I only used Betsy's services for a week and a half while I rented her basement apartment. She…read morevisited my dog twice per day-my pup is shy and anxious and would not have anything to do with Betsy. To her credit, I did see that she was making progress with my pup, which is no easy feat. Betsy and I were discussing my dog attending her daycare because my dog does infinitely better in a group setting. In addition, it was convenient for me for obvious reasons. My dog has gone to daycare for the better part of the year that I've had her, and she thrives in that environment. Never once have I had a complaint or negative report about my pup's behavior at daycare. In this conversation, Betsy used a condescending tone to refer to my dog as "difficult ". I informed Betsy that we no longer had an interest in her services, as I don't want my dog to be cared for by someone who would speak about her in that way. However, that's not why I'm leaving this review. I'm leaving this review because of something I observed with regards to her dog daycare. What her dog daycare consists of is several dogs hanging out with Betsy's daughter, Amelia (my best guess is she's a teenager)in their living room/dining room/kitchen area all day. Betsy is typically gone all day (8-3:30) from what she told me. There is a narrow dog run, running along one side and the back of the house. The daycare dogs are let out briefly to do their business a few times a day. While I was a tenant there, I had to do my laundry on the third floor of the house, above the daycare. This required me to wade through the group of dogs each time I went up and down the stairs to switch loads from the washer to the dryer. Every single time I did laundry during the month + I lived there, I noticed that Amelia was never downstairs with the dogs during daycare time. She was always in her room with the door closed. I suppose it's possible that she went in her room each time she heard me coming, but sound carries very well in that house and I'm sure that I would have heard her moving. I would also have considered this discovery a coincidence had it not happened multiple times. My primary inspiration for making this review is the fact that the very last time it happened, while sitting on my couch reading, I heard a kerfuffle between the daycare dogs. It did not sound like a fight, just like the dogs getting rowdy. Eventually, things settled down. Shortly afterwards, I had to go upstairs and get my last load of laundry out of the dryer. While making my way through the sea of dogs, I noticed that one of them was now holding one of its front paws up and was wearing a plastic cone around its neck. I only observed the dog for a couple of minutes, but it was never once willing to be weight-bearing on that paw. I hope that the dog wasn't seriously injured. Even more so, I hope that this is the only time anything like that has ever happened to any dogs that have attended this daycare. And even more so than that, I still have hope that it all was a complete coincidence that the dogs were never being cared for when I made my trips up and down the stairs. To be transparent, Betsy and I did not have a positive dynamic as landlord-tenant. Interactions were never heated, but Betsy did tell me that she is a very sensitive person and perhaps her daughter is as well. She may have been encouraged/wanted to avoid me due to the tension between her mother and I, despite the fact that I was polite to Amelia each time I saw her and professional to her mother. Bowser's Best Buddy is far different from any dog daycare I have ever seen, and I've been taking my dogs to daycare for over fifteen years. It's basically akin to your dog being at home, hanging out with a group of friends, sometimes supervised and sometimes not, with a potty break or two sprinkled in. There are no cameras for pet parents to observe their pups. I've never considered taking my dog to a daycare that doesn't offer this and my observation here has cemented that requirement for any pet care provider we use.

I have been a client of Betsy and Bowser's Best Buddy for about 9 years, starting when I had one…read morecat, then two, then a puppy, and finally a second puppy who is now an amazing 3.5-year-old dog. I know that Betsy is partially to thank for the wonderful companion Gromit has become. Betsy is conscientious and communicative, and she is very connected to the pets in her care. She spends time training them in addition to getting them out to stretch their legs and go potty, and she adjusts her training and walks to fit the dog's needs and personality. When my pup boarded with Betsy, he was treated like family. If Gromit could write a review, he would say he loves Betsy and Amelia as much as he loves me, and he wouldn't hesitate to recommend Bowser's Best Buddy to all of his furry friends!

Communication was great! People were very friendly and helpful, made our 1st stay away from Molly a…read morevery positive experience. Definitely recommend and will use again if back in that area!!

Christiaan is an absolute blessing! Our dog adores him so much that he jumps at the window the…read moresecond he hears Christiaan's van coming down the street. Their outings leave our pup happy, tired, and loved. We only wish we could bring him with us to Texas--anyone lucky enough to hire him will see how special he is!

I entrust Hot Diggity with the care of my dog on a weekly basis. I've used their services for years…read moreand they have the best staff and dog walkers! I get awesome write ups and pictures from each of her walks with them and it gives me great peace of mind to know that she's cared for, safe and loved while I'm working. Their services are invaluable and I would highly recommend them to anyone.

I came home from a short trip to find my dog greeting me at the door, not secured in her crate as I…read morewas told she would be in the emails I received. We do not let our dog free-roam when we are not home, and our house was not set up for it. There was trash in the trash cans that she could have eaten, and any number of things she could have gotten into that could be harmful to her. She also urinated and pooped on the carpet. In my bedroom. So I was cleaning that up at midnight after traveling. And of course I cannot stop smelling it. It's going to take getting the carpet cleaned. We have had this dog for 5 years and this is the first time she has EVER peed or pooped in the house. She also peed and pooped again when I took her out when I got home. This is very outside of normal for her and it makes me wonder if she was actually getting let out on her visits. I will be checking our cameras to see.

They used to always give you the dog walker you wanted. Now they dont listen. What happened? Past…read morefew weeks have been bad. Incorrect charges, messed up appointments, bad communication, and a friend told me they keep charging her or showing up after she cancels. New guy answering phones is disorganized.

Broken glass with food is not a good mix. I apologize for the length and I'm not usually a negative…read morereviewer but... full experience: We recently relocated to Portland from Sacramento, Ca and were so excited to find a passionate group of folks to take care of our three cats and 70lbs dog in-(our)house. We used Tails and Trails 3 times with mixed results. Important to know- you create detailed notes with the owner (Jeff) on how to access your building, routines, where leashes are, etc., etc., when you have your introductory visit. Our instructions ask that the handler only feeds the cats their canned food, nothing else. 1st time, week-long trip (June 2024)- handlers were 2+ hours late regularly. While this wasn't the biggest issue, we don't have a doggie door and that level of lateness pushed the pup's bathroom breaks longer than we're comfortable. But, we liked the service offered and adjusted how often we scheduled handler visits for the second and third visits. 2nd time, 1 week of walks while both of us were gone for longer than 8 hours (September 2024)- Great! Annie (I'm not disclosing employees' full names for their privacy) had no problems and was very helpful. 3rd time, overnight away- 4 visits requested: Sat afternoon and evening; Sun am and afternoon (October 2024)- Day 1- We left the house at 8 am and scheduled feeding/walk visits for about 1:00 pm and 6:00 pm. Around 1:25 pm, Chloe (office manager) texted me to ask if we had scheduled for 7:00 am that day. When we said we hadn't, a communication between Chloe and a handler led to the 1:00 pm visit being skipped. We talked with Chloe that evening and she said the handler would roll the afternoon and evening visits together, apologized for the miscommunication between herself and the handler, and credited our account for the mistake (all great). The handler arrived around 7:00 pm. They had a difficult time accessing the building so Chloe texted us to say the handler would hang out for a little longer before leaving if they couldn't get access. Once they did get into the building, they couldn't find the food or leash. The access information, food instructions, and where the leashes are were all in the instructions. The handler fed the pets and took the pup for a 15-min potty break. Since we were only gone for a night, we didn't book anyone to stay overnight. We considered cutting the trip short and wish we had. Day 2- Oscar was our handler. We got notifications that both visits were completed and everything seemed to have gone smoothly. When we got home, a glass jar with cat treats had been taken from the closed closet and left open on the counter. When we got home, there were treats all over the counter and SHATTERED GLASS MIXED WITH TREATS all over the floor. All three cats had engorged stomachs. While Chloe apologized and said she'd speak with Oscar the next day, we didn't hear back from Tails and Trails' manager or owner. We'll be anxiously monitoring our furbabies for a few more days.

Outstanding service! Very knowledgeable about dog behavior and body language. These guys go above…read moreand beyond. They offer educational classes and CPR certification. If you need someone to talk about dog safety in your classroom, call these guys. You won't regret it. Oh! And if you need someone to come out and run your pup while you're at work all day, but are paranoid as to who is caring for your fur baby- these are your guys.

I LOVE Trailblazing Tails and so does my dog, Beau! He gets so excited to run every Tuesday and…read moreThursday and is eagerly awaiting Tricia's arrival. I would absolutely recommend this service. In November 2012, Beau (a pitbull/boxer rescue) had failed three dog daycare evaluations. Unfortunately, he has a lot of energy and it made the options to keep him socialized and entertained while I was at work during the day pretty bleak. I started looking at every daycare alternative and eventually found Trailblazing Tails. I set up a consultation with Tricia and all of the worries I had went away; she is extremely knowledgeable about dog behavior and body language. She then took Beau for a walk around the neighborhood to evaluate his behavior and shortly after that they were running 5 miles twice a week. She started out just running Beau by himself, but now five months later, he is running with his own little pack of 3 to 4 dogs and absolutely loves it! Tricia also gives reports after each run, including distance or time ran, what dogs she ran with, whether he went to the bathroom or not and sometimes even a picture.

Calm Critters has been a lifesaver for us on many occasions. We love the overnight option for…read morelonger trips away from the home. We know our social kitty gets tons of attention (we think he likes Jason more than us), we get lots of amazing photos and updates, and having someone in the home to receive packages, etc. is an added bonus. I don't feel bad leaving when we've booked Calm Critters, and I don't worry at all while away. We highly recommend!

From the owner: I pride myself on attentive, compassionate care, and client communication. Nobody should ever have…read moreto worry how their furry family member is doing while way. You can feel at ease receiving two updates per day detailing activities we’ve had throughout the day, along with up to 8 pictures per update highlighting all the fun your furry fam is having!

Our Frenchie, Bean, demanded we leave this glowing review - she absolutely loves Darrin and…read moreMichelle. They've walked her for 6+ years and every time they drop by, it's the highlight of her day. They send text updates on how she's doing and she usually gets post-walk zoomies because of all the fun she's had. And it's not just walks, when we're out of town, Darrin and Michelle are our absolute first choice to dog sit. Four paws up for K9PDX!

Michelle and Darrin have walked my dog, Olly, since he was a puppy! We had 4 amazing years of dog…read morewalks and they were the highlight of his day. We recently moved out of the area and we both shed a tear knowing that we would be leaving Michelle and Darrin. I couldn't recommend them more! Responsive, friendly and trustworthy!

We recently moved to Potrero Hill and needed a new walker for our "senior adopted" Leroy (11…read moreyears). After a few mis-matched walkers,we discovered Jenn of Josi'sPaw. She is very professional in her dog walking service. She is very responsible and calls if she has an unexpected schedule conflicts, communications with us by "daily activity" personal notes and is very trustworthy. Leroy looks forward to his walks with Jenn and we highly recommend her to anyone for dog walking. Mike

Finding a dog walker is really difficult. This is a person who is going to be coming into your home…read morewhen you're not there, taking your dogs out into the city, keeping them safe and making the choices you would want them to make about all the little things that come up day to day. Jenn makes all of that go away!! I can trust her to make all the correct decisions and keep my boys not only safe but happy. They love their 'pack' of friends, their doggie adventures and Jenn. I love getting to ask them what they did with their friends today and reading the note Jenn always leaves when I get home!! Other awesome things about Jenn include: really open communication (for example changes to your dogs routine), flexible, and most importantly - she really, really cares about our friends and family in fur pants.