Howard Rodriguez

Currently residing in Miami, Florida, Howie Rodriguez recently retired from operating the California K-9 Academy in Burbank. Extensively experienced in training dogs and importing German Shepherds from Germany, Howie Rodriguez spent his pre-Miami days offering local dog owners of the greater Los Angeles area his expertise in teaching their pets obedience in a comfortable, homelike atmosphere. Having lived in Florida prior to his relocation to Miami, Howie Rodriguez also commands years of experience as a police dog trainer for the Town of Oakland Police Department. Howie Rodriguez first began working with dogs when he was 10 years old. Earning a position as kennel attendant for a training center in New York City, he gradually climbed the ranks. Appointed Head Trainer and National Training Director at 18 years old and then a partner the next year, he spearheaded an expansion operation that included 32 new kennels across the United States. From New York City he relocated to Kansas City, facilitating a reorganization of the K-9 Command headquarters. A year after completing his work in Kansas City, Howie Rodriguez moved to Florida and opened two kennels under the title of Continental K-9 Academy. Working in conjunction with the Town of Oakland Police Department, he functioned as their Canine Training Coordinator and trained police dogs in obedience, agility, protection, wind scent discrimination, building search and seizure, and bomb detection. Howie Rodriguez subsequently moved to Germany, opening a kennel from which he acquired high caliber dogs best suited for police work. Throughout his career as a trainer and kennel operator, he also competed extensively in major worldwide competitions, garnering national and international awards as well as coverage from publications such as Vanity Fair, the Los Angeles Times, and The Miami Herald. Since moving to Miami, Howie Rodriguez has enjoyed access to its famed beaches and a breadth of aquatic activities. Among his favorite activities are serving as a scuba instructor and piloting single- and twin-engine planes. He also presides on the boards of the Galapagos Conservancy and WildAid, protecting beaches and natural habitats such as those found in Miami.