Dr. Mary Travers began her apprenticeship in dog training in 2002 after completing her second Masters Degree in Psychology. After completing an 18-month apprenticeship, she began working as a dog trainer at Best Friends Dog Training, providing both one-one-one private training sessions and and group classes, including a special class geared specifically for small dogs.

She continued to work as a trainer while getting her PhD in Clinical and School Psychology at Hofstra University. During her dissertation, which addressed Learning Behavior in Dogs, she worked with more than 40 dogs, including a number of rescue dogs which she has since found homes for.

Since earning her PhD, she has spoken at various conferences across the country, including the Annual Association for Behavior Analysis International Conference in Phoenix, where she presented her work on The Effects of Reinforcing With Combined Food and Praise on Eating and Weight Gain in Dogs.

In 2010, she helped found SuperPaws Dog Training (http://superpawsk9.com) with husband Chris Smith, and in 2015, they opened a training and boarding facility in Garden City Park, NY where they continue to train dogs throughout Long Island, Manhattan, Westchester and Northern New Jersey. She is also co-founder of The Barking Barracks, a charitable organization that provides long-term, low- or no-cost boarding for U.S. Military Service Members while their duties take them away from home.

She currently shares her home with her husband, daughters Killian and Fallon, Belgian Malinois Katana, Halo and McLovin’ and mini aussies Margarita and Sambuca. She is delighted to be returning to Canine Camp Getaway and is looking forward to seeing old friends and clients, helping guests with their training and behavior questions and taking Katana out to do some lure coursing!