Meet our Team!
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David “Dogman” Riggs- Founder/ CEO
David Riggs hails from Louisville, KY, has lived and worked throughout the south-eastern U.S and is now settled in the pristine mountain setting of western Montana. David has spent his life dedicated to wildlife, the outdoors, and most importantly, the breeding and training of the Labrador Retrievers. In 1984 David experienced a spinal injury leaving him paralyzed from the waist down. David trained his first service dog from a wheelchair in 1986 as he learned to walk again. In 1989 David was diagnosed with AVN (A-vascular necrosis), a joint deterioration and chronic pain disease; although not terminal it is equivalent to bone cancer. His condition motivates him to help others. David resides just outside Livingston, MT where he operates K9 Care Montana Inc. David’s home companions are his trained Service and Assistance dogs, Stormy and Griz. Also in residence is rescue horse named Boulder. David has provided breeding and training services to clients locally and cross country as well. David has trained dogs since 1986 in over 20 states using the training philosophy of “praise, positive reinforcement, and repetition” and derives great pleasure in seeing the success of a 100% satisfied owner with a well-trained dog. David is an avid outdoors-man, who also encourages the non-consumptive usage of our natural resources, such as wildlife viewing and photography. David’s passion for the Labrador Retriever was apparent early on and by the age of 20, he was employed by the largest boarding kennel in the state of Kentucky, WagginTail Kennel. After relocating to Alabama, David opened Retrievers Unlimited Boarding and Training Kennel, where for the next 10 years he trained over 1,000 Labs, marketed Champion A.K.C. titled breeding and pedigrees, maintained a 35 run kennel facility, and attended and participated in over 100 UKC field trials throughout the region. During this time, David attended Auburn University part time for eight years in the Studies of Wildlife Science. Further, David has established “K9 Corners” in two Montana Newspapers; The Philipsburg Mail and the Clark Fork Journal. He published informative articles about dog training and general canine care. In 2009, David founded K9 Care Montana. David immediately began producing litters of Labrador Retriever puppies for which he personally bred and trained as service dogs. All the dogs were successfully placed with wounded veterans. In 2013 David and his nonprofit were featured in a book called “Travels with Casey” which made the New York Times Best Sellers List in August. Although David has never served in the military his passion and commitment to serve those who sacrificed so much for our country is a true testament to his dedication to K9 Care Montana's Wounded Warrior Service Dog program. |
