About Nine Realms Canine Training
History
Nine Realms was started in Spokane Washington in 2018, and has been run solely by Karin Wageman since its founding. As Nine Realms has grown, head trainer and founder Karin has contracted additional trainers to help provide more board and train and group class services to the Spokane area. Since founding, Nine Realms has taught dozens of handler schools, trained and sold dozens of police canines, trained and certified dozens of narcotics/explosives/tracking dogs, traveled to Grumeti Tanzania to teach anti-poaching canine handlers over ten times, attended numerous handler schools, advanced schools, seminars, and workshops, and trained over 50 service dogs through board and trains and owner training lessons.
Name Meaning
The name Nine Realms Canine Training has a very straightforward origin. Founder Karin Wagemann holds Scandanavian roots and has a deep love for Norse Mythology is named after the Nine Realms of Norse Mythology. Additionally, Nine Realms Canine Training, training goes above and beyond the realm of simply pet dog obedience. Nine Realms is experienced training dogs in a variety of realms including law enforcement, anti-poaching, tracking, detectin, protection, patrol, and service work.
Methods
Nine Realms uses a balanced training method for police canine training, service dog training, and pet dogs. We use all quadrants of learning (positive, negative, reinforcement, punishment). Nine Realms Canine Training does not limit training to any one method but instead uses a combination of methods based upon canine behavior, learning, and neurobiology. Each dog is unique in personality, desires, fears, learning style, and ability. Therefore, no training Nine Realms does is ever a cookie cutter design, but is instead tailored for each individual dog.
Head trainer Karin has trained dogs in all types of sports and discplines and incorporates all the methods learned in the various sports (IGP, PSA, French Ring, AKC Tracking), real world working dogs (explosive detection, anti-poaching, dual purpose patrol canines), service dog, and pet dog obedience to give owners a wide range of skills, methods, and knowledge.
Karin is constantly growing her knowledge in all areas of her work (tracking, detection, protection training, reactive dogs, sport work, anxious dogs, etc.) and is adding new methods and information to better improve her training skills.
Meet the Trainers
Karin Wagemann – Founder – Head Trainer – ASCTI Master Instructor and Trainer
Karin Wagemann is a certified Law Enforcement Instructor, Master Trainer, and Service Dog Trainer through the American Society of Canine Trainers International (ASCTI). Karin also has a Bachelor of Arts from Carroll College in Anthrozoology, the study of the human animal bond, and a Master of Science in Canine Behavioral Science from London Hanover University.
She has been training canines professionally since 2014. However, she began training canines informally when she was in middle school. Since then, Karin has trained canines in a wide variety of disciplines including service work, narcotics detection, conservation detection, tracking, dual purpose patrol, and anti-poaching work. She has trained dogs and handlers all over the country and globe, with her work taking her to the Serengeti to train game scouts and anti-poaching canines. Since 2017, Karin has traveled ten times to Grumeti Tanzania to teach anti-poaching canine handlers. Karin has instructed numerous handler schools for law enforcement and trained, certified, and placed dozens of dogs for law enforcement, SAR, and private work. She has trained over 40 service dogs through owner trained and board and train programs since the start of Nine Realms in 2018. Karin has also worked with middle and high school students at local schools, instructing them to train shelter dogs. Her specialties include training dogs for law enforcement (tracking in particular), anti-poaching, and service work.
Karin has trained, trialed, and titled in the sport of Schutzhund or IGP with her dog Ronan and co-owned dog Alizeh. She now is training and trialing in French Ring as well as AKC Tracking with her dog Kovacs and actively handles, trains, and certifies yearly her tracking, and detection canine Kovacs through ASCTI. She is an active member of Dirty Bandana Working Dog/PSA Club and Puget Sound Dog Sports Club.
Karin Wagemann: Notable Degrees, Schools, and Certifications
Degrees
Master of Science Canine Behavioral Science, London Hanover University (2017)
Bachelor of Arts Anthrozoology, Carroll College (2015)
Schools Attended
May 2025: ASCTI Recertification Conference, Butte, MT
March 2025: Mobile Odor Detection Seminar-Legion K9, Hayden, ID
December 2024: Hard Surface Tracking and High Risk Deployment Seminar, Dirty Bandana Working Dogs and Ben Lepinski, Missoula, MT
May 2024: Butte, MT ASCTI Recertification Conference
March 2024: Canby-OR, Detection Dog Trials Judge and Host Seminar and Certification
April 2023: Butte, MT ASCTI Recertification Conference
September 2022: White Sulphur, MT Tarheel Decoy School
May 2022: Bozeman, MT ASCT Advanced Class
May 2021: Bozeman, MT ASCT Advanced Class
September 2020: Virginia, ASCT Instructor/Trainer Development Course
June 2019: Bozeman, MT ASCT Advanced Class
May 2018: Elko, NV ASCT Advanced Class
April-August 2017: Virginia, Instructor/Master Trainer School
May 2016: Bozeman, MT, ASCT Advanced Class
October 2015: Bozeman, MT, ASCT Advanced Class
September 2015: Virginia, Basic Handler School
October 2014: Bozeman MT, ASCT Advanced Class
Schools Taught
September 2025: Grumeti Tanzania-Tracking/Advanced Training/Handling School
July-August 2025: Spokane-WA, ASCTI Law Enforcement Basic Handling School
March-April 2025: Spokane-WA, ASCTI Law Enforcement Basic Handler School
February 2025: Grumeti Tanzania-Advanced Handler School
October 2024: Spokane-WA, ASCTI Basic Handler School
June 29, 2024: Bonners Ferry-ID, Search and Rescue Seminar
November 2023: Grumeti Tanzania-Advanced Handler School
September-November 2023: Spokane-WA, Basic Handler School-Law Enforcement
March 2023: Spokane-WA, Basic Handler School
August 2022: African K9 School
March 2022: Spokane-WA, Basic Handler School
August 2021: Grumeti Tanzania, Advanced Handler School
March 2021: Spokane -WA, Basic Handler School-Law Enforcement
November 2020: Grumeti Tanzania, Handler Selection Course and School
May 2020: Spokane-WA, Basic Handler School-Law Enforcement
January-February 2020: Spokane-WA, Civilian Handler/Trainer School
October-November 2019: Tanzania-Grumeti, Trainer School
June 2019: Tanzania-Grumeti, Advanced Canine School
September 2018: Tanzania-Grumeti, Advanced Canine School
January 2018: Tanzania-Grumeti, Advanced Canine School
September-November 2017: Tanzania-Grumeti, Basic and Advanced Canine Handler School
July 2017: Virginia, Canine Handler School-Law Enforcement
April 2017: Virginia, Basic Canine Handler School-Law Enforcement
American Society of Canine Trainers Certifications
Law Enforcement Instructor ASCT (2017-Current)
Master Trainer ASCT (2017-Current)
Departmental Trainer Narcotics (2016-Current)
Service/Therapy Dog Trainer ASCT (2015-Current)
Public Trainer ASCT (2015-Current)
Qualification Evaluator ASCT (2015-Current)
Other Certifications
Detection Dog Trials Judge and Host
AKC Canine Good Citizen Evaluator (2018-Current)
Kayleigh Kyhl
Nine Realms Board and Train Trainer
Kayleigh joined the Nine Realms team as a trainer for the Nine Realms’ Board and Train Programs in May 2025. Kayleigh has been training dogs for over eight years. She has trained, competed, and titled with her dogs in AKC Obedience, Rally and conformation. Kayleigh has also trained her own service dogs, a Siberian Husky and a Beauceron. She is also an AKC Canine Good Citizen Evaluator. Kayleigh is is actively training in dog sports with her three dogs, two Beaucerons (Azula and Aurora) and one Belgian Groenendael (Zander).
Kayleigh does the majority of the board and trains for puppy board and trains, basic obedience, advanced obedience, service dog training, and minor behavioral issues. She follows all the same training methods as head trainer Karin and works closely with Karin to ensure standards are being met.
NINE REALMS CANINE TRAINING 