I've done quite a bit of animal training, but primarily with dogs from police/military to some work with service dogs and a lot of pet training. Quite often that meant rehabilitating animals that other trainers or veterinarians said would have to be put down... they were wrong every time. Any animal can be trained with the right techniques - it's humans I'm not so sure about.
In addition to working with animals I'd like to work with troubled children - particularly those diagnosed with Autism. I just read an article in people magazine (hey, I was stuck in a waiting room) about the 'horse boy' who was a 'severely disabled' autistic boy. His parents tried everything to no avail, he was not learning, speaking, interacting, nothing. He would have horrible temper-tantrums for hours, until he escaped and ran out to the woods where he would calm down. He would look at the trees or watch the insects and wild animals and he was calm and happy.
One time he ran to the neighbors pasture where there were several horses around. He ran RIGHT up to a horse, his father saw this and panicked, but the horse reacted well. The boy has since taken to riding horses and working with animals and has completely 'recovered'; he is above his ages reading level, has normal if not extraordinary social skills and is succeeding in everything.
It was for the most part a wonderful article. Until it turned to commentary from the 'experts' who said that horseback riding uses rhythm and balance which is what autistics need and thats why it helped him. What a load of crap - how can they not see the plain truth in front of them: our world and our society is terribly separated from the natural world around us, we abuse nature and we abuse animals, and it is all to our own detriment. There are many stories like this kids where "disabled" children when given the chance to reconnect with nature or animals have a complete recovery - often going beyond "normal" to being geniuses of various sorts - they are the ones who could after all perceive there was a problem to begin with.
Anyhow, all dreams aside, one can only accomplish so much before they complete their own credentials. I'm in a PhD program at the moment in Neuroscience & Behavior after which I hope to teach at a university and reopen my animal training business, and with a PhD under my belt I may get taken seriously enough to work with humans as well.
Many people who are seen as "disabled" are merely misunderstood and it is our society which is disabled in not being able to understand someone who does not fit the cookie cutter mold for a human that we have created. Most "problem dogs" or animals are also merely misunderstood. While pit-bulls have the muscular build to attract crazy people to train them to be mean, they are by their nature one of the most passive and patient dogs.
It is not the dogs nor the disabled who need rehabilitation - it is our society. But in the absence of a means to that ends we can teach the "problem animals" and "disabled" children how to interact with this troubled society in a productive manner... I figured it out pretty well, regardless of what was said/expected of me when I was young.
