MEET RUE.
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I grew up on Bowen Island, where I spent my childhood surrounded by nature and animals. It's where my appreciation for the outdoors began, and it's still a huge part of who I am today.
When I was 21, I moved to Calgary to work for a company that designed and built veterinary simulation models used to train veterinary students. We built everything from life-sized horses and calves to surgical training models and canine spay units. Just around the corner was a local animal shelter, where I began volunteering in my spare time.
That experience sparked my interest in dog behaviour and training. What started as curiosity quickly became a passion, and after a couple of years I knew it was time to make it my career. I moved back to Victoria, BC, where I completed a two-year apprenticeship under Aviva Shtull at BabyDog Canada. I later joined the training team and eventually became Head Trainer, a role I held for the next few years.
From there, I moved to the Comox Valley and started my own business, Isle Dogs Training. For more than three years, I worked with dogs of all breeds, ages, and temperaments, helping owners build practical, everyday skills they could rely on. Living and working in such an outdoor-focused community reinforced my belief that training should prepare dogs for real life, not just the living room. Whether it was hiking trails, encountering wildlife, or navigating everyday distractions, dogs and their owners needed skills they could depend on wherever life took them.
In 2025, I returned to Victoria to support my partner's career. It also gave me the opportunity to switch things up, create something new, and build a business that felt completely my own. A place where there was room to have a little more fun, celebrate the wonderfully quirky personalities of small dogs, while still taking their training, well-being, and safety very seriously. That business became Minnows Dogs.
 
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