About Me

Marco Stavole is a retired law enforcement professional, retiring from the Italian military police (Carabinieri) canine unit in 2001. Marco has been a dedicated canine trainer, handler and canine unit patrolman for many years. Over the course of the past 18 years, he has traveled to various countries to expand his knowledge in several fields of the most intricate canine psychology and training.

As a child Marco had the opportunity of rescuing a stray dog and thanks to his parents, she immediately became part of their family. The bonding between this little dog and Marco is what planted the seed for his life long passion for dogs. It seems as though everything else in marcos life was written from a book.

Being so young, and having such motivation was a great opportunity to cultivate the curiosity to understand and communicate with dogs. Always finding a way to surround himself with dogs and wanting to learn more, every summer Marco traveled to northern Italy. While there he spent time with his grandparents, but most of the time was spent with a neighbor who was a professional trainer for working dogs. Watching the trainer with his dogs made Marcos' fascination for training grow indefinitely. One of the great dogs in Marcos past was a German shepherd named Tex. Tex was a fantastic dog specially trained for security purposes and the bonding between Marco and Tex was fast, but strong. What intrigued Marco most was the spirit of Tex. Being able to play and interact with Marco as a child without harming him, but having the capabilities to severely harm anyone was incredible. To this day Marco believes the relationship ignited his devotion, passion and above all, respect for dogs.

As Marco grew into adulthood, he made his first big career decision in life. He joined one of the most important police Corps in Italy, the Carabinieri. At that time he was unaware there was a division within the Carabinari that would allow him to fulfill his love and passion for dogs. During the first year of his career, he was assigned to a station located on the Apennines mountains of Italy. The perimeter of the Station was guarded by another beautiful German shepherd named Toby. Toby only guarded this station and due to his aggressive nature no one was able to get close without being bitten. Studding Toby, Marco decided to have his first, unofficial experience in animal behavior. After months of work, more than a few growls and exposed teeth, Marco was able to give back the life that Toby was missing. At that point Marco realized how important it was for him to dedicate his life to learning all he could to help every dog on all levels.

In 1992 Marco enter into the Military k-9 Police Academy and completed the 9 month intensive course, graduating first in his class. For many years Marco was paired with a fantastic German Shepherd named Mec and was assigned to the k-9 Carabinieri Station of Pesaro, a town located on the east coast of Italy. There, he had a great opportunity to work with other canine officers and participated in various missions. Marco continued to expanded his knowledge by training in Hannover, Germany year after year at one of the biggest police canine academys. Marco has completed many courses in all aspect of police canine work and also became the president and instructor of the Search and Rescue team in his home town in Rimini Italy.

In September 2000, almost as if written in a book, Marco met and fell in love with his future wife Dana. With her support he move in the United States, learned another language and continued his experiences in the k-9 world. To this day he is keeping his eyes and mind open to improve his knowledge wherever possible to better understand the relationship between humans and dogs.