Dogs can teach us as much about ourselves as we can teach them. They want love and understanding and express their gratitude in boundless affection. I've worked with dogs since my childhood when I helped my mother raise and show basset hounds. We also raised ducks, geese, chickens, rabbits, guinea pigs and exotic birds.

I think dogs are such a gift so I treat them well and put their needs first. I started the Holly Hotel Bed & Barkfest in Lincoln Square in 2011 and have since expanded to a ranch style home in Indiana, on four acres in the country where there's a huge outdoor pen and oodles of space for play and rest. The Holly Hotel Bed & Barkfest is not a kennel, it is a comfortable home where the dogs can be everywhere they like. I'm with them pretty much 24/7 and many sleep in bed with me, hence my tagline: I sleep with all my clients.