About the Author
I am Daniel Kowalski, and I have spent the last 17 years writing about dogs. Not the fluff pieces about celebrity pets or the latest designer crossbreed. The working dogs. The dogs that actually do something.
My background is in industry analysis. I spent years tracking market trends, breeding economics, and the business side of the purebred dog world for publications like Pet Product News, Forbes, and Modern Dog Magazine. I still do that work. But somewhere along the way, covering the business side led me to the trial fields.
How I Got Here
It started in 2011 at the Bluegrass Classic in Lexington, Kentucky. I was there to write about the economics of the Border Collie market, interviewing breeders about puppy prices and demand. But I found myself standing at the fence watching a handler named Jack Knox run his dog Jess on a set of particularly stubborn Dorper sheep.
Three minutes and forty-two seconds. That is how long the run lasted. It was the most remarkable thing I had ever seen. The communication between handler and dog, the strategy, the improvisation when those sheep decided they had better ideas. I was hooked.
What I Cover
Since then, I have attended over 200 trials across North America, the UK, and continental Europe. I have stood in the pouring rain at Soldier Hollow watching handlers squint through mist at their dogs half a mile away. I have baked in the July heat at the Meeker Classic in Colorado. I have interviewed handlers in their trucks after devastating disqualifications and after career-defining victories.
My coverage focuses on:
- Major trial events and their significance in the competitive calendar
- Handler profiles and the training methods that produce consistent results
- Judging standards and how they vary across organizations
- Industry economics including breeding, training, and sponsorship trends
- Historical context that connects modern competition to working traditions
My Perspective
I write as an observer, not a competitor. I have never trained a dog to trial level, and I am honest about that. What I bring is the outsider’s eye combined with deep familiarity. I know enough to ask the right questions and to recognize when something extraordinary happens on the field.
I also bring a journalist’s skepticism. This sport has its politics, its controversies, its sacred cows. I try to cover all of it fairly, which means sometimes I write things that do not make everyone happy.
Contact
For press inquiries, story tips, or corrections, reach me through the contact page. I read everything, though I cannot always respond immediately, especially during trial season.
Based in Chicago, Illinois.