Bill Whitstine (Certified Master Trainer) owns and operates the Florida Canine Academy, which trains bomb, drug, money, weapons, termite, mold and accelerant detection canine teams. Several years ago, Bill identified the growing problem of bedbugs in homes and businesses and worked with researchers to further investigate the possibility that dogs could be trained to detect bedbugs. Shortly after, Bill founded Bedbug Dog, a subsidiary of the Florida Canine Academy, to train, certify and sell bedbug-detecting dogs.
All dogs, unless upon request for a certain dog or dog breed, are saved from a potentially doomed fate from humane societies in the area and brought to the academy where they receive their training. When they are ready to find bedbugs in the real world, Bill matches the dogs up with clients who wish to become handlers.
From this point the new handlers come to the academy to train and bond with their new bedbug dog. Bailey continues her training on a daily basis using vials of live bedbugs, nymphs and eggs hidden around the house even when she is not working. In fact this is the only way in which she gets fed daily, by earning food as her reward. Typically she trains two to three times a day.
Bailey receives quarterly testing, from the Floridas Canine Academy. She is also re-certified on a yearly basis by the Florida Canine Academy.
When Bailey is not hard at work she enjoys running, ball, catching a fresbee and most of all chasing her feline roommates around the house. But her true love is exploring and smelling everything in sight.
Bailey's handler, Cindy Hoffman, has handled dogs all of her life. Throughout her
childhood, Cindy dreamed of always working with dogs in one form or another and now
this dream has come true for her. She has owned and trained dogs herself, and as
recent as last spring, was part of the local humane society team in Edmonton,
Alberta. At the society, much of her time was spent with the dogs, both learning and
working with the behavioral department at the society, as well as caring and
spending time with the dogs there.
Cindy also has a professional background in business and customer service as she
grew up in the family hardware business in Thorsby, Alberta. Through her time
there, she learned about business from her father and older brother. Cindy is now
putting this wisdom to good use with the starting of her own business, K-9 Scent
Solutions.
Cindy and Bailey have recently moved from Alberta and are now situated in
Brackendale, BC, where they service the Sea to Sky area, north of Pemberton, all the
way south into Metro Vancouver as well as Vancouver Island.