Growing up, I spent a ton of time gaining experience with animals to work towards my dream of becoming a veterinarian. In high school I worked as a canine physical therapy assistant, which exposed me to a diverse array of dogs and owners. With a focus on creating a positive experience, I developed my skills in dog handling, reading dog body language, and communicating compassionately with owners. In college, I worked as a veterinary assistant at a small animal clinic, refining those skills from high school, and expanding them to cats and exotic pets. Later during college I started a non-profit with which I provided wellness care for shelter dogs (ear cleaning, sanitary cleaning, nail trims, administering medication) and trained Armenia's first therapy dog. In vet school I worked hands-on with a breadth of species, including cats and dogs, in my clinical courses and labs. I walked beagles from our herd of rescued laboratory beagles, with whom we worked on basic obedience, leash skills, and socialization in preparation for them to be adopted into loving homes. I also chose electives to work more closely with beagles as a dog-walking coordinator and scent trainer. Despite my desire to become a veterinary behaviorist, I found in my experiences that I really enjoyed the interface of animal and human health and behavior, and decided to leave vet school to pursue a career with therapy animals. I then worked at a canine-assisted occupational therapy clinic and dog training facility, which served human occupational therapy patients with 8 staff dogs. There I managed the therapy dogs during therapy sessions, conducted training and enrichment activities for staff and client dogs, and had the unique opportunity to train a new puppy as a therapy dog from 3-6 months. Outside of all of these experiences, I have been a dog owner myself for 18 years. After college I began receiving dog walking/sitting requests from friends and acquaintances who knew my background and wanted a trusted person to care for their pets. After leaving vet school, I finally said yes to one such request and have been walking and sitting for people I know ever since! After experiencing unsatisfactory pet care with my own dog, and hearing others' pet care horror stories, I realized there is a real need for experienced and compassionate dog care professionals. I have a lot of family support with my dog and can't imagine how stressful it is for owners without that safety net to try and find someone they can fully entrust with their pets. So I decided to get on Rover and take the opportunity to support myself through graduate school while doing something beneficial for animals, needed by owners, and enjoyable for me! Given my background, I am comfortable working with pets who have medical support needs and behavioral challenges.