Cat Harbord

Hello! Thanks for taking the time to read my bio. I'm Cat Harbord, the founder and Chief Behaviour Geek at ImPAWsible Possible here in Calgary.

A little bit about me: My journey into the world of professional dog training began in 2007 when I started a dog running and walking business in SW Calgary called Rocky Mountain Canine Adventures. This experience ignited a curiosity within me about dogs — and an unquenchable desire to understand who they are, what drives them, and why they do all the cute, fun, confusing (and sometimes exasperating) things they do (you know, like eating their poop). It also sparked a passion for the human-canine bond.

In 2009, life took me on a detour that ultimately led to the founding of ImPAWsible Possible. This also marked the beginning of my “official” (read: unofficial) shift to dog training and behaviour consulting.

Over the past 15+ years, I've been relentlessly (read: border collie-level obsession) pursuing a deeper understanding of dogs and the human-canine relationship. I never could have imagined the twists, turns, rugged terrain, and breathtaking vistas this adventure would take me on.

My late dog, Mouse (the sweet dog in the photo), played a pivotal role in shaping my path as a dog trainer and behaviour consultant. Mouse was a long-term shelter dog I rescued in 2011 from the Bow Valley SPCA in Canmore. The backstory on Mouse is that he was brought into the shelter at approximately 6 months old, after being found running at large on the Trans-Canada Hwy. Mouse spent 1.5 years in the shelter until May 18, 2011—the day that Cat met Mouse. Back then, I was a pretty green dog trainer, and I thought I knew “everything” about dogs and behaviour. Boy, was I ever wrong. Very quickly, Mouse and I found ourselves in what I now describe as the “fog of conflict,” with me trying everything I could to “fix” Mouse and him developing an increasingly long list of problem behaviours, ranging from separation anxiety to hyper-arousal, to jumpy-mouthy behaviour and aggression towards both dogs and humans. Mouse challenged me in ways I never imagined possible, pushing me to rethink virtually everything I thought I knew about dog training, behaviour, relationships, and, if I’m honest, the fundamental nature of reality. Through my journey with Mouse, I discovered that successful dog training isn’t about checklists, protocols, or “fixing” behaviours — it’s about truly seeing and understanding one another, working as a team, and growing through conflict and life’s challenges together. Mouse passed away on August 5, 2024, leaving me with a legacy of love and wisdom that can only be learned from the “trenches” of the human-canine relationship.

With more than 15 years of experience working with puppies, therapy dogs, aggression, reactivity, and complex cases, my approach today combines cutting-edge science with real-world practice. I hold a Diploma in Canine Behaviour Sciences and Technology, am a Certified Dog Behaviour Consultant and Family Dog Mediator, and have earned certification in Systems Thinking and Leadership through the Cabrera Research Lab at Cornell University. I'm also a member of the International Association for Perceptual Control Theory.

I have also developed a purpose-driven approach to dog training that flips the script, seeing behaviour from the dog’s perspective rather than the observer’s. I have been fortunate to collaborate in this more “geeky” part of my journey with my colleague and fellow Canine Cyberneticist, Brian Fleming, and with the support of researchers from around the world. Finally, thanks to Mouse’s tutelage, I have developed a theory of conflict and conflict resolution in the human-canine relationship rooted in a bunch of geeky stuff like dynamical systems, complexity theory, and conflict studies. I currently teach and mentor dog trainers in this theory through my Pooch Peacekeeping Pro course. I will be co-publishing this work in the next year in collaboration with an amazing local academic.

I'm a proud Canadian, born and raised on the West Coast, and have called Calgary home since 1999.

So that’s a little bit about me (in a nutshell)! I’d love to learn more about you and your dog, and how ImPAWsible Possible can support you both on your training journey. Be sure to reach out and say “hello” (or “raroo!”) — I’m always here to help!