Michelle Fahrney thought her long-awaited dream of owning her own dog training business was coming true.

But three months later, the Langley woman has lost her main investor, is facing a mountain of bills, and might be evicted unless she can find new customers soon.

Fahrney had worked for others for years, training dogs and working with their owners. Her parents were trainers and breeders, and she grew up learning the techniques and absorbing a passion for animals.

Through her work with a local pet store, helping people train troubled or troublesome dogs, she met a man who offered to help Fahrney get her own business up and running.

The financial help for Fahrney was "like heaven," she said.

By December she was working out of a building on Industrial Avenue in Langley City, under the name DCT Canine Services, offering training and dog daycare. Then her run of bad luck began.

On the day she moved into her new business, her purse was stolen, including her list of contacts built up over years.

The worst blow, however, came when some comments by her investor prompted her to look into his background.

He turned out to be a known sex offender - in fact, his crimes were so serious that when he was released from prison three years ago, Langley RCMP issued a warning to the public.

When Fahrney confronted him about the information, he abruptly cut himself off from her business, cutting away most of her startup funding.

Fahrney, who has recently separated from her husband, doesn't have the capital to keep her new business going.

With her rent coming due and not enough money coming in to pay it, Fahrney is worried that she'll be evicted at the end of the month, and lose her dogs. If she has nowhere to keep them, she might be forced to give them up.

"I've got seven dogs, four of which are rescue dogs," she said.

They include a German shepherd who was "a rack of bones" when he came to her, and a Lhasa cross she found in Langley City, running through the streets on a snowy night last December.

"She came running right into my arms," Fahrney said. The dog didn't have any ID. "No collar, no tattoo, no microchip." Posters in the neighbourhood didn't flush out the owner, so the dog joined her animal family.

The thought of losing her business, her animals, and her livelihood reduces Fahrney to tears.

However, she said she doesn't want charity. She just wants enough customers and work to keep her business afloat and her animals cared for.

"I'll do what it takes to pay the lease," Fahrney said. If she can find more customers this month, she'll make it through the spring, she believes.

Ellie King, artistic director of the Royal Canadian Theatre Company, is one of Fahrney's customers, and is trying to drum up support for the trainer.

King's own dog Lula was a rescue dog who had spent her early life tied up in a backyard with no stimulation.

"She was like a wild animal," King remembered. But she says she's seen a world of improvement after working with Fahrney. She calls the trainer Langley's own dog whisperer.

The trainer's most common complaints are dogs pulling hard on the leash, or not coming when called. But she works with dogs that are far more troubled, as well, including some who might be on their way to being put down.

"I always say it's never too late to rehabilitate," Fahrney said.

She uses a calm but assertive style, and works closely with the owners.

"A good dog obedience trainer's job is training people," she said.

To attract new customers this month and pay her bills, Fahrney is offering a special deal. Customers who sign up and pre-pay for a six-week, $99 obedience course by Feb. 21 will also get a half-hour private training session, worth $45, for free.

DCT Canine Services can be reached at 604-315-9224, and is located at 20029 Industrial Avenue.