Have a question that you'd like to ask?
If there's something that's not listed on this page, reach out to hello@poochpatrolpdx.com and we'll be happy to help you out.
Dog Boarding Questions
We generally board from one to three dogs at a time at our resort - sometimes four if they're smaller breeds.
Or home has a furnished basement so a few clients will be on the main level. Some of our clients are anxious and reactive to other dogs, so they'll find our lower level more cozy.
We have been finding success pairing multiple clients together that are other dog-friendly, such as seniors with pups and rescues with other rescues.
No. If your dog has lunged aggressively, nipped, or bitten someone, we can't accept them. Dogs that are unpredictable are a safety issue for me, my family, and other pooch clients.
Safety is our top priority when providing care to your furbaby. We need to be able to safely handle your dog, which means touching it for walks and overall care. If we can't get close to your dog's face and/or body without getting hurt, that's a safety issue we need to avoid.
If your dog is very fearful and aggressive with unfamiliar people, here are some options:
- Reach out to an animal behaviorist for recommendations and help
- Consider putting your dog on a high quality, pure CBD. Contact Diana Hogg with VidaVerde Botanicals at 706-255-0778. Also message her on Instagram
- Get in touch with a professional dog trainer that helps fearful pups, like Noble Woof
- Consult your vet on an appropriate medication the will help reduce your dog's overall anxiety
At our resort, there are plenty of places where you dog can hang out and sleep:
- 7' couch with a protective cover - in our livingroom
- Two armchairs - in our livingroom
- Twin-size couch with a memory foam topper - in our lower level
- 3' padded circular dog bed that's moveable
For smaller breeds that like to sleep under the covers, we're happy to snuggle together.
If it's your first time boarding your pet with Pooch Patrol, we recommend bringing the following items below so she/he has familiar things that have scents on them. It'll help make your pet feel more comfortable and ease its anxiety about being in a new home.
We have dog bowls for food and water so you don't need to bring those items.
Overnight Dog Boarding Needs:
- Dog bed
- Blanket or familiar clothing
- Toys
- Meals
- Favorite treats
- Leash and harness
- Outdoor coat: ideally wind or waterproof
- Medications (if needed)
Yes, many of our clients are anxious or seniors that need oral medications given with their food. Some have dietary restrictions as well. If your dog has special needs, we're happy to take care of everything.
Yes, many of our clients don't like cats so we separate them during their stay at our resort. Our kitty, Jasper, hangs out upstairs while the pooches are on the main and lower level (doggy den). We also use tall metal gates before the stairs which provides an extra level of security and separation.
Whether it's myself, my wife, or my two older boys - there's always someone here at the resort to take care of your pooch. We don't use crates and if anyone needs to leave the house, it's about two hours at the most.
When we leave the house for longer periods of time, we will give your dog treats that will help keep its anxiety down and stay busy. We've found that most of our clients stay busy snacking on a Whimzee veggie pig ear, frozen hot dogs, or a yogurt pupsicle with tasty treats.
No, we don't use crates. Some pawparents have brought their own and that's the only time we use them. Most of our pooch clients have rough backgrounds being confined to small spaces. For that reason, we avoid using them.
Your furbaby will have freedom to choose where it feels the most comfortable in our home. On the main level, it can hang on the couch with our boys, on a 5' cozy dog bed, or rest in an armchair. The lower level has a twin-sized bed with a memory foam topper which seniors tend to love.
The earliest you can drop off your pet(s) for boarding is around 6am.
The latest you can pick up your pet(s) for overnight boarding is around 12-1am. Otherwise, we recommend scheduling pick up the next day.
If you're running late, just message me on our client portal. We're flexible and try our best to accommodate your schedule.
Dog Walking & Training
To keep your dog safe while walking together, over time, we can teach it our dog walking safety commands. They're a science-based commands based on positive reinforcement training techniques.
Our goal is to teach your dog to be a confident, happy, and relaxed leader on our walks together.
From our experiences, most dogs prefer to walk in the front and explore. They do not enjoy being forced to heel on the side. We'll will guide it and let it roam and sniff. This is their natural behavior and is very relaxing for them.
We will teach your dog to listen and stop at a crosswalk or stoplight using a calm and encouraging voice. We don't use sound effects or clickers because there's no "alpha" when we walk. Once it's safe, we will instruct your pet to move forward before, again leading our journey together.
We will be 100% there and engaged with your pet while we're together. The only time we will be on our phone is at the beginning to start our client check-in and timers. If we take a quick break, then we'll use our phone to take a few photos or videos. Otherwise, we're always focused on patrolling your pooch!
Most professional dog walkers don't offer training as part of their services. It's very important to us that your dog is safe and relaxed as much as possible on their walks. We need to be able to communicate with your pooch since there can be many distractions like barking dogs, off-leash dogs, loud noises, and delivery drivers.
The majority of our client pooches are anxious or rescues that can be reactive while on their leash. Because we offer this higher level of service compared to other petcare businesses, our rates reflect that.
No, we are not a professional dog trainers. Every dog's personality is unique and there are so many different techniques you can use. There is no "one-size-fits-all" method when it comes to training your pet, especially for anxious and rescues with past trauma.
Our methods are our own and inspired by some of our favorite online dog trainers who also use positive reinforcement as the base of their techniques: Zak George, Gia Savocchi, and Victoria Stilwell. Beyond that, we use our experience, instincts, and intuition when we're caring for your pets.
Yes! we will walk your dog in just about any weather condition: day, night, rain, snow, etc. If you want request our walking services, make sure your pooch has a high-quality, waterproof raincoat or winter jacket that's reflective at night.
We generally only walk one at a time since most of our clients are reactive to other dogs while on leash. We find that it's best to focus on one pet at a time since they need extra TLC to stay happy and calm.
If we're caring for two or more dogs at the same time, we will walk them separately or will have one of the Pooch Patrol pack members co-walk with another client.
Yes! Every dog is trainable as long as you're willing to put in the hard work every day. Be consistent, present, and engaged with them and you will see results over time.
We use positive reinforcement techniques with all of our senior dog clients. We use high-value training treats and lots of praise. Old dogs can indeed learn new tricks!
Services and Requests
Service Areas:
We're located in Northeast Portland, Oregon in the Montavilla neighborhood. We mostly serve neighborhoods that are within a 10 to 15-minute drive from our home.
- Montavilla
- Mt. Tabor
- Rose City Park
- Madison South
- Laurelhurst
- Belmont
- Buckman
- Hawthorne
Dog Walking
We generally only provide walks to clients who are located in the Montavilla neighborhood. However, if you have been referred to us by another petcare provider, we may make an exception. If you're requesting walks in the evening, we'll be more available.
Dog Boarding: Overnight
If you'd like to board your dog(s) overnight with us, you can be located anywhere.
Doggy Daycare & Dog Boarding: Full Day
You'll need to drop off and pick up your pet if you're located outside our service areas above. Otherwise, we can pick and drop off your dog.
Dog and Cat Drop-In-Visits
You just need to be located within our services areas above.
Cat Overnights
We'd prefer that you live within our service areas above but may make an exception if it's a week or longer stay at your home.
We recommend reaching out on our Pooch Patrol Facebook business page first. We'll be able to get to know each other and learn about your pet(s). If I see there's a good fit, I'll coordinate an in-person meet and greet with you at our home.
If everything goes well after our meeting, I'll send an email invite to you to join our client portal. Once you've created an account, you'll be able to request our services, send/receive messages, manage your pet's info, and more.
Otherwise, visit our Book a Service page and fill out the inquiry form. Be sure to provide as much information as possible about your pet(s).
Many pawparents book our services through the year and tend to fill up the calendar. Spring, summer, and winter are the busiest months since people are traveling or on vacation.
We recommend planning three to six months ahead if you're interested in our overnight services during busy months.
Otherwise one to three months in advance is usually adequate.
For all these services, we recommend requesting the service a few days to a week so we can get you on our schedule.
Similar to our boarding services, it's best to request as soon as you know your dates before we get busy with our existing clients.
We generally don't accept requests that are for the same or next day unless you're an existing client or it's an emergency. We need to schedule a meet and greet first to see if there's a good fit, prior to providing any services.
Yes, we're happy to refer you to another petcare provider. We have a shortlist of providers that also care for rescue, senior, and anxious pets so you'll be in great hands.
Just ask 😎
Yes, Pooch Patrol LLC is licensed, bonded, and insured through Pet Sitters Associates. They are a trusted and preferred pet business insurance provider since 1998.
View our PSA member certificate
Client Portal & Billing Questions
Pricing for our services is based on your pet's individual and specific needs. If your dog has high anxiety or fear, that means it will need more patience and TLC compared to our other clients.
We will adjust your rates between $5-$10 to compensate for the extra time it requires help keep your pet happy, comfortable, and calm at home or while we're on walks.
If your dog has severe separation anxiety and/or can't be left alone, you may be charged an extra $10-$15 above the current rates listed on my Services page. Same thing if your dog has severe resource guarding with food or sleeping accommodations. we will give it the space it needs.
Senior dogs and cats also generally require more frequent attention and care at night. We'll adjust your rates between $5-$15 according to your pet's special needs.
We don't charge extra for administering oral medications.
We will send a message to you a few hours in advance (or the night before) through the client portal when we anticipate we can care for your pet.
We will provide a one to two-hour window of when we expect to arrive at your home. Once we've left our home, we usually will send your a follow-up message.
When we've arrived and started our service, you'll receive an automated text message from the client portal. This applies to these services:
- Dog Walking & Training
- Dog Drop-In Visit
- Cat Drop-In Visit
To visit the client portal, login here. We use Time to Pet (TTP) so you can manage your personal and pet's information, request services, pay your invoices, and message me directly within the app or through the TTP portal website.
When you request our boarding services, please select the first timeslot, which is 7:00am. We'll take care of the rest on our end. If you run into any problems, message us on the client portal.
General cancellations
For all of our services, we require a 24-hour notice through our client portal.
If you need to cancel the same day of the service, your account will be billed (at 9am PST) so it's in your best interest to notify us as soon as possible.
Overnight boarding
For overnight boarding services that have been booked with us for a week or longer - if you cancel the service within 15 days (or less) of the start date of intended service, you will be charged a 50% minimum fee (or up to an 85% fee, at our discretion) of the total invoice amount.
It can be very difficult for us to fill longer requests with other clients since many of our pawparents request our months to even a year in advance. So it's in your best interest to plan on your side and honor the original request and avoid making last-minute cancellations.
Yes. If you need to cancel service at the last minute due to an emergency and have already paid, we can either add a credit to your account or refund the charge.
When you book a service with us, you'll receive an auto-notification email one day before the payment will be processed from the client portal on Time To Pet (TTP).
On the date when the invoice is due, payment will be automatically processed and applied at 9am PST to the credit card or bank account you have on file with TTP.
You can also manually make payments through your client profile using TTP.
Need a calm, caring, and patient pet sitter for your pooch?
© 2025 Pooch Patrol LLC
We speak 🐶 and 😻
Professional pet boarding and pet sitting for rescue, anxious & senior pets
Licensed, insured, & bonded by Pet Sitters Associates
Based in Montavilla, Portland, OR