About Our Founder, Joni Bonilla
For the past twenty years I have known and loved two things; dogs and the military community. Being a military spouse has provided me the opportunity to know first hand the daily struggles that this awesome demographic of people face.
Origin
In 2015 a friend of mine who is a four time combat veteran lost his pet dog suddenly and he greatly struggled with the loss. He spoke to me about the many ways she enriched his life since retiring from the Army and how she was a prominent influence in him integrating back to civilian society. Upon looking for a service dog for him I was met with politics, hefty price tags and long waiting lists. Because of this Operation at Ease was born.
Experience
I have been working, training and rehabilitating shelter dogs for over twenty years. I have a degree in Animal Care, I am an evaluator with the American Kennel Club (as are many of our staff members) and continue to maintain my education with current methods by regularly attending seminars and conferences. OAE is staffed only with professional trainers who have a minimum of ten years experience, outside continuing education and first hand knowledge of the community of people that we serve.
Why Operation At Ease
Not only are we dog trainers, we are spouses of veterans, spouses of police officers, we are veterans and first responders ourselves. Because of this, our work isn’t something that we do because we have always loved dogs, it’s something we do because we have skin in the game.
OAE In the News
