contact Trelle: 281-685-7601

contact Laura: 409-771-3357

​Laura@muttswithmanners.com

​or use the form below

contact Heather: 409-354-3327

​Heather@muttswithmanners.com

or use the form below

​​My mother was instrumental in developing my love and interest in animals. I grew up with a houseful of various critters such as cats, dogs, ducks, parakeets, turtles, and guinea pigs just to name a few.  I was always drawn to animals and spent a lot of time not only caring for them but trying to figure them out.  As a registered nurse, the last twenty years of my life have been dedicated to taking care of people. Yet, I began to recognize and could no longer ignore the impact that animals have on our well-being. I have been actively studying the training of dogs for the last ten years and in 2013 graduated as a certified pet dog trainer from Animal Behavior College. After completing my mentorship, I joined Heather and Trelle as their business partner.  I am a full member of Association Pet Dog Trainers and I look forward to helping grow Mutts With Manners in the future. My pack consists of three dogs: Spanky, Darla, Bunny and a talking nanday conure named Rasta. My dog Darla and I are a registered Pet Partner's team, I am an AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy Instructor, Canine Good Citizen Evaluator and a Pet Tech Instructor and offer classes in pet CPR, first aid and pet care at Coastal Canine CPR. I am a "Stop the 77" presenter also which teaches children safe behavior around dogs. I am a pawTree petPro specializing in pet nutrition & supplements. 

​​My family currently includes one husband, and three dogs: two black labs and a mutt we affectionately call our American Pabweegle, who is a registered therapy dog through Pet Partners. I have been fascinated with animals since I was a little girl. This fascination blossomed into passion and desire when I was about 12 years old and my family moved onto a ranch in Oklahoma. We had Brahman cows, mules, donkeys, horses, lots of cats, and every little stray dog that needed a home. I took a random psychology class in high school and it completely changed my perspectives on training. Since then, I have been training animals using the positive reinforcement techniques I acquired in a form of learning called Operant Conditioning. From wild donkeys, horses, and stray dogs to sharks, sea turtles, stingrays and animals in-between I have over 15 years experience in the training community. I am a full member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers and am working on my certification to be a certified professional dog trainer. Mutts with Manners also works closely with our local animal shelter, Galveston Island Humane Society, and volunteer training some of the dogs to increase their adoptability. I have countless hours of class time in behavioral sciences and bring this and my desire to teach people how to have a more positive relationship with their dogs based on mutual trust and respect to the table. All I need are owners who are willing to look in the mirror and modify some of their own behaviors, believe in their dog, and success is on the way!

​Trelle Dandridge

Laura Kay Hafferty

​Heather Samper

I’ve had a love for animals as far as I can remember and decided I wanted to work with animals when I saw my first pod of dolphins swimming close to me in the Gulf of Mexico. I started volunteering at the Knoxville Zoo during the last two years of high school and was hooked on the zoo industry. I continued with the zoo on my breaks from college and graduated from Texas A&M Galveston with a degree in marine biology and started working at Moody Gardens with the marine animals I learned so much about. I have been actively training exotic animals since 2000, namely birds, reptiles, and mammals (pinnipeds, primates, carnivores, and rodents to name a few). I currently work in the rainforest and train otters and primates. I have also been training search dogs since 2004. I am the training coordinator for Greater Houston Search Dogs where we train dogs to look for missing people. I have given several presentations at training conferences around the country. I am a professional member and past president of the Animal Behavior Management Alliance as well as a full member of the Association of Professional Dog Trainers. My goal is to help owners see what I see with behavior and pass on my training knowledge so you have a great, positive relationship with your dog. I currently have two beagles, one of them is a registered therapy dog with Pet Partners.