Kate's Pet Care Services

23/09/2023

Sweet client Tobi

19/05/2023

Lenny is enjoying the long weekend vibes this sunny Friday afternoon!

18/05/2023

I love this boy! He's always so excited to go for his walks.

16/05/2023

Never too far away 🐶👀🐶👀

15/05/2023

Welcoming Lenny to the Kate's pet care pack. Lenny is a sweet 2 year old rescue from Texas - I’m so lucky to get to care for this kind and happy boy. Welcome Lenny!

04/05/2023

Snug fest in the early AM with Lumi

20/03/2023

The busy season is here again! If you're in need of pet care services for spring and summer in the East Toronto area, please reach out asap to book your space!

Offering:

* Day sitting
* Overnight sitting
* Drop-in visits
* Temporary, last minute and emergency walks

20/03/2023

Welcoming Arlo and Bella to the Kate's Pet Care pack!

I offer day-sitting for pets who cannot be alone due to age, health or disability. I am lucky enough to care for these two puppies during the day while their owners are out for work or events. The puppy period is so short and I am honoured to get to care for these guys for a short time while they're young and need a little extra care than older and more independent dogs.

15/03/2022

Busy season is coming! My schedule is beginning to fill up for overnight sitting in the summer. If you're making plans to get away after 2 long COVID years, please get in touch if you need a sitter. Rates and service details are on the website.

East end Toronto or East GTA.

*Preference to those clients who have already had a meet and greet and to referral customers*

www.katespetcareservices.com

Kate's Pet Care Services offers quality and experienced pet care in the Toronto, Ontario area of Southern Ontario.

06/12/2021

https://www.instagram.com/loulivinglife/reel/CW9AejRF6Cl/?utm_medium=copy_link

posted on their Instagram profile: “Www.katespetcareservices.com link in Bio ”

06/12/2021

Hello!

I’m a pet care provider in the area that provides overnight care, drop-in visits and emergency/last minute/holiday/weekend visits. R+ oriented and I’m insured, bonded and experienced (since 2002!). If you’re travelling or need some help when you head back to the office, feel free to connect on my website to schedule a meet and greet!

I’m also interested in connecting with other pet care providers in the area, let’s network!

Thanks!

Www.katespetcareservices.com

Kate's Pet Care Services offers quality and experienced pet care in the Toronto, Ontario area of Southern Ontario.

13/08/2021

23/07/2021

Learn your dog’s silent language so you can understand what he is trying to communicate.

Be open to listening. Let go of human expectations.

Gently, without coercion, try to teach skills (not obedience training) to help your dog navigate the human world.

Try to remain flexible although some things might not make sense from the human perspective. Trust the dog's perspective is valid and very real to that individual dog.

You will make mistakes along the way, get frustrated, and lose your cool at times, but you will learn so much from your dog’s point of view and, in turn, learn about yourself as well.

10/06/2021

Dog sit in Uxbridge On ☺️

10/06/2021

Currently on the first dog sit since the pandemic began 💕

25/04/2021

www.katespetcareservices.com

Kate's Pet Care Services offers quality and experienced pet care in the Toronto, Ontario area of Southern Ontario.

21/04/2021

Animals have the right to say no. In our very production centred society, I think that for anyone who has made working with animals a commodity, the consent of their animals is often overlooked and a behaviour that says no, must be corrected.
I am just learning this. It’s such a big deviance from traditional animal training and handling that has a foundation in fear and dominance. But with what I’ve learned so far, the folks who are relating to animals in a way that allows them a choice in their day, not only show more compassion and autonomy to their animals, but other humans and also toward themselves.
This isn’t to say that animals and humans can’t mutually meet each other needs, but that it’s okay for them to say no and it’s ok and normal for us to be flexible and creative when this no comes up.

19/04/2021

Doggy daycare isn’t always the best option when it comes to socializing your dog

Please don’t use Day - Care to socialise your dog!

We get a lot of inquiries for help with dogs with social problems ranging from reactivity on lead, becoming over-excited and unable to disengage from other dogs off lead and getting into “unpredictable” squabbles with other dogs on walks, where somewhere in the exchange of information comes this: “he goes to day-care 3 times a week for socialisation – he is fine at day-care”.

I am going to try and highlight the problems with this briefly:
1. Is he actually fine? How do you know? Most day-cares do not allow owners to observe what happens while their dogs are at day-care. The dogs are dropped off and left with other people. Most day-care owners have ZERO qualifications in dog behaviour or training and do not understand stress signals or inappropriate social behaviour. Those that might pick up problems usually have absolutely no clue how to address them humanely – some still use pet correctors, verbal reprimands and shake cans to deal with issues. I have seen videos of dogs reported to be “fine” at day-care: dogs that are shut down and trying to avoid other dogs, dogs that are being bullied by other dogs, but have no way out, and dogs that are bullying other dogs and having a glorious time doing so. Many bullied dogs learn to switch off and “tolerate” what is happening around them, but put them in another environment, like a walk, where they are less shut down and they may use aggression to try and avoid other dogs.

2. If your dog is going to day-care to socialise, one would assume that the time there is spent in the company of other dogs. The question is how many other dogs and for how long? Dogs should NOT be playing for hours with other dogs. Yes, many young dogs and puppies will seem happy to keep playing, but without any interruption and down-time they WILL become overstimulated and emotionally exhausted. This is NOT healthy. The typical “happy” day-care dog is the one who then tries to go for a walk with the owner or join a group class for training and ends up screaming his head off whenever he does not have access to the other dogs. Why? Because when a dog is taught that being around other dogs equals continuous play, they cannot cope with being denied this when seeing dogs in other situations and become frustrated to the point of anger (reactivity).

I realise that people want “sociable” dogs, but a well-socialised dog is a dog that knows when it is appropriate to play with friends and when it is appropriate to LEAVE OTHER DOGS ALONE. A well-socialised dog is one that has had the opportunity to learn that they can quietly leave a situation they are not happy with, not one that is forced into shut down by hours of unpleasant experiences. I know the intentions of sending dogs to day-care for socialisation are generally good, but please don’t do it. Don’t leave it to someone else to socialise your dog and remove yourself from the equation – unless you want a dog that has no interest in you and whose behaviour you have little real experience of because you actually are not seeing what is going on when you are not there.

13/04/2021

The more I learn about horse behaviour, the more I understand how relational our connections between horses and humans really are. Horses are great teachers of our internal state. If we come to them dysregulated, they’re going to tell us this by not wanting to be around us. They teach us to ground and to look inward. They teach us to pay attention to what’s happening inward before asking anything from them. A lot of times we ignore these signals from them which can be such a valuable lesson, and we push them to the point where they shut down. We think we’ve trained them or they’re being well behaved, but they’ve given up talking to us because whatever they say falls on deaf ears. Many animals are like this, but none more honest than horses.

06/04/2021

I'm booking meet and greets for Stouffville, Uxbridge and Claremont for this week. If you'd like to get the paper work taken care of and introduce me to your pets (even if you don't have any travel booked yet), I am in the area for the remainder of the week. Meet and greets take place outdoors and are 15 minutes in length, masked and physically distanced.

28/03/2021

Are you safely exploring Ontario this spring/summer/fall? If you'll be out and about and can't bring your pet, I'm able to offer live-in pet sitting again following all Covid safety protocols! Please send me a message for more information about what this requires from you to keep me safe, the safety plan I put in place to keep you safe, and details of your pet care needs!

With cases on the the rise during this third wave, it's more important than ever to remain diligent. That said, there are safe ways to get out and about and I'm here to take care of your pets if you do.

Looking forward to hearing from you!

06/03/2021

Puppies - such delicate little creatures! Between 5 and 15 weeks (approximately), puppies go through a critical period where learning is optimal. They're open to learning and absorbing an incredible amount of information, but any trauma can easily cause damage.

A common misconception that with both puppies and children is that they're resilient; "they bounce back quickly, unharmed." Puppies in this age group generally seem "fine" with everything - we hear it all the time.

You may not see an immediate change in behaviour, which is always what we humans anticipate, however, the future benefit far outweighs the hard work we put in early on.

How often do we meet adults who are afraid of ALL dogs after they were bitten or jumped on as a child? When we experience trauma while our brains are developing, the results stay with us much longer than if it happens when we're older.

Our job when our puppies are young and developmentally delicate is to:
• protect them from trauma (big or small) as best as we can;
• set them up for as many positive experiences as possible - focusing on quality rather than quantity;
• and to proactively create as many positive associations as we can with anything they may encounter later in their lives.

In our Practical Puppy Program, we have exercises where we associate something the puppy loves (usually the food is the fastest/easiest), are like tiny behavioural vaccines. They prevent fear, anxiety and stress from developing later when it's typical - usually between six months and eighteen months (adolescence through to social maturity). Check us out: www.TCCEinc.com

04/02/2021

Very interesting observations that can be seen at your local dog park!

BUT HE NEVER ACTUALLY HURTS OTHER DOGS….

When it comes to dog-dog interactions, we have to remember that the potential for harm is not just physical, it is also psychological. Unfortunately, too many people allow their dogs to chase, snap at and intimidate other dogs, because they feel that as long as no physical harm is done, it’s just not that serious. Sure, there is a huge difference between a growl or snap and grabbing and shaking another dog or sending them to the vet to be stitched up, but just as humans are deeply affected by things that other people say to us, dogs can also be emotionally damaged by the way other dogs behave towards them.

I’m sure at this point someone reading this is rolling their eyes and thinking, “Come on, dogs are tough – don’t be so dramatic”, but the reality is that my colleagues and I spend a lot of time helping dogs that have had bad experiences being bullied by other dogs, without being physically hurt. While good genes and proper socialisation will help dogs to be resilient to the occasional bad experience, repeated exposure to dogs that chase, bark and snap at other dogs will eventually take a toll and so too can a single really frightening experience at a sensitive time in a dog’s life be permanently damaging. This type of exposure to other dogs will condition a dog to become uncomfortable and defensive around other dogs, resulting in them eventually adopting a strategy to avoid such experiences, which often results in them starting to use aggression themselves.

So, what is the point I am trying to make here:

1. If you have a dog that is not socially competent and tends to charge at other dogs or stare, growl, bark or snap at them, your dog’s behaviour will not get better by allowing them to do this repeatedly (behaviour that is rehearsed only gets stronger) and you WILL cause emotional and psychological harm to other dogs, which could ruin their future from a social point of view. It is NOT fair to do this to other dogs and it is not in any way helping your own dog. Stop putting your dog in situations where they can do this as a matter of urgency.

2. If you regularly expose your dog to other dogs who bully them (at puppy parties, a dog park, day-care, walking with friends and their dogs, visiting family members who have intolerant dogs or even attending a training class where inappropriate interactions are allowed), no matter how tolerant your dog might appear to be, eventually these experiences WILL have an impact on how your dog views and relates to other dogs and sooner or later their behaviour will change for the worse. Please don’t risk their emotional and behavioural wellbeing by allowing this to continue.

We have a responsibility to our own dogs and other dogs that our dogs may encounter when out and about to first do no harm. Yes, dogs are dogs and occasionally they will get annoyed with each other and that is fine – but we have to stop normalising repeated antisocial behaviour or excusing it on the grounds that no physical harm is being done. Physical wounds heal – emotional scars are much harder to treat.

Photo just for visual appeal - Rosie and Kunto are playing, not unhappy!

04/02/2021

My new service area (with some wiggle room).
I have moved to East York and can resume dog walks. If clients are working from home, I must offer curbside pick up due to COVID-19 measures. Other measures apply for those who still work outside of the home and essential workers. Meet and greets must occur outdoors.
I offer private, leashed walks 30 minutes in length.
To set up a meet and greet please e-mail or text to receive the fastest response.

18/01/2021

Without realizing it, we internalize oppressive behaviours. That’s why it’s so important to watch our behaviour and responses to stimuli; to listen, unlearn and relearn. The defining force behind our society is the oppression of others by domination. Without knowing it, we learn and repeat this oppression; to humans and to animals. Once you begin to recognize your own trauma and understand how it is influencing your behaviour toward other people or the animals around you, it’s very difficult to unsee it. This recognition is the beginning of very necessary and important change if we want to begin to heal the trauma that systemic oppression has created between humans, across species and within ourselves.

It was the summer of 2019, and I was in a dimly lit bar in Austin, TX sitting across from a friend. I was passionately explaining my theories about the systems of oppression and horses. My friend looked at me dubiously. "You probably don't want to compare people to horses." A year and half

25/12/2020

Even though as of December 26 I have to officially cancel all my booked sits due to the provincial wide shut down, I’m going to continue to wear my new dog walking sweatshirt (from my dad!) to remind myself that I walk dogs! Lol.

Merry Christmas and happy new year everyone. Please stay safe and be kind ❤️ I’ll see you on the other side of COVID 19

22/12/2020

A feel good story that I love reading whenever it shows up on my timeline 💕 all animals are unique and autonomous beings and should be treated as such!

In light of the province wide shut down, I have to halt walks if clients are home. I can and I am still offering drop in services, live-ins and walks if clients have to leave their home for whatever reason and have been following covid-19 guidelines. We all have to adapt to these ever changing times.

Stay safe and be well. Please be the type of human that follows the covid-19 guidelines so we can end this pandemic 💕

Every morning in Frankfurt, Germany, you might catch a glimpse of Jenny, a horse who goes on a long walk every morning, all by herself. She has been taking the same route every morning for 14 years, ever since her owner, now 79 years old, became unable to ride. She enjoys greeting all of the familiar faces along the way, and she stops and gets treats and pettings from some of her favorite humans.

The locals treat her like a celebrity and happily clean up after her. A piece of paper is attached to her halter that reads, “My name is Jenny. I didn’t run away, I’m just walking. Thank you.” But the police get calls frequently from people who don’t know about the arrangement. They are very familiar with the horse and the owner, and there have been no incidents in 14 years. A local veterinarian gives her routine checkups and continues to find her to be healthy and showing no anxiety about her unique lifestyle. 😍😇🙌🐎🌈🌏

Thank you to Karen Booth for this beautiful story!