Hydeia Williams is a young, passionate dog trainer who comes at every situation from a place of understanding and empathy. Earning 3 music degrees (Bachelors in Music Education, Clarinet Performance, and Music Composition) and being a life long animal lover, especially dogs, Hydeia aims to combine her love for teaching and her love for dogs.

Hydeia specializes in training homeless dogs with the help of Pawtastic Friends. She gives her dogs the skills necessary to be proper companions.

“I see so many dogs euthanized for lacking in basic skills that could be trained into them within just a few focused sessions of training. I just want to decrease that number so more families live with happier dogs.” -Hydeia

Hydeia entered the dog industry as a volunteer for Pawtastic Friends. She helped the group classes for basic obedience, fitness, agility, and nose work. She also worked at an indoor dog park that provided boarding, daycare, grooming, training, and round the clock supervision of all the dogs playing in the yards. She then picked up another job at a boarding facility for homeless dogs, giving them time to potty and relax, feeding them dinner, and providing that human connection they can only get for a few moments a day. Learning how to teach in a class setting, how to read dog body language, and what environments these dogs come from, Hydeia takes an empathic and balanced approach to her training.

Earning her CPDT-KA certification in 2026, Hydeia is continuously developing her skills as a dog trainer, taking a balanced approach that incorporates all 4 quadrants of operant conditioning, and other proven phycological techniques like the Premack Principle and counterconditioning. With her previous work as a middle school band director and music therapist for children on the spectrum, Hydeia prides herself in her patience and problem solving skills. She works hard so the dogs she works with can be free to be themselves fully and safely.