Dogs and Divergent Minds was created by Katrina Bayliss also known as The Neurodivergent Dog Coach.
She is a dog trainer, behaviour specialist, business coach, and founder of KB Agility and Jigsaw Dog Training, now renamed – Katrina Bayliss Coaching to incorporate the wider work that she does.
Katrina has worked in the dog industry for over 11 years, but her journey did not begin with a business plan or a career goal. It began with a dog called Milo.
Milo came into Katrina’s life during a period of severe anxiety, when even leaving the house alone felt overwhelming. Training Milo became a lifeline, a way to cope, connect, and slowly rebuild confidence. But as Katrina moved through classes, courses, and the wider dog world, something never quite fit.
The teaching styles, expectations, and environments often made things harder rather than easier. At the time, Katrina believed this was anxiety. Looking back, she now understands it through the lens of neurodivergence as a late diagnosed AuDHDer.
Determined to do better for Milo, Katrina immersed herself in learning!
Over the years, she gained extensive qualifications across dog training, behaviour, and agility, alongside formal qualifications in business, management, coaching, counselling, and psychology. What started as a need to support one dog grew into a deep understanding of both dogs and people, and how often the human side of training is overlooked.
Before working in the dog industry full time, Katrina had already set up and managed multiple successful businesses. Today, she brings that experience together with her dog world expertise, supporting a wide range of professionals including dog trainers, agility instructors, canicross coaches, dog walkers, home boarding providers, massage therapists, and secure field owners.
Her business coaching is practical, values led, and designed to work with neurodivergent brains rather than against them.
Dogs and Divergent Minds exists to bridge the gap between neurodivergence and the dog world. It is a space for neurodivergent dog owners, handlers, trainers, and business owners to feel seen, safe, and supported, and capable of succeeding in ways that suit their brains, their dogs, and their lives.
This work extends through Katrina’s coaching, training resources, podcasts, blog posts, guest speaking, and community spaces, including Dog Agility Unmasked and the Neuro-Inclusive Dog Hub. The first Dogs and Divergent Minds Awareness Day took place on Sunday 1st June 2025, marking an important step in opening up honest conversations within the industry.
You may notice Katrina uses a jigsaw piece within her branding. This is a thoughtful and intentional choice, and one she has explored in depth in a dedicated blog post for those who would like to understand the meaning behind it.
Much of Katrina’s journey, including the role Milo played in shaping her life and career, is shared in her book Milo: The Dog That Gave Me It All and she is due to release her second book very soon!
If you are neurodivergent and navigating life with dogs, or supporting neurodivergent clients within your work, you are very welcome here.
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