Welcome to Offleash Walks Hudson, the Annex Rescue King!

We are behind on our blog welcomes but always post on our Instagram (@k9katetoronto) if you want to see our friends in action! Why do we do these welcomes? Each dog is special and deserves to be celebrated! It’s also a gift to get to work with these dogs and to have them fit so well with us and vice versa.

Hudson has been with us for about 2 months now and is doing phenomenally on his offleash dog walks. His family was not only new to the Annex, but to Toronto as well so we took a slow start to walks to help ensure Hudson felt comfortable with all of the changes he was going through. I love it when both me and the client are on the same page about these things. Why take a huge step forward only to take 10 steps back? Why “force” it (force free shout out!)?

The approach worked great and Hudson quickly graduated from private to leashed to park walks. Well done, Hudson, and welcome to our walks <3

Welcome Nika and Griffon, the Little Italy Huskies!

Welcome to K9 Kate’s Nika and Griffon! You’re even making me excited for winter and that is no easy feat. We’re so happy you chose us to be your dog walkers!

Welcome Mory, The Yorkville Coonhound

This darling girl has been with K9 Kate’s for over a month now and we just love her! You can find Mory both offleash at Ramsden Park and onleash, meandering the beautiful local streets with her dog friends. Mory is sweet, great with the other dogs, and a wonderful addition to our group. Welcome Mory!

Welcome Hudson, the Little Italy Bernadoodle!

Meet Hudson! He has been walking with K9 Kate’s both onleash and offleash for about 3 months. He is a such a wonderful addition to our group … as well as being our resident muppet <3 Welcome Hudson!

K9 Kate's is Hiring: Park Walker, Vehicle Required

Would you like to also spend your days sharing sweet embraces with our 4 legged friends?

Good news! We are hiring a full time park walker. If you meet the below requirements and are interested, please email us (phone calls will not be returned) at k9kates365@gmail.com. Woof!

• Be punctual and reliable. Days are short but they run like clockwork.

• Have a smartphone.

• Be mature and have at least 3 years experience in the workforce.

• Have a vehicle appropriate for transporting up to 6 dogs at a time to the park

• Have the ability to work under intense conditions (e.g. weather, physical challenges, fast-paced).

• No criminal record.

• Live in close proximity to downtown Toronto.

• Have experience handling dogs (e.g., fostered dogs, volunteered at a shelter, vet assistant, or worked professionally with dogs AND be a proponent of force free handling)

• Be both an animal and people person. Our clients (two-legged and four-legged) are treated like family

• Be available M-F between the hours of 8:30-3:30.

Compensation:

Compensation is based on experience and will be discussed privately. It is important our walkers are paid living wages and full time walkers can expect to receive this.

All applicants must submit a resume and a cover outlining why you’re a strong candidate.

Welcome Sage, The Deer Park Rescue Dog!

We are way behind on our welcomes and kicking them off with a very special pup. Welcome Sage! Sage spent her first month of walks on private dog walks, having just moved to the city and benefitting from a soft start to dog walks in a foreign city. Next week, she moves to group dog walks (onleash) and we know that she’ll be fantastic. Importantly, we always advise our clients to start slow if they’re not sure. Moving too fast can lead to two steps backwards for a dog (just like humans) and we want our dogs (your dogs!) to succeed on their walks. Sage exemplifies this. She is a rock star and is ready to thrive in group. Welcome Sage!

Welcome Grace, offleash dog walker, boarder and sitter!

Grace is a 3rd year, professional, force free dog walker and is dog mom to Penny. You can find her at Ramsden and Coronation Park (also her favourite) during the week. Grace is an avid traveler and comes to us from BC, hailing originally from Australia. Here she is with OG Callie at Ramsden Park. Her enthusiasm shines brightly and we know you’ll love her as much as we do. Welcome Grace <3 <3 <3

Welcome Ashi, the Rosedale Boxer-Mix Puppy!

This adorable rescue puppy has his big start later today but -lucky me- I got to spend time with him yesterday. Ashi is a very good boy. His hard work with our force free friends over at When Hounds Fly has paid off :) Welcome Ashi! We’re so happy we get to hang out with you!

Welcome Jacky, the Deer Park, Rescue Princess!

This little angel started training walks this week and will be moving to private walks later this month. She’s had such a strong start (and is pretty insanely cute)- what could be better than that? Welcome Jacky!

Welcome to Adventure Walks, Nuko the Shiba Inu

This Deer Park beauty has been walking offleash with K9 Kate’s for the past month and has truly rocked her walks! You can find her playing at Ramsden Dog Park weekly with her fellow adventures. Thank you Nuko for choosing K9 Kate’s to be your Toronto dog walker. Woof!

Welcome to our team, Certified Dog (and human!) Trainer, Diane!

Certified dog (and human) trainer, Diane, helps our dogs in so many important ways. Not only does she offer training sessions, she also leads the way with our ever important training walks. So, whether you’re working on loose leash walking, reactivity, stranger danger, or generalized anxiety, we’ve got you covered!

Through Diane, we’ve also set up a private dog run where dogs who aren’t quite yet ready for the park can run with preselected, non-reactive dogs, in a fenced in area with a certified dog trainer that can prepare them for less structured socialization in the future.

Diane is all about goal setting and helping our clients set realistic goals with the appropriate plan to actualize them! We’re so grateful she’s joined our team while exemplifying what separates us from the rest!

Welcome Diane! Woof!

Welcome Odie, The Annex Jack Russell/Chihuahua Mix

Welcome Odie, going for a kiss from fellow Annex pup and veteran K9 Kate’s onleash walker, Penny! This sweet pup just finished his second week of walks and rocked his walks. We’re so happy we get to hang out with you, Odie!

Welcome Homie the Little Italy Duck Toller

This adorable pup started private dog walks with K9 Kate’s this week and rocked his walks! Homie is a sweet and social guy that gets along with everyone but needs to take it nice and easy on his walks. We’re so happy we could step in with private walks and get to know him so well. You can find him strolling on the mean streets of Little Italy with our new and awesome (and force free) dog walker, Rane!

Welcome Manti The Cavapoo Puppy

This Annex puppy started on puppy visits last week and -yum yum!- we could eat him up! He’s already sitting on command … what a good boy! Welcome to K9 Kate’s, Manti!

Welcome to offleash walks Auggie the Annex Australian Shepherd

This awesome Annex pup - seen with Yorkville rescue pup extraordinaire (and K9 Kate’s OG) Gert- had her first adventure walk this week. She’s joined our amazing dog walker, Bryan, in his small, 8 am offleash group. In this particular group, dogs can works on skills, getting a little extra TLC with a park walk that caps at 4 dogs and is led by a walker with a strong training background. Auggie was so great though, she could join any group, cross any mountain, roll in any mud, and get the best bully rubs whenever, wherever she wants. Welcome sweet girl!

Yonge and St. Clair: Private and Onleash Group Walks now Available! Woof woof woof!

Meet Evan, our newest dog walker, seen with Mini Goldendoodle, Molly and Golden Retriever, Huxley. For years, we’ve gotten onleash requests around Deer Park, Yonge and St. Clair and Summerhill that we sadly had to turn down with a few rare exceptions. Well, no longer we said!

Evan will be taking the lead in the area and focusing on private, semi private and small group dog walks while our walker and trainer Bryan will continue in that area off leash and with training walks.

Evan received his initial training from fellow force free dog walking company Kats and K9s and will be receiving ongoing training as he takes the lead here. He is a dog lover, cat dad, professional photographer, runner and the latest professional dog walker to join our team. He and we can’t wait to meet you. Yonge and St. Clair dog lovers, we see you! Come see us!

Welcome George the Yellow Lab!

This adorable and very well behaved Yorkville pup joined K9 Kate’s last week for weekday and weekend adventure walks and we’re so happy he did. Seen here at Ramsden Park, George is a wonderful addition to our group: his recall is on point, he’s great with the other dogs, and he’s truly born to pawty! Welcome George!

Listen up Cats and Dogs: Cat boarding now available, Increased Housesitting Availability

We are so excited to announce that we are finally offering Cat Boarding!

Our incredible dog walker, veterinarian and cat mom, Heidy, will be offering this service in her home.

Why choose us for this service?

Experience, committment to care, and an unmatched knowledge of feline behaviour and health. Or maybe just because we’re a company with a long, trusted history in the neighbourhoods we serve (Annex, Little Italy, Rosedale, Christie Pits, and more)..

Full details and pricing ($55/night) will be posted on our services page this week.

Next up, we have added new team members so we can better serve you. There is a real drought when it comes to companies that offer the much needed service of housesitting. We see that and we’ve done something about it. We have added another wonderful, experienced and force free sitter to our team. Shannon has over 2 years of force free, handing experience and I know you’ll love her as much as we do.

As always, thank you for letting us hang out with your cats and your dogs. Woof!

Welcome Jackson, The Annex Rescue

Jackson has joined us onleash for about 3 months now. He is an absolute sweetheart that would thrive either in solo or group, leashed walks but we’re keeping him on private walks now while he acclimates to new people and new surroundings. Not only is Jackson sweet, he also has the best ears in town and we’re so happy he shares them with us :) Jackson, thank you for choosing K9 Kate’s to be your Toronto dog walker … and for keeping things positive, force free, scientific, and kind! You rock, buddy!

Welcome Winnie, the Annex Bernadoodle

Winnie has been walking with K9 Kate’s since the fall when she was just a puppy. We started slow with puppy visits, graduating to private dog walks, and then moving on to group leashed walks. She is an angel doggy and she even brings her own boots to walks … how thoughtful! Welcome to K9 Kate’s Winnie!