Twenty years of knowing animals, by feel.

The hardest start

My path into pet care began the hardest way it could. My soul dog passed from aggressive cancer. I had been a person with a dog. Then I was a person without him. The grief of that — the specific kind of grief that comes from caring for a creature who can't tell you they're hurting until they're really, really hurting — pointed me toward this work. Not away from it.

Three years at Greenhill

I joined the staff at Greenhill Humane Society in Eugene shortly after. Three years on the floor: cleaning kennels, doing intake, hand-feeding kittens, sitting with hospice cats, walking under-socialized dogs. It is not glamorous work. It is the most useful pet experience a person can get, and it is where I became myself as a caregiver.

Greenhill is also where I became Fear Free Certified, which is the global standard for pet handling that minimizes fear, anxiety, and stress. I trained as an enrichment specialist — designing the small puzzles, smells, textures, and experiences that keep shelter animals mentally well during long stays. And I learned what twenty years of normal pet ownership couldn't have taught me: how to recognize the look of a cat about to bolt, the body language of a dog about to bite, and the difference between a sick pet and a tired one.

The credentials, plainly

• Fear Free Certified Professional
• Animal First Aid & CPR certified
• Greenhill Humane Society — three years on staff (Eugene, OR)
• Trained enrichment specialist
• Certified for oral and injected medication administration

What I'm good at, and what I'm not

I'm good at quiet animals, loud animals, anxious animals, animals who hide, animals who can't get up the stairs anymore. I'm good at routines and notes and reading a room. I'm good at the senior years.

I'm not a behaviorist. If your dog has a serious bite history or aggression that's escalating, I'll likely refer you to a Fear Free or IAABC-certified consultant in Eugene before we start regular care. I'd rather be the right kind of help than just any help.

My household

I live in Veneta, in Lane County, with two animals of my own:

• Tilly, a 10-year-old American Bully. The neighborhood ambassador.
• Claude, a 4-year-old Maine Coon. He hates Tilly with the carefully-managed indifference of a cat who's decided the dog is annoying but acceptable.

If you're curious about the name "All Walks of Life" — it's about meeting every animal where they are, and meeting every household where it is. LGBTQ+ friendly care, for everyone and every pet. No exceptions.

Why I do this work

Because animals do not get to choose us. They are stuck with whoever shows up. And the people who show up should be people who actually care, who actually pay attention, who actually know what they're doing. I try to be that person. Twenty years in, I think I am.

How to get in touch

Easiest is the phone: 458 · 209 · 4890. Call or text. I usually pick up. If I'm on a walk or in someone's house, I'll call you back within an hour or two.