Dedicated to improving the relationship between canine & handler using practical, creative scent work activities & training.
Cheryl's Story
Living in rural Ontario, my life has always included dogs. Growing up, Newfoundlands, St. Bernards and German Shepherds were family pets and as an adult, I've owned a Siberian Husky, Rottweiler, and German Shepherds.
Professionally, I've had the pleasure of working in leadership roles with several, reputable Canadian charitable organizations and in 2022, I was restructured out of my role. While I took some time to recharge, I thought about what I really wanted to do. Dogs were a common thread weaving though the chapters of my life and while fulfilling my professional responsibilities, working with my dogs was a critical outlet of enjoyment and pride.
In 2012, a Belgian Malinois named Red joined our pack and with him, I started a journey that expanded my world of training and education. Working with various, professional trainers we broadened our knowledge about obedience, detection, tracking and the value of having a solid relationship. Wanting to act on my interest of Search and Rescue, we added another male Malinois in 2016. Working both dogs, I continued training in live find/tracking and human remains detection (HRD) and in 2022, a female Malinois joined our family and her focus has been HRD. In 2025 we added another male Malinois-his focus is HRD.
In addition, I'm an active member of the Canadian canicross community and have been running with my dogs for over 12 years. This activity keeps us physically active and is a great outlet to develop our relationship and meet like-minded people.
A New Adventure Begins!
Combining my professional skills of strategic thinking, collaboration and leadership with my experience in dog handling and training, I created Vita K9 in 2023. My focus is building knowledge & supporting handlers through the nose work activities detection & tracking. Being a small, boutique company allows me to focus on these specialties thus fulfilling unique needs of each dog and handler.
In addition, as an experienced, certified human remains detection dog handler, I support organizations who want to contract canine teams to search for human remains, including historical sites.
Wanna rent space for a play date or training?
Year-round rental of private unfenced property to work your dog in tracking, detection, searching, obstacles, bikejoring, canicross or have a private play date with your pup! Terrain includes elevation, stream, fields, grasslands and forest.
Book your time though Sniffspot: https://www.sniffspot.com/to/6ewfl
Canicross Adventure!
Are you or your dog new to canicross? Wanna try out new gear as you train for 2026? Join me for a free canicross outing at Vita K9 in Innisfil, Ontario on Saturday, November 22nd, 10:30 - 11:30. The 3KM route includes hills, forest & fields. New or seasoned teams are welcome. Pre-registration is required. Click the button below for more information or to sign up.