Don Hanson:  

I was born in Reedsburg, WI in 1957, spent a year in Wyoming and grew up in Madison WI. I attended Badger Elementary, Franklin Elementary, Lincoln Middle and La Follette High Schools. I was very involved in Student Council, The Lance, Drama Club and Forensics while at LaFollette. I went to the UW-Madison for three semesters and then transferred to the Wisconsin School of Electronics where I graduated in 1979. I married Paula Klump in 1978. In 1979 I started working for The Burdick Corporation in Milton, WI as a Technical Writer. Paula and I moved to Janesville, WI where we bought our first home. I left Burdick as a Product Manager in 1986 when I started working for the Lunar Corporation in Madison, WI, also as a Product Manager. Paula and I lived in an apartment in Monona until we sold our home in Janesville and then purchased a home in McFarland. While working at Lunar I also became involved with the Madison Audubon Society, serving on its Board of Directors for seven years, four as its President. I left Lunar in 1995 as its Manager of Regulatory Affairs and Quality Assurance. In 1995 we purchased the Green Acres Kennel Shop and moved three dogs and three senior parents from McFarland, Wisconsin to our new home and business1400 miles away in Bangor, Maine. Green Acres offers boarding, daycare, grooming, training classes, behavioral consultations and the sale of wholesome pet food and quality supplies. We have been consistently voted the best kennel, best pet store, best dog trainer and best pet groomer in the region for several years. I am a Certified Dog Behavior Consultant (CDBC), Certified Professional Dog Trainer (CPDT-KA), Bach Foundation Registered Animal Practitioner (BFRAP) and Associate Certified Cat Behavior Consultant (ACCBC). Community involvement is very important to me, and I was honored to have served on the Board of the Madison Audubon Society from 1989 through 1995, four years as its President; while we lived in Wisconsin. After we had spent a year in Maine, I was asked to serve on the Board of the Bangor Humane Society, which I did for fifteen years, five as its President. I became involved in Association of Professional Dog Trainers (APDT) in 1998 when I was asked to serve on the new Education Committee by Dr. Ian Dunbar. I served on that committee until we launched the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers in 2001. I was first elected to a three-year term on the APDT Board of Trustees in 2002 when I also served as Board Secretary. In 2005 I was elected to a second three-year term on the APDT BOT and also served as Vice Chair in 2005 and 2006, and as APDT Chair in 2007. In 2009 I was asked to serve on a new APDT Education Committee which I did until it became the Education Advisory Group in 2013, where ...Expand for more