Victoria Stilwell
Encyclopedia
Victoria Stilwell is widely known as a dog trainer, author
, and television presenter. Stilwell served as a judge on the CBS show Greatest American Dog
and presents the Animal Planet
dog training TV show It's Me or the Dog
, counselling families with problem pets and solving their dogs’ behaviour problems.
's The Bill
in 1994, and onstage in London
's West End theatre
, as well as several commercials and voiceovers. She received a BA honours degree in Theatre from Middlesex University
. In order to supplement her income as an actress, Stilwell's veterinary nurse sister suggested Victoria start a dog walking agency. Within a month Victoria was walking 20 dogs per day - 10 in the morning, 10 in the afternoon - and immediately recognized the need for qualified professionals to help her clients with the training process. She then expanded her focus to dog training by learning from some of Britain's most respected positive-reinforcement dog trainers and behaviorists. After moving to the U.S. with her husband in 1999, Stilwell co-founded several successful dog training companies up and down the East Coast.
Born and raised in Wimbledon, England, Victoria Stilwell is one of the worlds most recognized and respected dog trainers, reaching fans in over 50 countries. She is best known for her role as the star of Animal Planet's hit TV series “It's Me or the Dog”, through which she is able to share her understanding and desire for positive reinforcement dog training by taming some of the world’s most uncontrollable pets as she counsels families on their pet problems.
In 2010, Stilwell created Victoria Stilwell Positively Dog Training - a global network of positive reinforcement dog trainers dedicated to spreading the word about positive reinforcement techniques
Born and raised in Wimbledon, England, Victoria Stilwell is one of the worlds most recognized and respected dog trainers, reaching fans in over 50 countries. She is best known for her role as the star of Animal Planet's hit TV series “It's Me or the Dog”, through which she is able to share her understanding and desire for positive reinforcement dog training by taming some of the world’s most uncontrollable pets as she counsels families on their pet problems.In the early 1990s, Victoria began her career in pet training when she created her own successful dog-walking company and instantly recognized the need for capable professionals to help her customers with the training process. While pursuing a successful acting career (working in London's West End as well as in numerous films, TV series, commercials and voiceovers), she expanded her focus to dog training by learning from some of Britain's most respected positive-reinforcement dog trainers and behaviorists.
With a particular fondness for rescue animals in need of behaviour rehabilitation, Stilwell devotes much of her time and energy to a number of animal rescue organisations around the world, serving as a behaviour advisor for shelters in Atlanta, New York, the UK, and Hong Kong while giving regular seminars on the subject of dog rescue, training and rehabilitation. She worked as a volunteer adoption counsellor for the ASPCA, and has been featured in numerous magazines and journals including The New York Times
, USA Today
, Cosmopolitan
, the Daily Mail
, MSNBC.com
, Psychology Today
and The Sun
. Stilwell is a regular columnist for The Bark, Dog World
, American Dog and Dogs Today
magazines, and she has appeared on numerous talk shows, news broadcasts and radio shows in the US, Europe and Asia as a dog training expert.
, which airs in over forty countries. The show features Victoria as she counsels families with problem pets and uses positive reinforcement training techniques to help them learn how to correct their dogs’ behavior. Originally produced for Channel 4
in the UK, the show premiered in the US on Animal Planet
in April 2007, and over 90 episodes have been aired worldwide. A typical episode involves a family struggling to cope with their misbehaving dog(s). Victoria initially observes the problems in situ
, then presents the family with her opinion regarding the causes of the issues. Victoria then works with the family and their dogs to restore balance. After a period of time alone to implement Victoria’s positive reinforcement training regimen, the family reunites with Victoria to check progress, get a few tune-ups and encouragement. Special episodes of the program have featured overweight dogs, Victoria’s public seminars at an outdoor dog festival, her work with the caretakers of a wild wolf rescue park, and her training of out-of-control pedigree dogs on their way to the world's largest dog show.
show Greatest American Dog
, in which 12 dog-owner teams compete for the title 'Greatest American Dog' and a $250,000 prize. The series debuted on CBS July 10, 2008.
Awards. Her first book, It's Me or the Dog: How to Have the Perfect Pet was voted one of the 50 greatest dog books ever written by Dogs Today
magazine.
. The couple and their daughter live in Atlanta, Georgia
.
After many years without a pet dog of her own (due to work commitments), Victoria adopted a rescued chocolate Labrador
named Sadie. Prior to that, she had spent her time since 2000 fostering dogs due to be euthanised
by local municipal shelters. Stilwell and her husband then gave the dogs a home while rehabilitating them and eventually finding suitable homes for the animals. She has explained that, until recently, owning a dog would have been irresponsible and not fair to the dog, considering how much the whole family travels. The couple has re-homed over 50 dogs and cats.
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, and television presenter. Stilwell served as a judge on the CBS show Greatest American Dog
Greatest American Dog
Greatest American Dog was an American reality television show on CBS. It debuted on July 10, 2008 and was hosted by Jarod Miller with judges Victoria Stilwell, Allan Reznik, and Wendy Diamond...
and presents the Animal Planet
Animal Planet
Animal Planet is an American cable tv specialty channel that launched on October 1, 1996. It is distributed by Discovery Communications. A high-definition simulcast of the channel launched on September 1, 2007.-History:...
dog training TV show It's Me or the Dog
It's Me or the Dog
It's Me or the Dog is a television program produced by television production company Shed Media US, in which dog trainer Victoria Stilwell tackles behavioral problems in dogs by teaching their owners responsible dog ownership...
, counselling families with problem pets and solving their dogs’ behaviour problems.
Background
Stilwell originally trained as an actress, playing roles in Bram Stoker's Dracula in 1992, ITV1ITV1
ITV1 is a generic brand that is used by twelve franchises of the British ITV Network in the English regions, Wales, southern Scotland , the Isle of Man and the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey. The ITV1 brand was introduced by Carlton and Granada in 2001, alongside the regional identities of their...
's The Bill
The Bill
The Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...
in 1994, and onstage in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
's West End theatre
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
, as well as several commercials and voiceovers. She received a BA honours degree in Theatre from Middlesex University
Middlesex University
Middlesex University is a university in north London, England. It is located in the historic county boundaries of Middlesex from which it takes its name. It is one of the post-1992 universities and is a member of Million+ working group...
. In order to supplement her income as an actress, Stilwell's veterinary nurse sister suggested Victoria start a dog walking agency. Within a month Victoria was walking 20 dogs per day - 10 in the morning, 10 in the afternoon - and immediately recognized the need for qualified professionals to help her clients with the training process. She then expanded her focus to dog training by learning from some of Britain's most respected positive-reinforcement dog trainers and behaviorists. After moving to the U.S. with her husband in 1999, Stilwell co-founded several successful dog training companies up and down the East Coast.
Born and raised in Wimbledon, England, Victoria Stilwell is one of the worlds most recognized and respected dog trainers, reaching fans in over 50 countries. She is best known for her role as the star of Animal Planet's hit TV series “It's Me or the Dog”, through which she is able to share her understanding and desire for positive reinforcement dog training by taming some of the world’s most uncontrollable pets as she counsels families on their pet problems.
Dog trainer
Stilwell has become an influential advocate of science-based, humane and effective dog training movement. Stilwell rejects dominance-based, traditional training techniques, instead, promoting positive reinforcement techniques. These techniques, she says, increases the dog's confidence and happiness, and allows a healthy, co-operative and kind relationship to be maintained between owner and dog. Stilwell believes that positive training results in a dog who follows an owner because it wants to rather than following out of fear, while traditional training uses punitive methods to force a dog to behave, often resulting short term solutions which never truly identifies the root cause of the misbehavior while promoting insecurity and negative behavior.In 2010, Stilwell created Victoria Stilwell Positively Dog Training - a global network of positive reinforcement dog trainers dedicated to spreading the word about positive reinforcement techniques
Born and raised in Wimbledon, England, Victoria Stilwell is one of the worlds most recognized and respected dog trainers, reaching fans in over 50 countries. She is best known for her role as the star of Animal Planet's hit TV series “It's Me or the Dog”, through which she is able to share her understanding and desire for positive reinforcement dog training by taming some of the world’s most uncontrollable pets as she counsels families on their pet problems.In the early 1990s, Victoria began her career in pet training when she created her own successful dog-walking company and instantly recognized the need for capable professionals to help her customers with the training process. While pursuing a successful acting career (working in London's West End as well as in numerous films, TV series, commercials and voiceovers), she expanded her focus to dog training by learning from some of Britain's most respected positive-reinforcement dog trainers and behaviorists.
Charity
Stilwell created the Victoria Stilwell Foundation, whose mission is "to provide financial support and canine behavior expertise to assistance dog organizations and small animal rescue shelters while promoting the concept of reward-based, positive reinforcement dog training philosophies in organizations and households throughout the United States."With a particular fondness for rescue animals in need of behaviour rehabilitation, Stilwell devotes much of her time and energy to a number of animal rescue organisations around the world, serving as a behaviour advisor for shelters in Atlanta, New York, the UK, and Hong Kong while giving regular seminars on the subject of dog rescue, training and rehabilitation. She worked as a volunteer adoption counsellor for the ASPCA, and has been featured in numerous magazines and journals including The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
, Cosmopolitan
Cosmopolitan (magazine)
Cosmopolitan is an international magazine for women. It was first published in 1886 in the United States as a family magazine, was later transformed into a literary magazine and eventually became a women's magazine in the late 1960s...
, the Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
, MSNBC.com
Msnbc.com
msnbc.com is a news website owned and operated as a joint venture by NBCUniversal and Microsoft.In addition to original content from its news staff, msnbc.com is the news website for the NBC News family, with content from the cable television news channel MSNBC, NBC shows such as Today, NBC Nightly...
, Psychology Today
Psychology Today
Psychology Today is a bi-monthly magazine published in the United States. It is a psychology-based magazine about relationships, health, and related topics written for a mass audience of non-psychologists. Psychology Today was founded in 1967 and features articles on such topics as love,...
and The Sun
The Sun (newspaper)
The Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
. Stilwell is a regular columnist for The Bark, Dog World
Dog World
Dog World is a monthly magazine aimed at the community of serious dog enthusiasts and participants, including breeders; conformation exhibitors; obedience, agility, herding and field trial competitors; veterinarians; groomers; and trainers...
, American Dog and Dogs Today
Dogs Today
Dogs Today magazine was launched in 1990 by Burlington Publishing Company Ltd, part of Associated Newspapers. It was the brainchild of Daily Mail newspaper proprietor the late Viscount Rothermere. Vere Rothermere had a great love of dogs and believed Britain needed a magazine for pet...
magazines, and she has appeared on numerous talk shows, news broadcasts and radio shows in the US, Europe and Asia as a dog training expert.
It's Me or the Dog
Since 2005, Victoria Stilwell has worked with unruly dogs on her TV show, It's Me or the DogIt's Me or the Dog
It's Me or the Dog is a television program produced by television production company Shed Media US, in which dog trainer Victoria Stilwell tackles behavioral problems in dogs by teaching their owners responsible dog ownership...
, which airs in over forty countries. The show features Victoria as she counsels families with problem pets and uses positive reinforcement training techniques to help them learn how to correct their dogs’ behavior. Originally produced for Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
in the UK, the show premiered in the US on Animal Planet
Animal Planet
Animal Planet is an American cable tv specialty channel that launched on October 1, 1996. It is distributed by Discovery Communications. A high-definition simulcast of the channel launched on September 1, 2007.-History:...
in April 2007, and over 90 episodes have been aired worldwide. A typical episode involves a family struggling to cope with their misbehaving dog(s). Victoria initially observes the problems in situ
In situ
In situ is a Latin phrase which translated literally as 'In position'. It is used in many different contexts.-Aerospace:In the aerospace industry, equipment on board aircraft must be tested in situ, or in place, to confirm everything functions properly as a system. Individually, each piece may...
, then presents the family with her opinion regarding the causes of the issues. Victoria then works with the family and their dogs to restore balance. After a period of time alone to implement Victoria’s positive reinforcement training regimen, the family reunites with Victoria to check progress, get a few tune-ups and encouragement. Special episodes of the program have featured overweight dogs, Victoria’s public seminars at an outdoor dog festival, her work with the caretakers of a wild wolf rescue park, and her training of out-of-control pedigree dogs on their way to the world's largest dog show.
Greatest American Dog
Victoria was one of three judges on the CBSCBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
show Greatest American Dog
Greatest American Dog
Greatest American Dog was an American reality television show on CBS. It debuted on July 10, 2008 and was hosted by Jarod Miller with judges Victoria Stilwell, Allan Reznik, and Wendy Diamond...
, in which 12 dog-owner teams compete for the title 'Greatest American Dog' and a $250,000 prize. The series debuted on CBS July 10, 2008.
Awards
Victoria was honored with the prestigious "Excellence in Journalism and Outstanding Contributions to the Pet Industry Award" at the 2011 Global Pet Expo and was named 'Dog Trainer of the Year' by DogWorld Magazine at the 55th Annual Purina Pro Plan Show Dogs Of The Year Awards Presented By Dogs In Review. She was named among 2009's '100 Best & Brightest' in the dog world in The Bark magazine. Victoria won a 2009 CableFax award as Best Host in the Animals & Nature category. In 2009, It's Me or the Dog was nominated for a People's Choice Award in the US, and after its first season in the UK, It's Me or the Dog was nominated in the 'Best Factual Entertainment' category in the UK's TV QuickTV Quick
TV Choice, is a British weekly TV listings magazine published by H. Bauer Publishing, the UK subsidiary of family-run German company Bauer Media Group...
Awards. Her first book, It's Me or the Dog: How to Have the Perfect Pet was voted one of the 50 greatest dog books ever written by Dogs Today
Dogs Today
Dogs Today magazine was launched in 1990 by Burlington Publishing Company Ltd, part of Associated Newspapers. It was the brainchild of Daily Mail newspaper proprietor the late Viscount Rothermere. Vere Rothermere had a great love of dogs and believed Britain needed a magazine for pet...
magazine.
Campaigns
She advocates animal rescue and supports Paws Atlanta, "Atlanta Pet Rescue", Stray from the Heart (NYC), Hong Kong Dog Rescue and Greyhound Rescue of West England, Wisconsin Puppy Mill Project, the Waterside Action Group, Deed Not Breed (campaigning to re-write the UK's Dangerous Dogs Act to remove breed-specific legislation) as well as Vets Get Scanning, promoting mandatory pet micro-chipping and scanning by vets.Books
- It’s Me or the Dog: How to Have the Perfect Pet (Hyperion)
- Fat Dog Slim: How to Have a Healthy, Happy Pet (Harper Collins UK), 2007
Personal life
Stilwell met her actor husband, Van Zeiler, while starring opposite him in the West End production of Buddy - The Buddy Holly StoryBuddy - The Buddy Holly Story
Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story is a jukebox musical in two acts with a book written by Alan Janes, and music and lyrics by a variety of songwriters. Based on the life and career of early rock and roller Buddy Holly, the musical hews closer to Holly's actual life story than the 1978 film version...
. The couple and their daughter live in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
.
After many years without a pet dog of her own (due to work commitments), Victoria adopted a rescued chocolate Labrador
Labrador Retriever
The Labrador Retriever is one of several kinds of retriever, a type of gun dog. A breed characteristic is webbed paws for swimming, useful for the breed's original purpose of retrieving fishing nets. The Labrador is the most popular breed of dog by registered ownership in Canada, the United...
named Sadie. Prior to that, she had spent her time since 2000 fostering dogs due to be euthanised
Animal euthanasia
Animal euthanasia is the act of putting to death painlessly or allowing to die, as by withholding extreme medical measures, an animal suffering from an incurable, especially a painful, disease or condition. Euthanasia methods are designed to cause minimal pain and distress...
by local municipal shelters. Stilwell and her husband then gave the dogs a home while rehabilitating them and eventually finding suitable homes for the animals. She has explained that, until recently, owning a dog would have been irresponsible and not fair to the dog, considering how much the whole family travels. The couple has re-homed over 50 dogs and cats.