Switch to mobile website Switch to full website
Share Close
  • Lorraine Martinez

    Lorraine Martinez Ph.D., owner of LOMA Behavior and Training LLC, has been helping dogs and their people since 2002. Dr. Martinez came into the animal training field after earning her Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Washington-Seattle, one of the best schools of behavioral psychology in the country. After adopting a dog showing aggressive behavior to other dogs she sought dog training help. That’s when she learned the field was filled with misconceptions about how animals learn and how behavior is changed. Dr. Martinez decided to use her knowledge of behavioral psychology to help pet owners get easy to understand information about dog training that relied on the long history of research in the field, rather than the myths that were so common.

    She went on to graduate with distinction from the rigorous Karen Pryor Academy Dog Trainer Program. As part of the Greater St. Louis Training Club, she developed the first specialized program for dogs showing fearful and aggressive behavior. Dr. Martinez worked as the Behavior and Training Department Supervisor for the Humane Society of Missouri and served as a consultant with the ASPCA Anti-Cruelty Behavior Team, assisting with rehabilitation of dogs rescued from dog fighting seizures.

    Dr. Martinez has a special spot in her heart for pit bulls. She adopted Dolly from one of the largest dog fighting raids in history - called the MO 500 dogs. Dolly was one of the most playful puppies from all the 500 dogs seized. She continued to be one of the funnest, happiest, and most loving dogs throughout her life.

  • Alix Gonzalez

    Bio coming soon
  • Athena Helper Dog

    Bio coming soon
  • Bean Helper Dog

    Bio coming soon
  • Buddy Helper Dog

    Bio coming soon
  • Helix Helper Dog

    Bio coming soon
  • Jennifer Rodriguez

    Bio coming soon
  • Megan Hoffman

    Megan Hoffman, Ph.D., is an animal behaviorist who has been working with animals professionally for over 19 years. Dr. Hoffman earned her Ph.D. in Psychology from Georgia State University in 2012. Her area of concentration is comparative psychology - the study of behavioral and cognitive processes across species.

    Her research focused on learning and memory, but she also developed a strong interest in animal welfare, as a result of working closely with animals.

    She came into the field of applied animal behavior as a natural extension of her doctoral training. After completing her training, Dr. Hoffman expanded to doing applied research with a variety of species in zoos and sanctuaries. She also began behavioral consulting work, applying her knowledge to improve animal lives - both domestic and exotic. One of her most fulfilling experiences was working on a project to teach American black bears to voluntary participate in receiving inter-muscular injections for veterinary care. She has experience working with a wide range of species including rodents, lagomorphs, ungulates, carnivores (felines, canines, bears), and primate species. Although today she focuses her consulting on domestic dogs and cats, her experience with other species helps her think outside of the box and draw from a large body of experience.

    Dr. Hoffman has served as faculty at colleges and universities where she has taught a wide selection of courses on animal behavior, learning, cognitive science, research methods and behavioral analysis. She is the only behavior consultant (non-veterinary) in Texas who is a member of the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior. She also is a member of the Animal Behavior Society and is a Fear Free Certified Professional. Her research has been published in peer-reviewed scientific journals, including Animal Cognition, Journal of Comparative Psychology and Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes.

    Helping humans understand and communicate with their animals is her passion. She has a special place in her heart for animals that are fearful or anxious. She loves working on dog behavior cases, but also has an affinity for helping cat clients with behavior issues.


  • Sarah Spencer

    Sarah has been passionate about working with all types of animals since childhood and never missed an opportunity to train any creature she came across. Her career began with pet sitting and training her neighbors’ cats and dogs, which led to leading horseback riding tours in the summer, evolved into working with dogs in shelters, and training and caring for large fish and reptiles (including sharks, alligators, and octopus)

    As a five-year veteran in animal training and husbandry, she has experience with a variety of species, which gives her a solid understanding that every single animal (even from dog to dog) needs individualized training and care.

    She earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Animal Biology minoring in Psychology from Texas A&M University Corpus Christi in 2014 and plans to attend a graduate-level program at the Animal Behavior Institute in the fall. Her ultimate career goals are to become a behavior and enrichment consulting specialist and travel to zoos, aquariums, sanctuaries, etc. to create individualized training and enrichment plans to better animal welfare.

    Sarah has been with LOMA for over two years and has accomplished a great deal in that span of time. She is a Certified Professional Dog Trainer-Knowledge Assessed and Fear Free Certified Professional. She has created two unique programs that foster LOMA’S goal of preventing fear and aggressive behavior. These programs allow puppies and their owners to thrive and learn in a safe environment. Sarah is the lead trainer in our Puppy Social and Mutts with Manners classes. She loves to help families learn to communicate with their pets and help them know that every animal can learn.


  • Stephanie Leathers

    Bio coming soon