A behavior consultant — not just a trainer.
I’m Tessa Romita, and for over a decade I’ve helped Hudson Valley families with the dogs they love — and, sometimes, the dogs they’ve come to dread. My work sits a step beyond training: I’m certified in behavior — the fear, the reactivity, the aggression, the cases other programs send onward — and in the everyday skills that keep those problems from ever starting.
Anyone can be a dog trainer. A behavior consultant is something more.
A CDBC — Certified Dog Behavior Consultant — is earned through logged casework and examination in the hard stuff: aggression, reactivity, fear, and separation distress. It’s the difference between teaching a dog to sit and understanding why a dog lunges, panics, or bites — and knowing how to change it. It’s also why the ordinary dogs I help don’t become the difficult ones: I know how the problems start, so I can keep them from starting.
Change how a dog feels, and the behavior follows.
Every dog I work with, I meet the same way: not as a problem to be corrected, but as an animal doing the best it can with the nervous system and the history it has. A dog who lunges isn’t giving you a hard time — they’re having one. Lasting change comes from working with that inner state, not suppressing the behavior stacked on top of it.
That’s why everything I do is force-free and grounded in behavioral science. I work by LIMA — least intrusive, minimally aversive — which in plain terms means I reach for the gentlest effective approach first, and I never trade a visible symptom for a more frightened, more dangerous dog. No prong collars, no shock, no “dominance.” Just an honest understanding of how dogs learn and feel, applied patiently.
It’s slower than a quick fix, and far more durable — because a dog who feels differently behaves differently, in the vet’s office and on the sidewalk and years down the road.
The letters — and what they actually mean.
The behavior credential: logged casework and examination in aggression, fear, reactivity, and separation. The hard cases.
Independently examined certification in humane, science-based training.
Advanced, hands-on certification in positive-reinforcement teaching.
Specialized in keeping reactive and over-aroused dogs working under threshold.
Trained to reduce fear, anxiety, and stress in handling and veterinary settings.
Graduate-level training in the science of behavior change and humane, function-based intervention.
In-depth study of canine behavior, learning theory, and evidence-based behavior modification.
Intensive training that sharpens the precise timing and mechanics behind clean, effective teaching.
What colleagues say.
“Tessa was one of my standout students. She graduated from the Karen Pryor Academy with distinction, and her success speaks to her precision and skill as a trainer. What struck me most was her genuine passion for the work. Tessa doesn’t just train dogs well — she cares deeply about understanding the dogs, their people, and their relationship. That combination of technical excellence and heartfelt dedication is exactly what you want in a trainer.”
Terry RyanKaren Pryor Academy faculty · Legacy Canine Behavior & Training
“Tessa is continuously expanding her knowledge, which helps her find the best and most ethical ways to help your critters at home. With her extended knowledge she takes on any challenge. Her goal is to help you look through the eyes of the animal, which brings joy for all members of the family. She only thinks in solutions, and will go the extra mile to make sure you succeed with your animals.”
Peter GiljamInternationally recognized animal-training educator
“The dog isn’t giving you a hard time. They’re having one — and that’s exactly where the work begins.”
Why dogs, and why this way.
My path to this work began with a dog named Molly.
I adopted her as a puppy from the shelter — a Treeing Walker Coonhound who was reactive and guarded what was hers fiercely. Over the years I worked with trainer after trainer and saw little real change, but I never stopped trying. Then I found the work of Amy Cook, built around agency and relationship, and everything shifted. Molly began to move through the world happily, our relationship transformed, and I could literally watch her body let go of the tension it had carried for so long.
Seeing my own dog flourish made me want to understand how behavior actually works — why dogs do what they do, and what they need to feel safe. That curiosity eventually made me a professional. I think of it as Molly’s gift: what the two of us learned together is what I now bring to other families. We all love our dogs and want the same things — for them to feel at ease in the world, and for us to truly enjoy our life together.
