I was born in Istanbul on 19 December 1986. Since my childhood I always dreamt of working in a dog related sector, as this was the one that interested me the most.
 

    When I was a child I used to read many books about dogs, ask endless questions to veterinarians, dog owners and trainers.

    However, exercises with my Magyar Vizsla were my first actual dog training experience in the year 2000. I'm grateful to Jessy for everything she taught me. My milestone, I will always remember you...

    My first "job" was walking a dog, when I was only 13 years old. Many dogs were my friends; I was taking them out for walks, playing with them, and teaching them some skills during the years of my high school studentship. Yet, if I wanted to become a professional, I knew I needed to improve my communication skills with dogs, learn everything about them, and be able to understand them. Only in this way I could acquire the necessary abilities for helping dogs and their owners. Later on, my studies of Biology started at Akdeniz University, in Antalya.

    My aim, however, was becoming a professional only in ethology of dog. For this, I considered it essential, learning the most accurate information about communication in dogs, their psychology and training techniques. I felt that biology wasn't very intriguing for me, all in all, it was a main science branch about all aspects of all living creatures, not a specific section limited to the behaviors and physiology of dogs only. I froze my registration in Biology and enrolled in Anadolu University's Veterinary Laboratory Sciences department. Shortly after that I started the Stardogs Positive Dog Trainers Academy. The academy was founded by Yiannis Arahovitis (himself a former student of Turid Rugaas and Bob Bailey). I am offering my services professionally since completing the course in 2009. I graduated from the Anadolu University as a Veterinary Technician in 2010.

   I have been attending to many seminars and workshops for many years. The topics include but not limited to dog health, dog psychology, assistance and therapy dogs, cynology, conformation judging, breeding, human relations, "canine good citizen" evaluation, dog show handling, agility, frisbee, etc.

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    In 2016 I've successfully passed the examinations provided by the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers (ccpdt.org), and obtained the CPDT-KA and CBCC-KA titles. I am the first and only person who has ever obtained both of these titles at once in Turkey.

    Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers (CCPDT) is not a course or training facility, but an independent council that assesses the professionalism of the individuals and grants the CPDT-KA and CBCC-KA titles to who passes the exams successfully.
 

• CPDT-KA (Certified Professional Dog Trainer - Knowledge Assessed) The domains of the exam are instruction skills, learning theory, ethology, animal husbandry and equipment. Passing score is 193 correct answers out of 250 questions. I am one of the first persons who sat for this exam from Turkey ever. My scores were 196 on March 2013 and 233 on March 2016. CPDT-KA certificates are valid for 3 years, then must be renewed. 
   

 

• CBCC-KA (Certified Behavior Consultant Canine - Knowledge Assessed)
  The domains of the exam are applied behavior analysis, consulting skills and best practices, ethology, body language, and observational skills, health, development and life stages, biology and anatomy, and scientific method. Passing score is 138 out of 180 questions. I became the first and only person who sat for and passed this exam from Turkey ever. As of January 2016 there were only 126 CBCC-KA certificants worldwide, I became the 127th by passing the exam successfully by June 2016. CBCC-KA certificates are valid for 5 years, then must be renewed.
  
   

    These titles can not be held for a lifetime once passing the exam. Cerfiticants must re-certificate before the end of the valid period for their titles, by sitting for and passing the exams again or submitting 36 CEUs (Continuing Education Units) at least. CEUs are gained by attending to seminars, webinars and conferences which are accredited by the CCPDT (1 hour of education = 1 CEU).
For further information please visit the CCPDT website.

 



     I am active in dog conformation shows. Some of the dogs I've handled at shows finished their Turkish Champion and Turkish Grand Champion titles. I am also an FCI/KIF registered breeder of Papillons (www.papillonturkey.com) and Labradors (www.labradorist.com). Some of the puppies I've bred are sold to some families and breeders in the USA.

Agility is the dog sport I'm interested in. 
The achievements we've got in Agility so far are:

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• At the first Agility competition in Turkey ever, on December 23rd 2012, Yuki got a "successful" note.
   

• At the 1st National Agility Championship on December 13th 2015, Mayday got placed 3rd in A1 Jumping Large category, in Istanbul.
   

• At the 2nd National Agility Championship on April 17th 2016, Yuki got the 1st place in A1 Agility Large and 3rd place in A2 Jumping Large,  in Istanbul.
   

• Yuki got placed 6th in 15, in A1 Agility Large on 15-16 July 2016, in Athens.
   

• Yuki got placed 8th in 21, in A1 Agility Large on 3-4 December 2016, in Athens.
   

• At the 3rd National Agility Championship on July 30th 2017, Millie got the best result amongst all (13) competitors and received the trophy, in Istanbul.
   

• Yuki got the 1st place with a clean run in A1 Agility Large at the National Agility Competition within the Ataturk Cup organization on November 12th 2017, in Istanbul. Millie got the 2nd place.
   

• At the 4th National Agility Championship on January 10th 2018, Yuki got the 4th place amongst all competitors. 
   

• Yuki got the 1st place in J1, 2nd place in A1; Fia got the 3rd place in J1 category on February 11th 2019 at Valentine's Day Cup in Istanbul.

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     I am currently the dog trainer of the character "Pascal" for the TV serie "Yargı", winner of Emmy 2023, known as "Judgement" or "Family Secrets" internationally.

     I live in Istanbul with my pets Millie (Golden Retriever born in 2010), Fia (Papillon born in 2017), LaLa (Papillon, born in 2019), and Eno (Papillon, born in 2023).

🐾Pawprints on my heart:

Jessy      (Magyar Vizsla        Dec.1999 - 01.Jul.2000)

Peerless  (Golden R. Mix        Sept.2000 - Apr.2003)
Schumi   (Golden R. Mix        21.June.2002 - Feb.2003
Mayday   (Border Collie         04.Feb.2011 - 18.May.2021) 
Yuki        (Golden Retriever   28.Mar.2007 - 04.Mar.2022)
Vanilya   (Our beloved cat     Unknown - 11.Mar.2023)