Meet the Owner of Paws in Harmony
Sydney Lupton (CPDT-KA)
Certified Professional Dog Trainer - Knowledge Assessed through the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers
“Born and raised into an animal-filled household, I come from a long line of passionate teachers and animal lovers. From a young age, I always knew I would dedicate my life to dogs — and I have spent the past seventeen years doing exactly that.”
For the past decade I've been studying dog behaviour obsessively — seminars, conferences, mentors, academics, the latest behaviour science.
And for the past six years I've dedicated myself to working closely with some of the best minds in the industry to make sure that when you come to me, I actually have the answers you've been looking for. I am currently a CPDT through the CCPDT.
Paws in Harmony is a love letter to the first dog I ever signed the papers for. Before him, it had just been foster dogs coming in and out of my life.
Hemi was my first ever adopted dog — a senior boy from a cruelty seizure who arrived at my home overwhelmed and completely shut down. In those early days, I was so focused on fixing him that I couldn't really see him. I was doing all the things. Reading all the things. Trying all the things. And we weren't connecting.
It took time (and a lot of humility) to stop trying to fix what I thought was broken and just be with him. And somewhere in that slowness, something shifted. By the end of his time with me, we had developed a deep, quiet trust in one another that I didn't even know was possible.
Hemi passed after a year and a half. He changed everything about how I do this work.
After Hemi, I adopted a fourteen-year-old Bouvier from a cruelty seizure. She had severe arthritis and passed about six months later. I have loved dogs through their hardest chapters and their last ones. I know what it is to grieve a dog you didn't have long enough.
Today I share my life with a rescue dog with a rough past named Wylee — a Norwegian Elkhound I adopted four months ago from one of my own consulting clients. He keeps me honest and humble and surprises me everyday with the massive steps he’s making in his confidence journey.
Why this matters to you,
I tell you all of this because I want you to know that I'm not just someone who studied dogs from the outside.
I've been the guardian who was so focused on fixing the behaviour that I almost missed the dog. I know what it feels like to love an animal who is hard to reach, to try everything and still feel like you're failing, to wonder if you're the problem.
You're not the problem. And neither is your dog.
I’m committed to supporting you and your dog through the hardest parts and the biggest wins.
This work is personal. Every single client I sit with gets everything I have.
Credentials and Continuing Education
For dog behaviour professionals, learning and continuing education is never finished.
We pride ourselves in allotting a large chunk of our time and finances in continuing to keep up to date on the latest behaviour science so that we can continue to support you and your family in the most effective and efficient way possible.
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PunkMutts Seperation Anxiety Masterclass - Social Approach Method (Apr 2026)
Member of the Founders Cohort of Pooch Peacebuilding with Cat Harbord (Ongoing Student 2026)
Attended 2 day In-Person Animal Behaviour Eh? Conference - All Presentations (Nov 2025)
The Crisis of Linear Thinking in Dog Behaviour Cases by Brian Fleming and Cat Harbord - Annual PCT Conference (Oct 2025)
*LEGS Applied Ethology Family Dog Mediation Conference - 2 Presentations (2025)
Pooch Peacekeeping Pro with Cat Harbord (Oct 2024-January 2025)
The Basics of Canine Nutrition with The Science Dog by Linda P Case (Dec 2024)
Sniffing is Lifesaving for Dogs with Laura Donaldson (Nov 2024)
Animal Centered Education (ACE): Understanding Dog Needs and How to Do Freework with Sarah Fisher (Nov 2024)
Urban BAT: Empowerment and Survival Skills for City Dogs with Reactivity with Viviane Arzoumanian (March 2024)
Grounding for Dogs with Laura Donaldson (2023)
Predation Substitution Training: New Ways to Manage Predatory Chasing with Simone Mueller (2023)
Barking Mad: BAT and other Techniques for Frustration (2023)
LEGS Family Dog Mediation Professional Course (2023)
*Victoria Stillwell Dog Behavior Conference - All Presentations (2021)
Sirius Dog Training with Ian Dunbar (2019)
Reliability and Games Workshop with Ian Dunbar - 16 hrs (2017)
Science-based Dog Training with Feeling - 23 hrs (2017)
Crucial Concepts in Dog Training with Ian Dunbar - 10 hrs (2017)
Karen Pryor Dog Trainer Foundations (2017)
If any of this resonates, know that you’re not alone.
The first step is a free 20-minute call.