what we love. It shows. We developed a unique method of dog training based on relationship, not harsh devices or food.  We have been called the missing link in dog training.

Many of our clients are tired of having to use food to get their dogs to listen, or being told they must use a harsh device on their precious dog in order to gain compliance. 

We developed our own technique of dog training that appeals to people who don’t want a relationship based on food, fear or harsh devices. We teach people how to build their relationships on: love, trust and respect, which is something they can carry into their human relationships as well. When we help people become more self-aware that translates to their communication with their dog, and by connecting with their dog they can say less and communicate more.

We are forthright and honest in our assessments of our clients and their dogs. It serves no one to dance around the issues. They know they will get the truth and be given great tools to remedy their problems. We are not here to sell them on our methods – the proof is in the changes they see in their dogs.

Our goal is to prevent dogs from entering the shelter system and staying in their homes. When our clients experience great changes in their dogs and in their relationships with them, the dogs have a much higher chance of staying home for life. It’s not about getting a better treat or harsher device, it’s about getting a better relationship and our clients appreciate that.

We get many clients who have trained with other methods but find Tenderfoot Natural Dog Training answers their needs quickly, and with simple common sense, Too many methods try to make rocket science out of dog training, it really isn’t that tough. It only takes moments to minutes to teach a dog to walk nicely on the leash – without food or harsh devices. People love learning the science behind what we do, and at the same time find the results magical.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?

We covered much of this in the introductory question. Fundamentally, as a husband and wife team we developed our own method of dog training that does not rely on food, fear or harsh devices to succeed. Tenderfoot Natural Dog Training is based on relationship which is built on: love, trust and respect. Love is the easy part, trust and respect must be earned for the life of the relationship. It works on all ages, breeds and issues. 

Being a married couple and working together has its challenges, but that is also what makes us great. We balance each other out and make a really good team.  We each started in very different worlds, but each one involved lots of time spent with animals. One of us riding in the horse show world on the east coast, and the other riding horses on the farm and befriending all of the farm animals. We came together because of a very special dog, and she has been our inspiration for the many decades we devoted to helping dogs with their people problems.

We studied natural horsemanship using the methods of Buck Brannaman, Pat & Linda Parelli, Gawani Pony Boy, Leslie Desmond and Marty Martins, all based on the philosophies of Ray Hunt, and Bill & Tom Dorrance. This was truly an eye-opening experience as it was amazing to see how quickly an untrained horse could understand and accept the persons intentions. It is all about relationship – understanding the animal so they can understand you.

Our home is in the Colorado foothills where we’ve spent decades living with a multitude of species: dogs, cats, parrots, horses, llamas, goats, turkeys, rabbits, et all and quickly learned that all animals speak the same language. We applied our knowledge of relationship-based training to all of the animals we had and it was fascinating to see how it worked with everyone. We also study wild animals: Mtn. Goats, Elk, Deer, Coyote, Moose etc., and realized they all understand each other perfectly well, because they all speak the same language.

We grew tired of seeing so many people using harsh devices on their dogs to control their behaviors, or plying them with endless treats in an effort to teach. So we got to work developing Tenderfoot Natural Dog Training, and we’ve never looked back. We came up with 3 foundation drills that can be applied to all dogs and is quickly understood by them. Doing our first three drills alone will change your relationship with your dog, and these drills are the foundation for solving any issue you might encounter.

We always wanted to run a rescue, but realized that we could save more dogs by reaching and educating their families so they wouldn’t end up in the shelter system. We recently produced a 4+ hour video on our methods in the effort to reach as many dogs and their families we can. Tenderfoot Natural Dog Training is our attempt to be proactive about helping the millions of animals who end up in shelters.

Dog training has gone through many life cycles in popularity, from shock ’em, pinch ’em and choke ’em, to ‘never say no’ and rain food on their heads. We don’t believe in any of that, and found that taking the middle road is ideal when you don’t have to go to extremes. Say less and do more.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.

The Boulder area offers plenty of entertainment for all. After wining and dining at the many restaurants in the area (our favorite is ‘1914’ in Niwot), we might take them for a photo shoot at Coot Lake for birds of prey, or to a Buffalo Ranch nearby. Hiking in Alpine tundra isn’t far from home and observing the elk rut or baby moose is always memorable. Limitless trails for hiking with their dogs or skiing at Eldora in wintertime. Always fun to ride horses in Rocky Mtn National Park or hang out in Estes Park to shop. Taking them to hear music at the Bluegrass Festival in Lyons makes for a great weekend. Colorado is not short on fun.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?

Our methods are founded on Natural Horsemanship, and we are deeply grateful to: Buck Brannaman, Pat & Linda Parelli, Gawani Pony Boy, Ray Hunt, Marty Martins, Leslie Desmond, Tom & Bill Dorrance, and every single dog and their families who have come to teach us, as much as we have taught them. We are also indebted to all of the animals in our lives: horses, llamas, goats, parrots, cats, dogs, ferrets, rabbits, turkeys et all who have confirmed for us that all animals speak the same language, it is the humans who are aren’t paying attention.

Website: www.tenderfoottraining.com

Facebook: Tenderfoot Training

Image Credits
The picture of us walking in the woods – credit: Marianne Martin All other pictures- credit: Tenderfoot Training