The Canine Freedom Center was founded by Dog Trainer Derek Gignac, with the support of Applied Animal Behaviorist, Darwin Cole.

Derek Gignac was raised in Alberta, Canada, with roots in the Bonneville area.   Derek has had a life long love of animals with specials interests in canine conformation and genetics. He attended university in Edmonton, Alberta, and started working as a professional dog trainer in 2015.  Derek currently owns two dogs and shows them both in conformation. 

Darwin Cole is a dog world historian, (retired Applied Animal Behaviourist), on a mission to study dog trainers and there methods.  He is a founding member of The Dogs We Love, a dog owner advocacy group that helps dog owners avoid fraud in the training industry, establish legislation to protect dog owners and award the world's best trainers for their outstanding achievements. Darwin has extensive experience working with the world's top trainers and is often employed to help professional dog trainers solve problems with their own dogs.  Darwin has lived an off-the-grid lifestyle for decades and has used his personal dogs to survive in Canada's most remote locations.  Darwin is a life long humanitarian who has traveled the world to help protect Dolphins, African Wild Dogs, and a host of other exploited spices.  Darwin lives a lifestyle where technology is minimized so he can enjoy unobstructed nature. He currently owns nine amazing dogs.