Dog Walkers: Luxury or Necessity?

Beverly Isla on Pet Life Radio

This show features 3 special dog walkers: Robin Romine from Chicago, Kara Kleindienst from Manhattan, and Melanie McKee from Toronto, who all contribute to the quality of a dog's life. They ensure canines go home not only happy but healthy dogs. West Town Walkers from Chicago takes pride in supporting rescue organizations with their fundraising efforts, The Barking Meter is New York's and San Francisco's elite dog walking services and Happy Dogs Waggin' Tails is Toronto's go-to dog walker. We may take for granted the services of a dog walker but as we'll discuss, finding the right person can make all the difference to a dog's well-being, including rescue dogs that may need re-socializing or dogs with anxiety. We will also cover the do's and don'ts of bringing your dog to a park with dog walkers.


BIO:

Robin Romine

West Town Walkers was founded by Robin and my Partner in 2005.  After rescuing our dog,  Emily, a white Pitbull, Robin felt a need to get involved in the pet care area.  Her current staff of 25 pet care professionals caters to their current Client base of 300 and growing. Robin and her team pride themselves on providing top notch professionalism with a caring,  loving touch.  Same walker each and every time,  while building relationships that last.  Robin is always present,  and still work closely with all Clients, walkers, and remain constant and available.  At West Town Walkers' motto is giving back. They work closely with rescue organizations and pet related businesses. They stay actively pursuing ways to contribute in any manner we can. Their hope is to one day have no more homeless pets! 


Kara Kleindienst

After serving 18 months on the Hill in Washington, D.C., Kara moved to NYC. An unlikely path led her to the dog service industry, which she sees as an unexpected gift. As the owner of The Barking Meter, Kara splits her time between administrative responsibilities and dog adventures. For Kara, her passion is people: her family, her staff, her clients. As an avid athlete, she places great value on teamwork and brings that sense of belonging into every aspect of the business. Growing up with dogs, specifically Labradors and Great Pyrenees, Kara understands the need for discipline, exercise, and care: three key components of TBM.

Over the years, various types of dogs have joined TeamTBM -- big and small, fat and skinny, obedient and rambunctious, sweet and aggressive -- and all of them hold equal importance within the TBM family. On a personal note, Kara comes from a tight-knit, Southern California family of five. Her parents, Will and Kathy, live in their hometown of Palm Springs with their goofy Labrador, Kawijo. Her middle brother, Willy, practices law in Charleston, SC, and her youngest brother, Joey, has worked alongside Kara since October 2011. She lives in Greenwich Village with her wife, Kate, and their two French Bulldogs, Lucca and Chewy.


Melanie McKee

Melanie has been a dog owner her whole life and believes every pet deserves to have a happy, active lifestyle. She decided to start her own dog walking and boarding business because of her own dog Maggie. Melanie went to the dog park one day and there were no other dogs there for Maggie to play and socialize with. This made her sad. So she decided she would start her own business so that Maggie always had friends to play with at the park. Melanie started small only having a bulldog and a retriever to join us. Word got out and her business started to grow at a fast pace. Melanie is the founder of Happy Dogs Waggin' Tails Dog Services and has 3 dogs of her own but considers all the dogs she walks as part of her family.