Cloud Star announced it will sponsor student scholarships to the Animal Behavior College (ABC), a vocational school that offers online educational and certification programs in dog obedience training and other animal-related careers. Under the agreement, Cloud Star will sponsor four full scholarships during 2024 for the college’s flagship Dog Obedience Instructor Program, a LIMA-compliant curriculum through which students earn their ABC Dog Training Instructor certification. Cloud Star will also sponsor 10 scholarships for ABC’s short-term programs, which focus on specialized areas such as working with shelter pets and pet sitting/dog walking.

The launching of the scholarships marks the expansion of a longstanding relationship between Cloud Star and ABC, said Caitlin Palmieri, brand manager – lifestyle brands, Whitebridge Pet Brands, LLC. Other collaborative activities between the two organizations include: Cloud Star providing ABC trainers with free samples of its training rewards, which are sold under the Pet Botanics and Tricky Trainers brands, and Cloud Star contributing training-related articles to ABC’s alumni newsletter. Additionally, ABC provides training-related content for Cloud Star’s training network, Cloud Star Partners.

“With the addition of the scholarships, we are taking our partnership with the Animal Behavior College to the next level,” Palmieri commented. “Cloud Star is very delighted to support future and current dog trainers in their pursuit of a career at ABC, an esteemed organization that shares our strong belief in the LIMA (Least Invasive Minimally Aversive) approach to training. 

ABC president Steven Appelbaum agreed, adding, “Cloud Star has been a clear supporter of education for as long as we’ve known them. We are excited about the support planned for this year as I believe scholarships will allow even greater numbers of animal lovers to fulfill their dreams of learning how to help pets and the people who love them live their best lives.”

The Cloud Star scholarships will be awarded on the basis of financial need, with recipients being selected by ABC. The college’s comprehensive Dog Obedience Instructor Program, which includes a hands-on externship working with dogs in real-life settings, has seen over 22,000 students graduate and be certified since its inception in 1998.

Students who receive Cloud Star scholarships to ABC’s short-term programs will be able to choose which curriculum they wish to study. The short-term programs are available to students who have completed the ABC Dog Obedience Instructor Program or have comparable dog training education and would like to expand their skill set into additional areas such as Training Shelter Dogs, Teaching Private Lessons, and Dog Massage.

“Cloud Star and ABC are both committed to the idea that training can make a huge difference in the lives of both pets and humans, preventing countless dogs from ending up in shelters,” said Palmieri. “We believe it is important to support both current and future trainers, which is why Cloud Star is offering scholarships for both ABC’s full certification and short-term continuing-education programs. We look forward to continuing and expanding our partnership with ABC in the future.”

https://digitalmag.petbusiness.com/petbusiness/library/item/june_2024/4203720/