- About Jacki
- About Charlie
Jacki has a life long history of animal companions including dogs, cats, horses, ducks, rats, ferrets, lizard, snakes, fish, and a frog named Fred. At age five, she was training her own dogs and was walking the neighbor's dogs for fun. At seven, Jacki was competing full time with her first horse and later spent four years on a Nebraska race track, exercising horses. In 1989, she joined the National Guard and served her country for 12 years, including six months in Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Storm. While there she adopted stray dogs Lady, Bandit, and Dusty, all of which she trained. After her years of service, Jacki met her husband Charlie and traveled the world while continuing her professional dog training.
Jacki is a currently a member of the German Shepherd Dog Club of America, American Belgian Malinois Club, and DVG America. She held positions as President of the Grand Bahama Humane Society for five years and head of Animal Control/ Animal Abuse for four years, and was the Secretary of South Florida Schutzhund Club as well as wasTreasurer for the Southeast Kreisgruppe of DVG America. She has interacted with thousands of animals in her many years of experience.
Jacki and Charlie have relocated to their home state of Nebraska where Jacki accepted a position with Animal Control. When she is not working, she enjoys spending time with her dogs at home. She and Charlie have two GSD puppies they are training in Schutzhund.
PHILOSOPHY
Charlie and Jacki launched K-9 Friends in 2004 and have since expanded the range of people and dogs whose lives they intersect with. With their love and passion for animals, it was only a matter of time for K-9 Friends to take off.
They are striving to enrich the lives of pets by training them and educating the people they live with. The goal is to have pets be treated as a member of the family. Charlie and Jacki use positive reinforcement training methods to help enhance your relationship with your dog and help create positive associations and reduce frustrations common with dogs that don't know how to fit in with your pack.
Jacki Purdham is a certified evaluator with the AKC for CGC testing and can certify Service Dogs.
Charlie Purdham played many organized sports including baseball, basketball and his favorite, football, where he played linebacker and fullback. Growing up in Nebraska, which often has very harsh winters, Charlie turned his attention to his passion, animals. Charlie met his first dog at the age of five, a Beagle. Beagles, being his breed of choice at the time, got Charlie started in the sport of dogs. Being the animal enthusiast that he is, Charlie started off competing in local 4-H shows, field trials, and later started competing in obedience classes and seminars around the nation.
Many years later, Charlie discovered the sport of Schutzhund and has been seriously hooked ever since. He was a member of the South Florida Schutzhund Club where he held the Training Director position. He also held the SEKG OfS (Regional Training Director) position and is a teaching helper for the GSDCA-WDA. Training with Phil Hoelcher his mentor, and under the watchful eyes of Randy Theen, Les Flores, Clay Meadows, Frans Slaman, & Simon Davidson, Charlie has developed into a National level helper for DVG America and GSDCA-WDA.
Charlie has worked many club and local trials, four DVG Regional events, three DVG Nationals, 2008 AWDF Championship, 2009 NASS Championship in California and 2010 NASS in Virginia, 2010, 2011 GSDCA Championship, and competed at the 2006 GSDCA-WDA National Helper Challenge where he took 1st Place.
Charlie and Jacki have relocated to their home state of Nebraska and Charlie is now a superintendent with Boyd Jones in Lincoln, NE