About Me
My name is Wesley Swainston, and I’m a dog trainer with a career path that didn’t exist—so I built it.
My dream job wasn’t available anywhere. I didn’t want to run a traditional board-and-train, and I didn’t want to talk theory without proof. I wanted to show the world—and yes, I mean the world—what training can actually do for dogs the system has already given up on.
So I rescue shelter dogs that would otherwise be euthanized, train them to the highest level, and gift them as dream dogs to people—publicly documenting the process to prove one thing:
training saves lives.
The dog training world is political. Methods, tools, and ideologies are argued endlessly online. But nothing changes minds faster than watching a dog labeled “unadoptable” thrive off leash, confident, and free in the real world.
That’s where my work lives.
How This Started
Before becoming a trainer full time, I served in the United States Marine Corps. I knew even then that I wanted to train dogs, so I started wherever I could—first in service dog training, then by volunteering at local shelters everywhere I was stationed.
That hands-on experience exposed me to every kind of dog: fearful, reactive, shut down, overstimulated, misunderstood. While on active duty, I also completed a military mentorship program under a trainer who showed me what elite-level, real-world training actually looks like.
When I left the USMC, I made a decision:
I wasn’t going to take board-and-train dogs.
I already had my dog, Asher, a German Shepherd who is my soul dog—my dream dog. While volunteering in shelters, I realized something that changed everything: there are incredible dogs sitting in shelters simply because no one taught them how to live in the human world.
I had never seen a trainer online fostering dogs, training them, and putting their system on full display. So I built a program around exactly that.
I foster dogs.
I train them.
I make them exceptional.
And I show the world what’s possible.
A Bigger Mission
This work doesn’t stop at borders.
A long-term dream of mine is to rescue and train dogs in other countries, where resources are limited, shelters are overwhelmed, and good dogs never get a chance. I want to take the same system that saves dogs here and prove—globally—that training, structure, and freedom can change outcomes anywhere in the world.
That vision drives everything I build.
What I Believe
The truth is simple: you are your dog’s best trainer.
The more you understand training, the better your relationship and results will be.
That belief led me to create my flagship course, where I teach—step by step—how I train everything from severe leash reactivity to hyper, out-of-control dogs, and how to turn them into your version of a dream dog.
I also offer a hybrid in-person option for those who want hands-on guidance alongside the system.
How Merch Fuels the Mission
ForTheDogs merch isn’t just merch—it’s how this mission survives and gives back.
Every leash, shirt, hoodie, and piece of gear directly supports the work I do with rescue dogs. Ten percent of all merch sales are donated back to shelters every month, helping fund food, medical care, and resources for dogs who haven’t found their chance yet.
Merch also allows me to continue training rescue dogs for free, placing them into homes where someone gets to experience what a truly trained dog feels like.
When you wear ForTheDogs, you’re not just supporting a brand—you’re actively helping dogs get a second chance.
Credentials (And Why They’re Secondary)
Dog training is an unregulated field. Ironically, I’ve found that the more “educated” someone claims to be, the worse their real-world results often are.
You don’t learn how to train dogs from books alone.
You learn by working dogs—thousands of reps, thousands of mistakes, real consequences.
That said, education matters. I earned a degree in Psychology from Rutgers University and hold an animal behavior certificate under a world-renowned behaviorist.
But here’s the truth: none of that is what matters most.
The only question you should ever ask if you want to work with a trainer is this:
Are they getting the results you wish you had with your own dog?
If a trainer can’t produce calm, confident, real-world dogs—don’t work with them.
That’s the standard I hold myself to.