SkyHi Kennel has a staff full of people who consider this more than just a job. They have a true passion for working with dogs. Because they are based out of Helena, MT, most of their employees are graduates of Carroll College Anthrozoology program. Their team members have educational backgrounds in training, behavior, medical care, and welfare. Their experiences are expansive and include numerous aspects of the dog world including: veterinary care, teaching/academia, research, volunteering in shelters, pet sitting, puppy raising for service dog organizations, and training of pet dogs, service dogs, and working dogs. Every single member of our staff has chosen a dog-related path for their life. In truth, it is more than just a job to the staff at SkyHi Kennel.
“They take great care of the animals and the staff really loves their work.”
"The staff are so friendly and demonstrate a true passion for the furry friends they work with all day."
“They take great care of the animals and the staff really loves their work.”
"The staff are so friendly and demonstrate a true passion for the furry friends they work with all day."
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McKenzie HomanOwner/Trainer
McKenzie graduated from Carroll College, in her hometown of Helena, Montana, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and a minor in Anthrozoology. She grew up working with animals, training horses, going on cattle drives, and basically living with dogs. She began working professionally when she was still in high school, training cutting horses for Montana cowboys. In college, her training focus switched to dogs. As part of her coursework, she trained a rescued German shepherd for live tracking, search and rescue, and narcotics detection. For her senior project, she adopted a shelter pup and trained her for scent work and human remains detection. McKenzie has traveled to Africa to train dogs and handlers for Working Dogs for Conservation, trained dogs from beginning to fielding for invasive species detection, and has started anti-poaching tracking. She has achieved certifications for public, service, and conservation detection dog training through the American Society of Canine Trainers. See certifications below. |
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Molly RowlandTrainer
Molly Rowland is a Carroll College graduate with bachelors' degrees in Psychology and Anthrozoology. As part of the Anthrozoology program, she trained a dog for narcotics detection. After the Anthrozoology program her dog, Ruger, went to work for Working Dogs for Conservation as an anti-poaching dog in Zambia, Africa. Post-graduation, Molly served as a volunteer and contracted trainer for Working Dogs for Conservation. She attends yearly American Society of Canine Trainers conferences. These conferences allow her to work with disciplines including: conservation, search and rescue, human remains detection, and police K9. She is currently pursuing a masters degree in Canine Developmental Science through the American Society of Canine Trainers (ASCT) and London Hanover University. She is a certified public, therapy, and conservation dog trainer through ASCT (see certifications below). She has a passion for training working dogs. She has devoted her life to learning and growing as a working dog trainer. |
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Phil Nyhof
Daycare Manager Phil is originally from Michigan, and moved to Montana via South Dakota in 2010. Phil came to working with animals a bit later in his varied employment history, but has always known that it would happen sooner than later. Alongside volunteering at local humane societies, Phil has spent time volunteering with Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Kanab, UT. After moving to Montana Phil got the chance to begin working directly with animals as a veterinary technician and kennel manager. Phil is enthusiastic about and interested in the dynamics of canine/human and canine/canine relationships. He is extremely excited to be working for SkyHi, and looks forward to all of the wonderful learning and experience that comes with it. In the future, Phil hopes to continue to work with dogs, especially dogs showcasing either shy or feral behavior. |
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Jeane Stafford
Boarding Specialist/ Assistant Trainer Jeane is a senior Carroll College student majoring in Anthrozoology. During her junior year in the Anthrozoology program, she fostered and trained a shelter dog for academic credit. Although they concentrated on scent work for the first half of the year, Cassidy (a female chocolate lab) was better suited to and later adopted to be an Emotional Support Dog. Jeane has since adopted a dog from Working Dogs for Conservation (see the adorable Sara above) for her senior project where they plan to focus on search and rescue, tracking, and detection. After graduation, Jeane plans to pursue a degree in Canine Developmental Science through the American Society of Canine Trainers and London Hanover University. |
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Skyler Howard
Daycare Specialist/ Assistant Trainer Skyler is from Vashon Island, Washington and came to Helena to study Anthrozoology and Psychology at Carroll College. She has always loved animals. In high school she was a puppy raiser for Guide Dogs for the Blind and raised five puppies, three of which became working guides. She's volunteered at a vet clinic as well as Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Kanab, Utah and the Lewis and Clark Humane Society. Through the Carroll College Anthrozoology program she fostered a dog for a year working on scent training as well as various service tasks. She recently adopted her own dog and aspires to do scent and tracking training. She is a certified public trainer through the American Society of Canine Trainers (see certifications below). As for the future, she would love to work for an organization such as Working Dogs for Conservation or be a trainer at a shelter. |
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Hannah Decker
Daycare and Boarding Specialist/Assistant Trainer Hannah is from Meridian, Idaho and has worked at the Camp Bow Wow in Meridian on and off for five years. She grew up with a passion for dogs. She is currently a senior at Carroll College majoring in Anthrozoology. During Hannah's junior year at Carroll, she fostered a shelter who she started training on scent work and even tried some narcotics detection with. She also tried a little bit of tracking with her foster, Ollie. Hannah participated in the 2018 internship program with Penn Vet Working Dog Center. She received hands-on experience with working dogs of all types. As a senior, she is training an Australian Shepard/Border Collie puppy in hopes that she can be an archaeological detection dog for her owner, who happens to be an archaeologist. After graduation Hannah hopes to continue her knowledge of working dogs and hopes to one day train working dogs full-time. |
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Cecilia Graves
Daycare Specialist Cecilia is from Coeur d’Alene, Idaho and graduated from Carroll College with bachelors’ degrees in Anthrozoology and Health Sciences. During her junior year she was introduced to dog training and fostered a shelter dog, working on a little of everything, from basics to service tasks. She is currently puppy raising a service dog and hopes to pursue a degree in veterinary medicine while continuing to learn and grow as a dog trainer. |
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FrancieTupper
Daycare Specialist Francie currently a freshman at Carroll college double majoring in anthrozoology and psychology. She was born and raised in Helena and has grown up loving animals, dogs especially. She has 3 dogs of her own at home and one cat. As of right now, she hopes to get a masters in psychology. She is interested in training therapy animals to work with children with autism. |
