About Us

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Woman with dog looking up
Our Beginnings

Meet Rachael

I’m originally from England and moved to Maui in 2013 after meeting my now-husband while working on a superyacht based in the Middle East. After traveling through East Africa, the Mediterranean, Ireland to be married and then to Sydney, Australia for our final yachting assignment, we began our next chapter on Maui where my husband has family. Unable to work until my Green Card was approved I started volunteering at the Maui Humane Society. Everything just clicked for me then. I’ve always loved and lived with animals and have a particular soft spot for dogs. Yet I never dreamed I could make a career out of helping them! The day I received my work permit a new job was posted – it was fate. I applied for the position even though I had never worked in an animal shelter and luckily for me, they gave me a shot. Fast forward to the present day and I have had the pleasure of working in a multitude of roles – from Adoption Counselor to Volunteer Coordinator to Animal Care Manager and most recently Behavior Care Manager. I’ve had the extraordinary opportunity to work alongside incredible mentors – many of whom are four-legged!
Moving Forward

The Beginning

Dog hugging a woman by the beach
In March of 2020 a few life-changing events happened simultaneously… our organization had recently undergone a major turnover in leadership, my father’s cancer returned and then COVID struck. I found myself in a pretty bleak place, but knowing others were in much worse situations I decided to rally and turn my lemons into lemonade. I wanted to put my years of dog handling experience into something more tangible so I signed up for Victoria Stilwell’s Dog Training Academy. I diligently worked weekends and evenings to ensure I could earn my certification while still maintaining my management role at the shelter. After becoming certified I was given the opportunity to start my own Behavior & Training program and with the support of my directors and staff, we have been able to help even more dogs with behavioral needs. I left the shelter on August 13, 2021, just three weeks shy of my eight year MHS anniversary. I was able to take away life-long friends, untold knowledge from my dog teachers and the opportunity to help in a new capacity. I’ve discovered when humans are given the tools to help understand dogs, giving them the freedom of choice while becoming their teachers in life, magic happens…and witnessing this magic first hand is how Dog’s Choice was born.

Building Relationships
Since 2013

The Future

My Mission

Dog and girl laying in the grass

My mission is to help dog parents embrace dogness while learning how to communicate with their furry (sometimes stinky, sometimes slobbery) best friend!!

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Our Promise

We’ll Take Care
of Your Pet Friends

Rachael Magee is a graduate of the prestigious Victoria Stilwell Academy for Dog Training & Behavior and has been granted official status as a VSA-Certified Dog Trainer (VSA-CDT). The Victoria Stilwell Academy is the world’s premier institution for professional dog trainer education founded by renowned dog behavior expert Victoria Stilwell, and graduates of VSA have been individually taught in-person by Stilwell and other VSA faculty. All VSA graduates have been rigorously assessed at the highest level for both skills and knowledge in the areas of dog training, behavior modification, canine ethology, creative problem-solving and more. Additionally, great emphasis is placed within VSA’s industry-leading curriculum upon effective and empathetic human communication skills. This unique focus results in professional dog trainers who are prepared not just to train dogs successfully using powerful force-free, positive reinforcement-based tools and techniques, but also to help dog owner clients to learn how to truly transform canine behavior and set their dogs up for success using the latest in modern behavioral science methods.  Learn more about the Victoria Stilwell Academy here.

Fear Free Certified Professional Trainer. As a Fear Free Certified Professional, I am committed to alleviating fear, anxiety, and stress in pets. Learn more at fearfreepets.com

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