Jill Bowers, President/Co-Founder
Jill founded Thank Dog! Training (a private in-home dog training company) in 2002 after completing a year of training and working under military dog trainer,
John Van Olden.
After several years of private in home training, attending conferences and doing work for the shelters around the area, in 2007 she finished another extensive dog training course in which she lived in Colorado. During that time, she lived with the wolves for a week researching pack behavior, while also learning more techniques and various types of training.
Along with becoming one of the “leaders” in dog training, Jill has excelled in the world of fitness. She became a regular at Barry’s Bootcamp and appeared in their infomercial due to her success (lost 40 pounds!) in reaching her fitness goals. Jill teaches Burbank with Jamie and develops all workout routines that are preformed by the personal trainers in every class. She is now working towards her ACE certification in group fitness instruction. She also trained for and ran the 2008 LA Marathon. In her free time, she enjoys rock climbing, hiking and kickboxing.
With her vast knowledge of both fitness and obedience, Thank Dog! Bootcamp has become her passion. - jill@thankdogbootcamp.com
Jamie Bowers, Vice President/Co-Founder
After 7 years of being an inner city elementary school teacher, Jamie made a choice to leave the profession to become a certified dog trainer and partner of Thank Dog! Training.
Over the years, Jamie has studied and learned from Jill while taking clients to master her skill in dog training. In addition, she attended a dog training school in Colorado, where she learned various types of dog training techniques, researched wolves and pack behavior, and furthered her knowledge of the dog's mind. During that time, energy became a fascination, which steered her towards Animal Reiki Source. Jamie was certified under Kathleen Prasad as an Animal and Human Reiki Practitioner.
While playing a major role in Thank Dog!’s success today, she continues to study and train with mentor John Van Olden, one of the most experienced and successful dog trainers in the state of California.
Jamie teaches the Burbank location with Jill, as the the dog trainer. Along with building the business behind the scenes and training the dog trainers how to run the classes, she is in charge of writing all the content and anything related to the company.
When she isn’t out being the alpha dog, she is doing the next best thing...exercising. Not only does she love the gym, hiking, rock climbing and yoga - now kickboxing has become the core of her exercise routine.
Combining her love for both dog training and fitness, Thank Dog! Bootcamp is her dream come true! - jamie@thankdogbootcamp.com
Management
HEATH WALTON
PERSONAL TRAINER
& ORANGE COUNTY MANAGER
Heath is a certified personal fitness trainer and self-defense instructor who has been training people privately and in groups for ten years. He became a certified fitness trainer by studying under Olympic trainer Dr. Jack Barnathan and Chiropractor Dr. Dan Nelson.
After joining our team at Thank Dog! Bootcamp, Heath is now the operating manager of Orange County. His duties include but are not limited to, training trainers for new bootcamp locations while also managing already existing locations. He runs both Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach and soon to be Whittier. While keeping busy being trainer and manager, Heath is also assisting Thank Dog! Bootcamp in developing a safe, fun yet effective kids program to help fight childhood obesity.
Heath first realized his love for training at the age of five when he started martial arts. By the age of 16 he had earned three black belts and won gold and bronze medals in the Junior Olympics. He then joined the Marine Corps, and while traveling the world developed his own form of self-defense called Omnis Morium. - heath@thankdogbootcamp.com
CASSIE SHANNON
PERSONAL TRAINER & NORTHERN CALIFORNIA MANAGER
Cassie is a certified personal trainer and coach who was born and raised in Los Altos, CA. At a young age Cassie defined herself by her athletic ability, constantly striving for progression and the honor of being one of the best. This is probably why if you ever saw her on the playground when she was a little girl she was almost always playing tackle football with the boys over hopscotch and kickball with the girls!
Cassie grew up playing club soccer, even at one point playing on an all-boys team until she made it to the Premier level. However, Cassie’s true love was Track and Field. She ran Varsity Track at Saint Francis High School in Mountain View all four years. During her senior year, she also ran club track, which eventually took Cassie and her relay team to the finals at Nationals in Pocatello, Idaho, where she ran against some of Track and Fields greats like Allison Felix.
Cassie went on to run at the University of Arizona in Tucson until she was hit by a drunk driver in April of 2007, forcing her to withdraw from school and move home. Doctors told her there was a great chance she would never run again, but after six months of intensive physical therapy, Cassie returned to the University of Arizona and joined the Women’s Club Lacrosse Team where she played for the next two years. Not only did her Lacrosse team dub her Most Inspirational Player, but the University of Arizona recognized her prevails, awarding Cassie the Kathryn Ann Governal Scholarship and Perseverance Award at her graduation ceremony in May 2009.
Not only is Cassie full of energy and laughter, but her personal experience and dedication to fitness and athletics makes her a one-of-a-kind trainer. She now runs the Walnut Creek Bootcamp and trains new trainers for the Northern California Region for Thank Dog! Bootcamp. Come get in shape with Cassie and her two-year-old lab mix, Lola for a smile and sprinkle of inspiration today! - cassie@thankdogbootcamp.com