David K.
Southeastern Denver, CO
Shelter pet care, 1000s dogs walked
Pet care experience
Spent approximately 8 years volunteering and walking dogs at two different animal shelters, including two years of training new dog walkers. Received a Certificate of Appreciation from Dumb Friends League for 566 hours of volunteer work since 2020. Also worked at Dumb Friends League as an Animal Care Associate for six months, until injuries forced me to quit in November of last year (2023). Thankfully, after recovery programs, I'm close to 100% health now, and have zero weight lifting or weight management restraints from doctors. While working as an Animal Care Associate, I cleaned animals kennels, as well as moved, interacted, fed, and cared for over 50 animals per day. Sometimes upwards of 100, if I was assigned to litters of kittens or puppies. My animal interactions included dogs, cats, gerbils, mice, rabbits, and even birds a few times. These animals ranged in age from weeks old to over 10 and 15 years old, depending, and some required exceptional care due to their behavior or health conditions, requiring full body PPE during feeding and cleaning. I have the most overall experience with dogs, followed by cats, but I'm comfortable with all pets allowed on Rover, regardless of their particular needs and/or temperament. Outside of minor scratches, I've only been bit once, by a dog, and it was a relatively minor injury, only requiring bandages on my thumb. Outside of a few exceptionally rare instances involving animals with extreme reactivity issues with people, I've had no issues interacting with animals and walking all types of dogs.
Reviews
David did such an excellent job with our two big dogs! We will definitely be booking him again. He was communicative, honest, responsible, and clearly actually loved our dogs! We came home to happy, healthy and tired (in a good way) dogs.
David did a great job with our pups, sent updates and photos daily. Highly recommended! Definitely will be booking again!
Excellent sitter, communication is great, and very friendly!
He was amazing and gave me daily updates on how my dog was doing. Will be using him again.
About David K.
Communication
Skills
Safety, trust & environment
Due to my years of volunteer and work experience caring for and walking well over 1,000 animals in extremely high-stress shelter environments, I'm extremely careful in introducing myself to new animals and allowing them to get comfortable with me on their own terms before I interact directly with them. Due to my volunteer and work experience, I have received multiple training modules, as well as trained others, to recognize animal behaviors and avoid forcing animals into situations when they're in high stress and/or high arousal states. I've also found that treats work well in many situations to gain quick trust of a majority of pets as well, if possible in a situation. Once a pet is comfortable with me, I love playing with them, walking them, and/or cuddling with them, depending on their desires and needs. Over the years I've found I can bond very easily and very deeply with many animals. As part of my position in the shelter, I was also part of the first line to monitor animals for potential illnesses and/or injuries, including monitoring and reporting bowel movements, defecation quality, and eating habits, as well as immediately notifying veterinary staff of any potential emergency situations. In one instance, I saved a dog's life on a walk, when I noticed she hadn't eaten in her kennel, wasn't taking any treats or water, and was unusually sluggish in the play yard. I immediately took her to see the veterinarian staff, where she proceeded to vomit and lay down. After an examination, the vet found she was having a reaction to her stitches that caused inflammation and severe dehydration. Once they got her on an IV drip and antibiotics, she recovered, and was adopted soon after! If I'd brought her back to her kennel instead of rushing her to the vet staff, she would have gotten much sicker and potentially died, if no staff or volunteers noticed her state until later or possibly the following day. That would have to be my overall favorite and most gratifying day volunteering.
Home
Information David K. would like to know about your pet
Let me know of any specifics your pet loves and/or hates so I can provide the best care possible for your pet while we're together.
A typical day
Typically I love to play games with pets, to exercise them mentally and physically, but I'm comfortable replicating any specifics your pet is used to
Services
David can host
David can watch in your home
Availability
I'm currently applying and interviewing for new career positions and writing scripts for tv shows and movies, so my time is incredibly flexible, outside of the occasional medical appointment (related to injuries sustained during military service roughly 10 years ago).
About David K.
Communication
Skills
Safety, trust & environment
Due to my years of volunteer and work experience caring for and walking well over 1,000 animals in extremely high-stress shelter environments, I'm extremely careful in introducing myself to new animals and allowing them to get comfortable with me on their own terms before I interact directly with them. Due to my volunteer and work experience, I have received multiple training modules, as well as trained others, to recognize animal behaviors and avoid forcing animals into situations when they're in high stress and/or high arousal states. I've also found that treats work well in many situations to gain quick trust of a majority of pets as well, if possible in a situation. Once a pet is comfortable with me, I love playing with them, walking them, and/or cuddling with them, depending on their desires and needs. Over the years I've found I can bond very easily and very deeply with many animals. As part of my position in the shelter, I was also part of the first line to monitor animals for potential illnesses and/or injuries, including monitoring and reporting bowel movements, defecation quality, and eating habits, as well as immediately notifying veterinary staff of any potential emergency situations. In one instance, I saved a dog's life on a walk, when I noticed she hadn't eaten in her kennel, wasn't taking any treats or water, and was unusually sluggish in the play yard. I immediately took her to see the veterinarian staff, where she proceeded to vomit and lay down. After an examination, the vet found she was having a reaction to her stitches that caused inflammation and severe dehydration. Once they got her on an IV drip and antibiotics, she recovered, and was adopted soon after! If I'd brought her back to her kennel instead of rushing her to the vet staff, she would have gotten much sicker and potentially died, if no staff or volunteers noticed her state until later or possibly the following day. That would have to be my overall favorite and most gratifying day volunteering.
Home
Information David K. would like to know about your pet
Let me know of any specifics your pet loves and/or hates so I can provide the best care possible for your pet while we're together.
A typical day
Typically I love to play games with pets, to exercise them mentally and physically, but I'm comfortable replicating any specifics your pet is used to
Location
Denver, CO
David K.
Southeastern Denver, CO