Coaching Canine Companions · Founder · Lorrie J. Harris
The Moment
Everything Changed.
From relentless technique to the rhythm of co-regulation. How a Navy veteran became the trainer who stopped performing — and started becoming the river her dogs could rest inside.
U.S. Navy Veteran
Master Certified Trainer
AKC CGC Evaluator
North Kingstown, RI & Online
Nervous-System-First Dog Training
Reactive Dog Specialist
North Kingstown, RI
Online Coaching Available
About Lorrie Harris
About Lorrie Harris,
founder of Coaching
Canine Companions.
I suppose there was one experience in my life that brought me here. It happened before I became a trainer, before I had language for regulation, before I knew what co-regulation even was. But it changed the way I understood support — not as strategy, but as presence.
What makes Lorrie's approach different?
Coaching Canine Companions does not begin with obedience. It begins with the nervous system. Lorrie helps dogs and their people move from survival patterns into safety, trust, and sustainable change.
• Fear-sensitive support rooted in nervous system literacy
• Relationship-centered coaching, not command-and-control training
• Trauma-aware guidance for reactive, anxious, and overwhelmed dogs
• A humane path forward for families seeking deep, lasting change
Why This Page Exists
About Lorrie Harris, founder of Coaching Canine Companions.
Lorrie Harris is the founder and lead trainer of Coaching Canine Companions, a dog training business based in North Kingstown, Rhode Island. She specializes in nervous-system-first dog training for reactive, anxious, sensitive, easily overwhelmed, and high-arousal dogs.
Her work helps families understand what happens before barking, lunging, freezing, pulling, shutdown, or panic takes over — and teaches dogs and handlers how to build regulation, recovery, and connection in real-world settings.
North Kingstown, RIReactive DogsAnxious DogsDay TrainingOnline Support
What makes Lorrie’s approach different?
Coaching Canine Companions does not begin with dominance, pressure, or obedience as performance. The work begins with the dog’s nervous system, the handler’s state, the leash conversation, recovery time, threshold awareness, and the dog’s ability to stay connected when life becomes interesting.
- Best fit for families with reactive, anxious, sensitive, or overwhelmed dogs.
- Especially useful when commands work at home but fail outside.
- Built around regulation, co-regulation, recovery, and relationship-based clarity.
- Available locally in Rhode Island and through online training support.
The Origin
The Illusion of Mastery
I thought mastering the best techniques, strategies, and behavior systems made me the ultimate dog trainer.
I was relentless: I studied obsessively, devoured peer-reviewed journals, and shadowed elite trainers across state lines. I read "Bible-sized" training manuals so dry they could turn a Labrador into a librarian.
I applied those skills with hundreds of dogs — big, small, aggressive, anxious, "untrainable" dogs that others had given up on.
And it worked.
Until it didn't.
Until it didn't.
"It wasn't the methods that transformed dogs. It was the energy I brought into the room."
The Shift
Becoming the River
One day, I realized the truth that unraveled everything I thought I knew: it wasn't about getting dogs to understand my language.
It was my steadiness. My willingness to play. My breath. My silence. My heart. It was about learning to speak theirs — through field, through rhythm, through co-regulation and presence.
The real magic happened when I stopped performing like a behavior technician and started becoming the river my dogs could rest inside.
"The real magic happened when I stopped performing like a behavior technician…
and started becoming the river my dogs could rest inside."
and started becoming the river my dogs could rest inside."
Founder & Visionary
Meet Lorrie Harris
Pioneer. U.S. Navy Veteran. Nervous-System-First Trainer.
Lorrie began working with dogs in 1990 — shortly after completing her service in the U.S. Navy — nearly three decades before formalizing her practice with a Master Dog Training Certification from the National K-9 School in 2019. That timeline is not a gap. It is the education: thousands of hours of real-field dog experience, health coaching, nervous-system work, and personality dynamics, converging into a methodology that no single certification program could have produced alone.
The 2019 certification didn't create the trainer. It confirmed one. Lorrie had already developed her foundational approach through hands-on work with bomb detection dogs, anxious rescues, reactive family pets, and handlers at the end of their rope. What the certification gave her was language for what she already knew in the field.
Lorrie works with families in North Kingstown, Rhode Island and online across the country — with a singular focus: not compliance, but connection that holds under pressure.
Polyvagal TheoryAttachment ScienceSomatic ExperiencingPositive ReinforcementK9 Bioenergy BalancingEFT
Lorrie J. Harris
Professional Accreditations
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Master Dog Training Certification
National K-9 Learning Center
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AKC Approved CGC Evaluator
Canine Good Citizen Program
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AKC Fit Dog Certified
American Kennel Club
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Former Bomb Detection Dog Specialist
IPWDA
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IACP Member
International Association of Canine Professionals
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Certified EFT Practitioner
Emotional Freedom Techniques
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K9 Energy Healing Practitioner
K9 Bioenergy Balancing
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K9 Behavior Coach
Nervous-System-First Methodology
A Rare Specialization
The K9 Bioenergy Advantage
A neurological bridge that transcends the boundaries of traditional dog training.
Traditional training hits a wall when it meets a fearful or reactive dog — because the brain is locked in survival mode. No amount of technique reaches a dog who cannot access their learning brain.
K9 Bioenergy Balancing allows Lorrie to move past the reactive and fearful brain by regulating the energetic and neurological field first. Safety before skill. Regulation before request.
This creates a path to deeper, more permanent behavioral change — not suppression of symptoms, but resolution of the internal state driving them.
The Gateway Effect
Neurological Bypass
Settling the fear center before asking for behavior — so learning is actually possible.
Field Regulation
Ensuring the dog feels physiologically safe enough to engage and respond.
Permanent Shifts
Changing the internal state — not suppressing the outward symptom.
Connection Before Correction
Trust is always built before a behavior is requested. Always.
The Methodology
Balanced Training: The Way of Nature
"Pets can evoke a profound love, often filling gaps left by human relationships."
— Alan Beck & Aron Katcher
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Positive Reinforcement
Rewarding desirable behaviors with joy and trust — motivating your dog to choose cooperation over compliance, repeatedly and reliably.
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Nervous-System Regulation
Deep breathing, modeling physiological calm, and co-regulation — so the nervous system is settled and learning becomes genuinely possible.
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Resilience Through Play
Harnessing healthy eustress through interactive play and exposure — building emotional flexibility and lasting behavioral change from the inside out.
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Connection Before Correction
A dysregulated brain cannot learn. Connection calms the nervous system first — paving the way for communication that actually sticks.
The Evolution
Revolutionizing Dog Training
Beyond Obedience. Beyond Technique. Into the Relationship.
For decades, traditional dog training has relied on outdated methods — reinforcing control, suppressing behaviors, and missing the deeper emotional and psychological needs of our canine companions.
At Coaching Canine Companions, we redefine the human-canine relationship using cutting-edge neuroscience, energy balancing, and holistic wellness — building partnerships, not programs.
The Philosophy in Practice
The Dog Knows the Way
The Dog Knows the Way — the moment Lorrie stopped training and started returning to what was already there.
From the Field Library
Lorrie in Her Own Words
Free Guide
5 Signs Your Dog Is at the Edge of Their Window
The signals most handlers miss before the reaction. Learn to read them — and what to do when you catch them. Lorrie reads every reply personally.
✓ On its way. Lorrie reads every reply personally.
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Questions People Ask
About Lorrie Harris and Coaching Canine Companions
These answers help families — and search engines — understand who Lorrie helps, where she works, and why her nervous-system-first approach is different from ordinary obedience training.
Who is Lorrie Harris?
Lorrie Harris is the founder and lead trainer of Coaching Canine Companions in North Kingstown, Rhode Island. She is a U.S. Navy veteran, master certified dog trainer, AKC Canine Good Citizen evaluator, and creator of Field-Based Regulation Training for Dogs.
What kind of dogs does Lorrie specialize in?
Lorrie specializes in sensitive, anxious, reactive, easily overwhelmed, and high-arousal dogs — especially dogs who know cues at home but struggle with barking, lunging, pulling, freezing, or shutdown in real-world environments.
Where is Coaching Canine Companions located?
Coaching Canine Companions is based in North Kingstown, Rhode Island and serves local dog families through in-person training, day training, workshops, and virtual support for families outside the area.
What is Field-Based Regulation Training?
Field-Based Regulation Training is Lorrie’s nervous-system-first method. It focuses on the dog’s state, threshold, recovery, movement, handler rhythm, leash communication, and the moment before behavior breaks.
Is this dominance-based dog training?
No. Coaching Canine Companions does not rely on dominance theory or intimidation. The work is relationship-centered and focuses on regulation, clarity, safety, timing, and connection before correction.
How should I start working with Lorrie?
The best first step is a free consultation or Meet & Greet. From there, Lorrie can help determine whether day training, online training, the 90-day program, puppy support, or another path is the right fit.
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If you've been searching for a calmer, more honest way forward
You can begin gently here. Lorrie works with dogs and their people from North Kingstown, RI — in-person and online nationwide.
North Kingstown, RI · Tue–Sat 8AM–6PM · (401) 249-4200
