Sad news in the dog training world. Karen Pryor has passed away at the age of 92 on January 4th.

She began her career as a marine mammal trainer in Hawaii, which is where she began to develop the methods she would later bring to the dog world. Karen was one of the leaders in the positive reinforcement movement and the founder of the Karen Pryor Academy.

Her groundbreaking book Don’t Shoot the Dog: The New Art of Teaching and Training remains widely regarded as essential reading for trainers, educators, and anyone interested in behavior change. Another, Reaching the Animal Mind, became very influential to me when I began professionally training dogs.

RIP Karen Pryor 1932-2025