While I wish things had panned out differently, I had an absolutely horrifying experience with…read morePawsome Dogs/Melissa. My experience with Melissa started with a rave review from a friend, and I hired her for 5 lessons (with a referral discount from my friend) and later added 25 minute walks while I was at work Monday through Friday ($70/week). Initially, I was happy with the way she connected with my puppy, however I always had concerns about her communication style and lack of professionalism. [sorry for the long review...scroll to the bottom for the short version] From the start, Melissa was constantly texting me about her other clients, personal life, love life, etc. Melissa offered me discounts and requested all of my payments be made in cash so she wouldn't have to report them through her business. As a new dog mom, I was happy to put my puppy first so that he was getting the care he needed. A few months into my walking and training with Melissa, my roommate decided to have Melissa walk his dog as well. At this point, Melissa notified me that she was letting some of her walking clients go, but was planning on keeping our dogs as she was making $140 most weeks (in cash) from walking them both. She also let me know that she would give me one month's heads up if she was planning on dropping me as a walking client. Living in Chicago, safety is always a concern, and for me, trusting someone with keys to your place is a big deal, and I had informed Melissa I needed at least two weeks notice to be able to find a new walker that connected with my pup. In the most recent months, we noticed from the time stamps on our security system that she was often not even walking the dogs for the full 25 minutes as per our agreements, presumably because she was getting busier in other aspects of her life. Last week, she informed me that she was dropping me as a client effective that week. Forced to scramble together and find new arrangements for my puppy, I let Melissa know that I was disappointed in her lack of professional courtesy. At this point, I have used 4 of my 5 training lessons with Melissa, and I requested that we cut off ties and that she refund me the remaining $50 from the unused lesson. I thought we'd just wash our hands of the experience and move on, but instead, she went on a rampage about how I have no right to make such a request, that I'd be forfeiting my remaining lesson, and that she was going to go and convince my friend that I was being irrational. I was most appalled by her activity on social media following our conversation where she used profanity to describe me as a "crazy lady" for my concerns (screenshots posted in the photos section of this Yelp page). TL; DR? Melissa's lack of professionalism ultimately led me to lose all respect for her business when she broke verbal and written agreements (after I spent thousands of dollars for her services), and then harassed me about it.

I only have positive remarks on Melissa's performance as a professional and ability to work with…read moreboth dogs and people. I've taken two classes and had a private lesson. She is by far the most trustworthy trainer I have worked with, and having had dogs my entire life there have been a few. My golden doodle Chester loves her and I love how well trained he is! 1) The first class with Melissa was a basics class. I've seen her take a handful of puppies and train out bad habits, teach to walk on a leash, basics commands, and turn them into overall better behaved dogs. We even learned our first trick! She takes the time to explain why we would train using certain techniques as opposed to others and caters to each dog and owner individually even in a class setting. For example, with certain dogs like mine she recommended using a walking harness where it was unnecessary for others. 2) The second class was a tricks course and there must have been about 8 dogs in the class at once. Over the duration of a few months we'd learned crawl, say your prayers, cross your paws, play dead, wave hello, and a ton of other tricks. Melissa was extremely attentive to everyone and their dogs progress while also being able to address the entire class and move us along as a group. Best part is Chester loves doing play dead and now does it just to get attention when I entertain. Its too adorable. 3) I'd missed a couple trick classes and scheduled a private to catch up. Melissa was flexible with time and we worked on not only what I missed but a couple other cool tricks like play dead and cross your paws. In an hour and a half Chester was caught up and read for graduation. On the way out she even offered to stay extra to see how his walking was going and gave some additional advise and explanation on how to train out his tugging at the leash. He has gotten significantly better on a leash with the training she gave me and Chester. All in all, you can't go wrong here. Melissa is knowledgeable, easy to work with, the dogs respond very well to her, and she's a professional. Down to how after every class she sends out a newsletter with all the commands/tricks and how-to's that we learned that week in case we the people need a little reminder. A+ all around and I can't recommend her enough (and I do to everyone)!

I highly recommend Carmella and her crew! I moved to…read moreChicago and needed to find a dog walker for Godzilla (my yorkie). I met Carmella while she was walking a dog from my building. She is been walking Godzilla when we need, and also stayed with him at our place when we traveled for the weekend. Carmella is responsible and lovable with our dog. During walks and when she dog sat for us, she sent us updates and pictures! I even had a neighbor that knows our dog mentioned to me how great she is with Godzilla. I couldn't be happier!

Carmella is the best thing to happen to my two frenchies and I. I had been using another dog…read morewalking company, but wasn't happy. We never had the same walker twice. My pup Olive had surgery and needed some extra attention, and I always felt like I was playing a game of telephone! Enter Carmella!!!! She has been amazing with my dogs. I never worry. She always has their best interests at heart, understands their quirks, and has a very obvious compassion for my dogs. And she always sends reports and photos, which I LOVE! All three of us couldn't be happier to have her and her crew in our lives. Thank you Carmella!!!!!

No one loves or cares for dogs as much as Valarie. As everyone knows, pets are family. After doing…read moreour research, when we had to go out of town, we chose to leave our two dogs, Bella and VonHellsing with Valarie. She has shown nothing but compassion and kindness to our dogs and to us! If a dog gets sick on her watch, she immediately takes them to the vet and communicates with you. Recently, Bella got cancer and I leaned on Valarie to help me handle this very sad situation! The dogs get more exercise at Valarie's than with us. When they come home, they sleep most of the first day. I have always felt confident that my dogs were in good, capable hands when they were with Valarie!

Valerie is a delight to work with. While it seems a tiny bit pricey (I pay $18 per visit with my…read moretwo cats--pretty standard in this area), it's not when you consider what you're getting. She is considerate and caring, and I feel 100% comfortable leaving my kitties with her (as much as I hate leaving them!). The best part is Valerie doesn't bat an eyelash at whatever preposterous instructions you leave with her. One of my cats is a finicky eater, so I have a comical song-and-dance routine that I have to go through every morning to get both boys fed before I leave. I left instructions after explaining over the phone, and she was happy to do it! I know if I had a friend try to do it, I couldn't trust them to give that level of care, and I'd feel weird even asking. Long story short, if you want the best care, I'd trust Valerie. As with many things, I'm sure you could find cheaper somewhere (Craigslist), but you'll get what you pay for.

There is little I could say that fully encapsulates how much I recommend Call of the Wild Dog…read moreTraining. Our pup Trooper did the ITE puppy training. He is part Dutch Shepard, and we were starting to see some of his breed characteristic arousal biting in our home. We brought him to ITE hopeful he could improve, but concerned that we may not be able to control him because we are novices at dog training. Jennifer worked with Troop, helped us understand his needs and personality, and clearly has a passion and talent for this work. By the time he got out of ITE, our dog had his basic commands under his belt and our fears were totally in the rear view mirror. Our friends with dog training experience comment on how far along he is for only being 5 months old. Additionally, Trooper clearly loved his experience. Every day when I'd drop him off his tail wagging would go crazy... never seen him so happy! Will your dog come home from ITE Puppy Training perfect in all situations? No- That's not a realistic expectation. But Call of the Wild gave us the skills to reinforce the training at home. As part of the program, our trainers watched us train with our dog and gave us feedback so we could be more effective. It gave us the peace of mind and guidance to know what to do in any situation arose with our dog. We are now doing a more advanced class virtually because our dog is loving the mental and physical stimulation. He is finding lots of success. Highly recommend!

This is a review for the Run and Recall class held at the farm in Hampshire IL. It is the best…read moremoney I have ever spent on my dog. Hands down worth the trek. The class itself was well run, informative and great fun for the dogs. All the dogs had great temperaments which ensured a safe learning experience for all. And it works... see below for what happened this morning! My dog is an adolescent, very large sighthound. This morning we were on a hike with her best friend, a similar aged pointer. We reached a clearing and right in front of us was a deer - both dogs immediately took off chasing it. Thanks to our recall work with COTW (and ongoing reinforcement) when I called her back from the chase she stopped in her tracks AND CAME RIGHT BACK! I'm so grateful that her recall training set her up for success! Thanks COTW!

Tina is by far the best trainer ! We had gone too three trainers before her , & nobody could help…read moreus . We started seeing results with our dog immediately with Tina . & we have a very high strung dog . We are very grateful too her & cant wait too start another session in the new year!

I have a little Maltese that has been extremely spoiled since I got him. Tina came to our home and…read morewent over everything we needed help on and worked with our dog one on one. She was extremely warm, professional and attentive! I notice a difference in my dog just within the next day! I look forward to our next session and cannot recommend Tina enough!!

Bark N Unity was a godsend for us and our hyper, dog-reactive dog. Our dog is usually very nervous…read morearound new people but she was at ease immediately the first time she met Jabre. We knew our girl was always in great hands whenever we went out of town and Jabre gave timely, detailed updates with photos so we never had to worry if everything was ok. She was extremely responsive and responsible and it's clear she has a huge passion for all the animals she works with!

I've been using Bark N' Unity for one year now to look after my two cats and have only experienced…read moreprofessional and reliable service! When I was originally looking for a pet sitter, one of my cats had diabetes and had to have insulin injections twice a day and I felt very comfortable after meeting Jabre that he would be receiving the proper care. She is extremely responsive and I never have to worry about my cats while I'm away. After every visit, I receive a little recap along with photos through email and the app TimeToPet which I love getting! It's just nice to have that piece of mind with those photos. The app is awesome and super convenient - it lets you schedule service, send messages, and make online payments. Would highly recommend her!

Higgins has been taking care of my dog since I moved to Chicago about 10 years ago. One thing that…read moreis consistent about Higgins is the care is consistent. I know what to expect at his yearly check ins, things to be cognizant of as my guy gets a bit older. One of the things I appreciate most though is if I have an urgent question or concern, the staff will happily talk to me over the phone and advise if I should bring my dog in or treat with home remedy. My only "negative" is the cost of care tends to be a bit steep but at the same time, I know my dog is being well taken care of. I'd recommend the Higgins animal clinic team.

They have an amazing staff. Very kind and informative. We have boarded both of our dogs with them…read moretwice now. An 11 year old GSD mix and a crazy 2 year old Staffy mix. Neither are easy to deal with at all. Thank you for caring for them while we were gone.

Matt has been absolutely wonderful with both of my dogs, especially Kaley. She can be reactive and…read moreneeds someone patient, calm, and understanding, and he has been amazing with her. I really appreciate how flexible and dependable he is, and it gives me so much peace of mind knowing she's in such good hands. One of the things I love most is that he offers a variety of services beyond walks, including visits and even taxi service when needed, which has been incredibly helpful. He also always sends pictures and notes after their walks, and I genuinely look forward to those updates every time. And somehow, he manages to take the BEST pictures of both of my girls -- I swear some of them look professional! The biggest sign of all, though, is how excited my dogs are every single time they see him. It's obvious they adore him, and that says everything. It's clear that Matt truly cares about the dogs he works with, and I can't recommend him highly enough!

Matt and his team are amazing. Winnie loves her walks with Brie! I get an update and picture with…read moreevery walk. I Love getting to see her fluffy face while I am at work. I am so happy I found a place that loves my dog as much as I do.