It started with a shelter dog.
In 1992, Hagen van Hendrix walked out of a Virginia shelter with a nine-month-old German Shepherd named Alexander. He had been training dogs since he was six years old, but Alexander changed how he understood them. Alexander, when rescued, turned out to be a very smart, but untrained and under socialized canine. He pulled, he jumped on people, he nibbled on hands and destroyed any type of cloth or furnishings he could get his teeth on. After a few months, he didn’t pull anymore, stopped jumping on people and all around, behaved amicably. A little later, he listened without any kind of formal commands. He was in tune with his owner. They became the best versions of each other. What that dog taught him about rehabilitation, structure, and trust became the foundation of everything Van Hendrix K-9 does today.
Where we have been
For many years, Van Hendrix K-9 took on the hardest work in the field. We rehabilitated aggressive dogs that other trainers had written off. We ran behavior modification programs for dogs and the families living with them. We trained single-purpose and dual-purpose working dogs, where a dog's reliability under pressure is not optional.
That work taught us to read a dog's temperament accurately, to build stability that holds in chaos, and to tell early which dogs are suited to a serious job.
Where we are now
Today, Van Hendrix K-9 trains psychiatric service dogs, and nothing else.
We made that choice on purpose. A person living with PTSD, panic disorder, or severe anxiety needs a dog as steady as any working K-9, matched to them as carefully as any placement we have ever made. Every year we spent on aggression cases and working dogs now goes into one thing: a calm, reliable partner for one specific person.
What we believe
Dogs are honest. They don't fake affection, hold grudges, or act out of malice. They give loyalty freely, and they respond to what they are shown.
That is why we don't believe in bad breeds. When a dog struggles, the cause is almost always inconsistent handling, missing structure, or training that confused more than it taught. Give a dog clear guidance, fair leadership, and a person worth trusting, and that dog will thrive. We have watched it happen for more than three decades.
Our approach follows three steps in a fixed order. First we read the dog, then we rehab or build the dog, and only then do we teach the job.
Who is behind it
After Alexander, van Hendrix built a breeding program for German Shepherds and German Rottweilers, two breeds known for intelligence, loyalty, and working ability. He later founded the Dog Neuropsychology Center, dedicated to advanced training and to the mental and physical rehabilitation of dogs.
He is a Psychiatric Service Dog Trainer, Aggression Rehabilitation Specialist, and Behavior Modification Coach, an AKC Good Citizen Instructor, a Robbins-Madanes Certified Life and Relationship Coach, an active Real Estate Broker, and is currently working toward his doctorate in Forensic Psychology with a concentration in child trauma. A psychiatric service dog is half of a team, and the placement only works when the handler is supported too. Few trainers are qualified to work with both ends of the leash, and we are.
The books
Van Hendrix has put his methods in writing, in a series of training books that follow the same three steps we use with every dog. You can read exactly how we work before you ever pick up the phone.
Book 1: The Language of the Dog: A Forensic Guide to Canine Body Language, Behavior & Communication
Before you can train a dog, you have to be able to read one. This 35-chapter reference teaches the VHK-9 Observation System, built on four pillars (Baseline, Context, Deviation, and Direction), along with the 30-Second Field Read for sizing up any dog quickly and accurately. It is written for trainers, handlers, behavior professionals, and owners who want to know what their dog is actually telling them.
Amazon link: https://a.co/d/0hFiWIaT
Book 2: The Trust-Built Dog: A Complete Guide to Positive Reinforcement Dog Training
"Build the dog. The job comes later." The second book turns understanding into training. It shows how to raise a stable, confident, willing dog through positive reinforcement, and it lays the foundation every dog needs, whether that dog will be a family companion or a working partner.
Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HK589LPM?ref_=cm_sw_r_ffobk_cp_ud_dp_KJN9JEPPCH5ZGWVGTBV8&bestFormat=true
Book 3: Anchored: The Complete Science and Training of the Psychiatric Service Dog
The most recent book in the series is the job itself. Anchored is a complete professional handbook on psychiatric service dog training, with 30 chapters and 21 appendices covering both the science behind the work and the training that produces a reliable dog. Like everything we do, it is welfare-first and reward-based. The Golden Retriever on the cover is Ghost, Dr. van Hendrix's own dog.
Amazon link: https://a.co/d/0c5vJI6g
Talk to us
Tell us what you are living with and what kind of help would change your days. Call Van Hendrix K-9 at [phone number] or [book a consultation], and you will speak with someone who will give you an honest answer about what is possible.
Walking through Life, Paw in Hand.