THE MOST AMAZING DOG PERSON IN TORONTO!…read more Caryn is the most passionate dog lover and dog expert you will meet. Her involvement in our dog's life began before we even adopted! She gave us advice and support through the adoption application process, was one of our references, and even accompanied me on the trip to meet and decide on our Malik. She's always there for advice, and she is amazingly well-read and educated on the subject of dogs. Her own dog, Parker, lost a leg in an accident before being rescued and adopted by Caryn. You can tell as soon as you meet Parker that he has the most wonderful life a dog could have. He, like Cesar Millan's Daddy, has a magical effect on other dogs and often accompanies Caryn's clients on walks. Whatta Pup! is the business born out of a tireless dedication to and deep passion for dogs. You can't go wrong if you're working in a field you adore! Caryn offers walking, let-out and visiting services, obedience training, behavioural consultations, selected grooming, and special programs such as dog-safety for children. She's also a great resource to speak with about therapy. And... don't tell anyone I told you, but word on the street is that she's going to start offering canine massage therapy sometime in the future... shhhhh! She will guide you to the best of the best in the doggie universe - "phodography" (pet photography), Martingale collars, wicked cool Whatta Pup! merchandise, as well as her own all-natural, homemade shampoos and treats! Visit the Whatta Pup! website to see all the wonderful ways you can involve her in your doggie's life!

I chose WhatAPup to help socialize my 8 week old basset hound. I was able to enrol in the Puppy…read moreSocialization class which was an incredibly easy process. Caryn makes it possible to pay for classes online as well as manage your schedule online. So the flexibility of the courses was a really great feature for us as our schedule is very inconsistent. We're graduated now but our experience here was memorable to say the least! The puppy social class offered exactly what it stated. The room was very clean and well organized. The instructors were very helpful in answering our questions about my puppies behaviour issues I had been experiencing. Caryn is extremely sweet and you can tell she really loves what she does! The male instructor (Sean I believe his name was?) was one of our favourites! He always seemed to have the perfect treat for our puppy that made her pretty much grovel at his feet!!!!!! Something I thought she'd never have the attention span to do! All instructors had a very pleasant demeanour and seem knowledgable even to your specific breed (impressive)! They gave me a great feel on what to expect when my basset was able to go into the real world and how to encourage good behaviour. The only complain I would make would be about the facility itself.. It's very industrial and I'd like them to be able to expand their business into something maybe more inviting? (The building is a bit sketchy on the outside) but the experience was more than I could ask for. I will be enrolling in more classes in the future thats for sure!!

Park9 has been a life-saver in helping me with my dog, Murphy. I often have to leave town on short…read morenotice for work, and for years I have had difficulty finding a suitable friend or place that I feel Murphy is safe and taken care of. It would add a great deal of anxiety to my trip worrying about if the person caring for my pet was as responsible or attentive as I would be. After mixed experiences with friends, or enlisting the help of strangers through referrals or websites, I knew from the first time we walked in the door that Park9 was the only place I would ever take Murphy again. It's obvious that the staff are as passionate and loving towards animals as they are knowledgeable and helpful. When it's time to drop him off, I can barely hold Murphy back as he can't wait to rush off and see his friends again. Highly recommend this place for all of your training, grooming and boarding needs!

Very happy with how they handle the training and how good they are to take extra time and explain…read morethings. You can tell this is a generational skill set because of how easy and instinctual the dog training is for them. I'm a contractor and I'm passionate about what I do and I can see the passion and effort that comes from how they conduct their services. Most importantly, they're trustworthy and they care. These are people that know what they're doing and they're easy to deal with. I had to do a lot of searching and researching before I settled on them because I have a dog with a lot of issues and I love her to death. I'm very happy I settled on them. It ended up being the right choice.

THANK YOU! Thank you Mellow Vibes…read more We were referred here by a friend of ours who had a dog with aggression issues so we saw first hand what Mellow Vibes could do! Our dog, unlike most the dogs that I've seen in the reviews, is on the other end of the spectrum. Kaia is a 5, almost 6, year old husky/shepherd mix who has anxiety and fear and had zero socialization with the outside world and people. We adopted her at 4 years old and at that point, she was terrified of people and the world. Zero aggression, terrified of the world and a consistent flight risk. She would shut down when she saw people. If she could, she would make herself disappear from the world. Cowering, shaking, bolting, tail permanently tucked. Anything to get away. She couldn't function. We were having trouble bonding with her in the full year we had her because she was just so scared. Walks with her were full of dragging and bolting. She's pulled myself and my boyfriend over before when she was in a panic. She was incredibly stubborn with her commands. We eventually bit the bullet and contacted Mellow Vibes. They were the first trainer (and people in general) we talked to that did not judge what we did. The amount of times we heard from other trainers and people that we should not do this or that with our dog out of our desperation to build a bond with her (like letting her sleep on the bed with us or on furniture). They were the first trainers that understood where we came from and why we let her get away with certain things. We didn't feel judged for the first time or like we were being scolded. Instead, we got understanding and compassion. Paul spent 6 weeks with her. Let me tell you this, the amount of care and time he spent with her is astounding. Our dog was scared of EVERYONE but especially men, children and the elderly. Yet somehow, on our first meeting with Paul, she was calm. Paul kept us updated with her progress, pictures, videos, answering any of our questions or concerns. When it was finally time to pick her up, Paul trained us on his techniques of dealing with our dog's issues. We were met with a dog that listened to commands and when we did our walk with Paul, holy moly we were able to walk through the busy busy streets of downtown. Later that day, we were able to walk her through a busy park with so many screaming kids. We. Could. Never. Do. That. Before. EVER. She seemed to adore Paul, always looking back at him for reassurance and a bit of confidence. I almost felt bad taking her home haha. You could tell she was at ease with him and she was WELL LOVED in her time there. YOU DO NOT HELP A DOG LIKE OURS BY "BREAKING THEIR SPIRIT" OR ABUSING THEM. Now, I don't think our dog will ever be a people dog but we were taught how to manage her issues and she, herself, was slowly learning that people, objects, etc would not hurt her. At home now, she is generally a happier dog. More smiles, more tail wags, more following us around (she never wagged her tail or followed us around like this before). Mellow Vibes truly has helped her come out of her shell. They continue to follow up with us with messages, phone calls for more tips or to answer any of our questions. The rest is now up to us to keep up with the training and to continue to develop our relationship with her. You do not rehabilitate a dog like ours with anything but love, patience (oh so much patience) and compassion.

My puppy is currently in Puppy Socialization classes. It's been a very positive experience so far…read moreand I've learned A LOT. I got my puppy at 9 weeks and was at the end of my patience and sanity about 2 weeks into having him. These classes helped to save my sanity by teaching me great training tips to deal with the standard puppy things (resource guarding, barking, nipping, walking on leash, etc.) AND giving my puppy the opportunity to learn how to socialize with other dogs. That being said, I don't think all the trainers are equal -- Andre is absolutely amazing but I've found some of the other trainers to be rushed and not pay so much attention to individual dogs (even though it's only a class of 5 puppies). Along those lines, I feel like there could be more opportunity for individual attention if the classes were a bit longer (1 hour goes by lightning fast!) or if there was less stuff crammed into every class. I'd like to clarify that the Puppy Socialization classes alone didn't help me train my dog. I had to go home and dedicate time to training him every day, multiple times a day. But the trainers gave me the tools and knowledge to train him at home. He's now a pretty wonderful puppy that I know will grow into a confident, friendly dog. I will definitely be registering my puppy for the regular obedience classes!

went to the Etobicoke location. I won't be going back!! I was in a cold sweat. I felt nauseous…read moregoing home.

Jon is such a good teacher. He makes class fun and explains steps clearly and never leaves you to…read moretwist in the wind. And, of course, he loves all the dogs.

Excellent Puppy & Next Steps training classes and private sessions. Jon is very knowledgeable, he…read moreeffectively teaches and demonstrates hand and verbal communication skills to keep our dogs well behaved and safe. There was an opportunity during puppy pupil class for the puppies to socialize which was a valuable opportunity for developing puppies. I appreciate the practice of positive reinforcement. Next Steps class continues the training foundation established from puppy pupil and is an important learning and development class for both my puppy and me. This training develops well balanced behaviours and contributes to our growing bond.

The Toronto Humane Society is a great place for anyone looking to adopt or support animal welfare…read more The staff and volunteers genuinely care about the animals, and you can tell they put in a lot of effort to make sure each one gets the right home. The shelter is clean, well run, and offers a lot of resources, not just for adoptions but also for pet care and education. Even if you're not looking to adopt, it's worth visiting or donating because they do so much for animals in need. They also have a variety of programs, from fostering to veterinary services, which makes a real difference in the community. You're even able to book "corporation events" for your company a great activity for team bonding and take care of these beautiful fur friends.

I came with my work to volunteer and learn more about the organization and facility. We received a…read moretour of the facility and were informed what each area was for and the type of work that they do. There's a special species section with rabbits, guinea pigs, turtles. When I think of the humane society I think of cats and dogs. Some of the dogs couldn't stop wagging their tails when we got close to their enclosures. They stuck their noses and paws through whatever crevice they could to get closer, I think in the hope that we'd pet them =(. We were told not to pet them. Upstairs there are some 'cat condos.' These are larger spaces for cats to move around in with different levels. There's one where kittens and cats can stay together and someone can play with them or another where an obese cat was supposed to be getting some exercise but he was just laying there. We filled separate ziplock bags with dog food puppies and adult dogs and then got to play with a puppy! The dogs get a minimum of 4 walks a day with some receiving 5 or 6. There's lots of different volunteering positions available. Just check their website for openings.

We started using Kate's adventure walks services as soon as our puppy was old enough to go and have…read morebeen using them 3 times weekly since (approx 8 months now). I cannot recommend them enough. Very professional and our Brooklyn waits by the window for Joe to pick her up and is so happy everytime he arrives. They take her our for ~2 hours and we can see how good of a time she has and how tired out she is when she gets back, which is perfect to hold her till we are done our workday. Besides this, Kate and her team have been so accommodating - even went outside of their usual pickup to get her daily when we had her staying with our friend, which really helped maintain some routine for her while we were away. We have also used their dog sitting services on another occasion for a week and also highly recommend. Alana took such good care of Brooklyn and sent us many updates and pictures/videos to help put our mind at ease as we missed her so much. We are so glad to have found Kate and her team as they have definitely made our lives a little easier and we know Brooklyn loves them too.

Kate and her team are absolutely incredible!! We've been using them for about 6 months and couldn't…read morebe happier. They're responsible, reliable, and trustworthy - exactly what you want in a dog walking service. Our dog, Scrabble, always comes home from the park completely exhausted, which makes us feel good because we know he got to run to his heart's content. Rain or shine, snow or sleet, we have peace of mind that K9 Kate will make sure Scrabble has a good day. Plus, they're the nicest people ever. If I could give them 6 stars, I would!

Amazing place for your pup! The staff is super kind and knowledgeable, they are all certified and…read moretake excellent care of your dog. My dog loves it there and is always happy to go as soon as I mention the name!

Do not send your dog here!…read more The new owner is completely incompetent, unprofessional, immature, inexperienced and treats his staff horribly. He has no experience with dogs and does nothing to help care for them. He will leave 50+ dogs alone in the pen and is not even watching them properly when he is in the pen. His lack of knowledge and experience is very apparent and he does not listen to his employees, who on the other hand most have years of experience. He is getting rid of really good staff without cause and having to care for the dogs on his own. Which can't lead to anything good considering he has no idea how to read dog body language, cues or break up a dog fight if one occurs. He is constantly on his phone and taking personal calls to the point where he doesn't even notice a fight about to break out right in front of him. Your dog will not be safely or properly cared for with this man. He is not to be trusted and I would strongly advise you to take your dog elsewhere.

Just had a disturbing interaction with one of the drivers of this company. This woman was driving…read morerecklessly without signaling and swirving in front of cars (given that we just had a long weekend of back to back snowfall, this was even more dangerous). After my protest she threw me hand genstures and when she had the chance called me a "a stupid m... f..." Incredibly disturbing, but more so when you think this unrealiable driver is in charge of transporting beloved pets.

We have been using the About A Dog team for about 1.5 years now. They have been professional and…read moretimely when It comes to our usual 3 a times a week schedule. Luna loves her pack and going for walks, and the walkers take photos every day and send us the walk route via email. We have also used their boarding service, and it was hassle free with Nicky coming to pick up and drop off luna on the set dates. Overall we are very happy with the service and have found that Nicky, Jess, and their walkers are reliable, professional, and dependable.

Love this place. We bring our dog every so often for a full day of day care when we know we are…read moregoing to be home late. She loves it. The drop off and pick up times are extremely flexible - they will even come to your house to pick up your dog! The price is reasonable and the staff are super friendly and you can tell they love dogs. This is a fantastic addition to the neighbourhood. They also have boarding service up at their other location. We have not used it yet, but I will report back when we do. They also have all sorts of interesting workshops and do grooming. I love how right now you don't have to book too far in advance for a daycare space ie I can call the morning of :), that flexibility is awesome - although I'm sure it will change as it becomes more popular.

They have too many restrictions on when you can drop off and pick up for boarding as well as half…read moredays. I like that they check the dog's medical history for vaccinations before allowing them to board/daycare. Other than that, they are a not very accommodating. I've taken my dogs to other places that go the extra mile when a customer needs help. I would like to use them because they have a larger area for the dogs to play and socialize, but I have a hard time getting past their non friendly policies. I have found Pooch Parlour to be a better fit in the area when it comes to boarding and grooming.