Trainers

Lora Johnson

As owner and Lead Trainer for Over the Moon Positive Dog Training, LLC, Lora believes that training a dog is about establishing a positive relationship built on clear communication, mutual respect and fun!  Humans and dogs are different species and don’t automatically understand each other. Lora believes that teaching humans how to read and interpret their dog’s body language will give them the tools they need to make their dog successful. 

Lora shares her home with her husband Woody who is a professor at Northern Illinois University, and their two dogs Lena – a rescued Labrador retriever, and Enzo, a rescued Pit-Cattle dog mix.  Lora is a special education teacher with over 30 years experience instructing children with cognitive and developmental disabilities and autism spectrum disorders.  Lora’s interest in using therapy dogs in her special needs classroom led her down a new path.  As she completed the training and evaluations necessary to register both of her Labrador retrievers as therapy dogs, she discovered a new passion: teaching people and dogs to live together in harmony.

Lora is a lifelong learner, and remains current in the science of training by attending conferences, seminars, and workshops.  She is a positive reinforcement trainer who uses scientifically proven learning methods.  

Lora is a Certified Behavior Consultant Canine - Knowledge Assessed (CBCC-KA).  She is one of only 9 to hold this credential in the state of Illinois.  She is also holds the credential Certified Professional Dog Trainer - Knowledge Assessed, (CPDT-KA) is a Canine Good Citizen Evaluator, and Trick Dog Evaluator.

Lisa Bowles

Lisa Bowles is an Assistant Trainer at OTM Positive Dog Training. Lisa’s first French Bulldog became a certified therapy dog through a local therapy dog club which is where she met Lora Johnson.  Her next French Bulldog was quite a challenge to train.  She attended many different training classes with him to learn how to interact with him in a positive way and learn different strategies for managing his behavior.  This has led to her passion in learning about positive dog training methods.

Lisa is very active in the dog rescue community.  Over the years, she has fostered over 18 dogs of various ages and needs.  Many of the pups rescued come from Puppy Mill situations and have never had proper medical care or lived outside of a cage.  She has learned how to help rehabilitate them, problem solve ways to manage their behavior, and provide them with experiences needed to make them have a successful forever home.

During the day, Lisa is an elementary education teacher with over 30 years of experience.  Teaching and learning is a part of her everyday life, so it is a natural transition to teaching dogs and their people.  Lisa has attended many dog seminars and workshops, and is working towards becoming a certified professional dog trainer.  Lisa currently shares her home with her blind rescue frenchie, Beckham.

Ashley Balsitis

Ashley is a Certified Trainer at Over the Moon Positive Dog Training. Ashley teaches group classes from Smart Puppy, Canine Good Citizen, Tricks class, Nosework and everything in between. She also offers private 1:1 sessions, In-Home Training and runs the Sit, Stay, Learn Drop Off Day Training program and Puppy Socials/Calm and Confident Socials here at Over the Moon. With a background ranging from family pets, to extensive work with shelter and rescue dogs, Ashley is well known and respected for her work in the animal field.

Ashley is also the owner-operator of Lucky Pets Sitting Services. Over the last ten years, Ashley has worked full time as a dog walker & specializing in overnight in-home care. She prides herself in the quality of care and spends the time to make sure her pet owners feel at ease while they are away from home. She has “retired” from pet sitting to focus on her training career and her family.

Ashley holds the credential of Certified Professional Dog Trainer - Knowledge Assessed, (CPDT-KA) and Certified Family Dog Mediator, (FDM).  She avidly pursues continuing education in the animal behavior and professional dog training fields. She also holds an AAS in Biology, completed the “Becoming a Dog Trainer” course at Waubonsee and is currently completing  Kim Brophey’s L.E.G.S Family Dog Mediator Course.

Ashley shares her home with her husband, Bob, her senior rescue Pittie Lily and her bearded dragon Atlas and as of February this year her son Logan! Ashley and Lily have done extensive training over the years including Barn Hunt, Nose work, Cooperative Care Training and earning their Advanced Trick Dog Title. She is now embarking on a journey with Lily of navigating life with new baby!

Sarah Majewski

Sarah Majewski is a Trainer at Over the Moon Positive Dog Training. She has had a lifelong passion for dogs.   One day in 2018 she received a brochure for the Fall classes at Waubonsee Community College reading, "Become a Professional Dog Trainer!"  Sarah completed the course work, found that she loved working with the dogs and their families,  and  the rest is history.  Accountant by day, this is exactly what she needed to bring balance to her life. 

Sarah and her husband Joe currently have two pups: a beagle named Bolin and a senior lab mix named Molly. However, the dog who got her interested in training was her late pup Max, a senior beagle mix, who benefited greatly from the enrichment ideas she learned in class. Her favorite part of positive training is seeing the bond built between the dogs and their families as they learn to work together and trust each other. 

Jasmine Cabral                                              

Jasmine is an Assistant Trainer at Over the Moon.  In addition to dog training, she is currently a full-time receptionist and veterinary technician at Valley Animal Hospital in Geneva. 

Jasmine began her career with animals in 2018 when she started working at a local dog daycare and volunteering at a nearby shelter.  As she gained experience, eventually becoming the manager of the daycare, she realized that her true passion was working with animals. Jasmine was attending Waubonsee Community College to study psychology at the time, but enrolled in a certificate program to “Become a Professional Dog Trainer” which led her to OTM.  She enjoys helping pet parents learn about their growing pups and strives to educate and support families however she can. 

When not working with animals, she is listening to live music or expressing herself through art. She shares her home with her father, Sergio, and boyfriend Zac. On Easter 2024, the family welcomed their first rescue Onyx, a chihuahua mix.

Anna-Lisa Whitson

Anna-Lisa is a Certified Trainer at Over the Moon Positive Dog Training. She is passionate about strengthening the relationship between people and their pups through positive reinforcement, and understanding canine communication. Anna-Lisa completed her dog training certification through Animal Behavior College (ABCDT) and loves using that knowledge to help pet parents.

Anna-Lisa lives in Batavia with her husband Ray, two dogs Harvey and Bogey, and two cats Astara and Audio. Harvey and Bogey absolutely love “school time” at home, practicing cues and learning new tricks; even the cats join in on that fun!

In her “day job,” Anna-Lisa works in the senior living industry, assisting and supporting clients and their families with transitions and future planning. 

Lisa Anderson

Lisa is a Trainer at Over the Moon and has had a lifelong love of dogs. Her particular love affair with Bullmastiffs began when she read a book about dog breeds and found the Bullmastiff to be her perfect fit. That first book led to other books, videos, and anything else she could find to research the breed. She eventually found a wonderful breeder, and got her first Bullmastiff, Hemi, ten years after that first book. 

Lisa had a particular interest in doing therapy work, and when it was time she decided to search for another Bullmastiff she could train to do therapy work.  What a journey this would take her on!  Not only did she train her Bullmastiff, Diesel, to be a therapy dog; she was introduced to all things AKC. With a lot of hard work and dedication, Diesel has become an amazingly accomplished dog in the AKC world. He holds 13 AKC titles which include being a Grand Champion.  Diesel also holds several titles in performance and companion events. All of Diesel's obedience training was done at OTM where he learned to become a certified therapy dog, earned all 3 CGC titles, Rally Novice, and 2 trick titles. Lisa also trained Diesel to compete in agility.

Lisa continues to train at OTM and competes in AKC events with her 3rd Bullmastiff, Senna. Senna is also a Grand Champion and currently holds 11 AKC titles in conformation, performance, and companion events. OTM had been invaluable for Lisa's training goals for the past 7 years. Through positive reinforcement she continues to learn how to create strong bonds that lead to years of fun adventures and accomplishments. 

LIsa is Canine Good Citizen Evaluator, and Trick Dog Evaluator.

During the day, Lisa owns her own Interior Design Firm, Intentional Spaces. Her focus is helping people function more efficiently while creating beautiful spaces. She and her husband Ryan have 2 children, Kyle and Jordan. Both of whom are pursuing their dreams in college. 

Valerie Popp

Valerie is a Trainer at Over the Moon Positive Dog Training.

Valerie has loved training with her own dogs for 20+ years. She says she truly loves all dogs; however it seems that Shelties (Shetland Sheepdogs) melt her heart just a little bit more. Over the years, she has adopted 5 Shelties and hosted 3 foster dogs through a rescue organization.

Valerie has trained and competed with her dogs in many canine performance and companion sports/events earning CWAGS/CPE/AKC titles in Agility, Nose work, Tricks and Therapy Dog certifications.  For several years, she trained her dogs and helped others train their dogs for Canine Good Citizenship Certification and Therapy Dog Certification. Valerie is a CGC and Tricks Evaluator. 

These experiences led her to complete the “Become a Certified Dog Trainer Program” at Waubonsee Community College and has been facilitating dog training sessions ever since. She finds that helping people to do more with their dogs, and to live their best life together, has been very rewarding.

When not working with pets, Valerie is semi-retired from the Corporate Human Resources world.  She also helps people to heal and grow in their own lives through facilitating sessions as a Certified Hypnotist, and  Energy Healing Modality Practitioner.

Valerie lives in Montgomery with her dog Willow, a rescue sheltie. Willow is currently training in Obedience, Duck Herding, Lure Coursing and Scent work.