If you are considering hiring Bonnie Judd you are very lucky indeed, because she’s literally the best animal trainer I have ever worked with, and I have worked with quite a few, many of them very talented.
I met Bonnie because of my dear friend and producing partner Gavin Polone. Since Gavin and I are both lifetime animal advocates, I knew that if he said Bonnie was the best, well then, she must be. He’s right.
I am in post on the Netflix film A Dog’s Perfect Christmas, for which I was the director as well as co-screenwriter, and Bonnie and her team delivered me absolute dog magic. Because of my choices, she had a lot to deal with on my set.
The story is told from the point of view of a wise old dog, and because of how gorgeous they are on film, and how they look old even when they are young, I chose this hero dog to be a basset hound. They are lovable and sweet but honestly almost impossible to train. All they care about is using their powerful noses to sniff everything the world has to offer. But somehow, Bonnie managed to work these two young bassets, as well as a basset puppy, and they are canine movie stars in our film, in my opinion.
The other principal dog in the film was a corgi puppy. Obviously getting a puppy do anything other than peeing on the carpet is a miracle, but in my film you will see a corgi puppy riding a skateboard, and riding on a roomba, riding on a dustmop plus sitting and staying even in the midst of absolute chaos, because all of these dogs in this movie had to star opposite twin three-year-old boys.
W. C. Fields famously said, “Never work with children or animals,” but clearly I didn’t listen.
Most importantly, as Gavin has said in recommending her, Bonnie is impeccable in caring for the working dogs on a set. They exhibit natural behaviors because they are so loved and cared for and I know that if she says something isn’t a good idea, I won’t do it. The safety of all my actors, including animals, is always my top concern. I trust Bonnie impeccably to maintain a safe set where the dogs truly have fun doing their work. In short, you can’t go wrong hiring Bonnie Judd.
Best,
Cathryn Michon