Emotional First Aid for dog lovers. 

A free resource for anyone who loves a complex dog.

 

The Emotional First Aid Kit For Dog Lovers is a quick-access set of tools to help you cope with your canine.

It’s not a fix-all—but it is a way to begin taking care of yourself when things feel overwhelming.

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A free resource for when your side of the leash feels...

burnt out and stretched too thin
shaken by a crisis, incident, or escalation
lonely and isolated with no one who gets it
disconnected from the dog you love

Start caring for yourself like you care for your dog.

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Created by a licensed therapist, reactive dog mom, and student of veterinary mental health. 

 

AKA - Someone who truly gets it.

 

Handlers & Humans supports the human side of life with a complex dog:

  • The emotional toll of reactivity, aggression, chronic illness, or uncertainty
  • Burnout from managing your complex dog’s needs day after day
  • Guilt, grief, or self-doubt around decisions like rehoming or behavioral euthanasia
  • Losing freedom or connection because of your dog's separation distress
  • Stabilizing emotionally after a crisis or acute incident with your dog
  • The sting of social judgment—on walks, online, or from loved ones
  • Conflict with partners, family, or others about your dog
  • Feeling isolated when everyone else thinks "it's just a dog"

If your dog could send you to training, they'd want you to work on you.

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Hi, I'm Jess!  

And I'm not a dog trainer.

The animals I know how to work with... are humans. 

 

In 2014, I brought home a six-month-old puppy named Dio, hoping he might one day join me in animal-assisted therapy work. Instead, I was thrown into the emotional rollercoaster of life with a complex, reactive dog—and found myself completely unprepared.

Like so many guardians, I was doing everything “right” and still felt like I was drowning. My trainers were wonderful, but what I really needed was support for me—for the guilt, grief, anxiety, and isolation.

As a licensed therapist and counseling psychology professor, I started using my own mental health tools to cope with the ups and downs, and stay grounded—and everything began to shift.

Not necessarily his behavior, but in how life felt with him.

So in 2021, I created Handlers & Humans to help other dog guardians like me. 

 Today, I offer emotional support through coaching, education, and community—so you don’t have to navigate complex dog life alone.

Handlers & Humans resources teach you how to COPE with your canine through:

Calm, Care, & Coregulation

Observing Your Outlook

Playfulness & Positives

Engaging With Others

COPE is a framework I developed to support the emotional wellbeing of dog guardians—especially those caring for complex or reactive dogs.

Each element of COPE targets a core area of resilience, helping you feel more grounded, connected, and empowered as you navigate life alongside your dog.

Handlers & Humans courses, resources, and coaching are designed around this framework, with each topic relating back to one of these pillars.

This First Aid Kit is a mini version of the COPE framework, meant to be shared with every guardian of a complex dog.

Click each part of the framework below to learn more!

Help for those crying-on-the-sidewalk moments.

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Have questions? Here are some answers!

Finally, a resource made just for your side of the leash.

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More Support for Dog Guardians

Whether you’re looking for one-on-one coaching, a self-paced course, or a community of people who actually get it, I’ve got options to meet you where you are in your dog training journey.

If you’re not sure what’s right for you, I’d love to chat—we’ll figure it out together.

Book a Free Consultation