Bow Wow Ventures

Being new to the Bay Area, the most important thing is finding a dog sitter for my dogs. After trying a few places I’m happy to say I found my girls a second home. Shasta made me feel so comfortable leaving my dogs with her. And getting pictures and texts with updates each day made my day. The best part was coming back and seeing that my dogs were completely happy and comfortable with Shasta, her home and family. Not only that but they got a few good lessons and I got some too. Overall win win and I feel completely comfortable to go on vacation now that my dogs have a 2^nd home and someone who will care for them the same as I would. Thank you!!!

Shasta, Jackie and Steven are amazing! We’ve done training and boarding with Shasta who is super talented and has been a life saver with our one year old rescue GSD (honestly training us more than him!) Jackie and Steven take him on walks three times a week and have been a huge help with his socialization. Plus they really give him a workout! They are honest, reliable and most importantly, they really care about Jake. We have full confidence in Bow Wow Ventures and recommend them whenever we can!

Bow Wow Ventures has gone above and beyond to provide dog walking services for my Doxie. We’ve thrown them curve balls: locked doors with wrong keys, forgetting to leave my canine counterpart at home and they’ve been understanding and helpful. Shasta runs a trustworthy and reliable operation. Lyla is the absolute best, great energy and graciously deals with my last minute communication. The ladies even leave a little «report card» on the dog’s walk. The long walks on trails, the recall training sessions and the love my doxie gets from Bow Wow has motivated me to be a better dog owner– and in turn my dog’s behavior and demeanor has improved dramatically.

Shasta and her team are the best! I’ve used dog walkers all over the east bay and peninsula, and I’m so happy to be back in Bow Wow walking territory. They love my dogs; they get to know their weird quirky little personalities, they put up with their naughtiness, and they celebrate all the small victories! Nothing makes me happier than coming home from a long day at work to find exhausted sleeping dogs. Being out with the pack builds my dogs’ confidence and trust, it gives them much more time to socialise, and the Bow Wow team works to set boundaries and reinforce positive behaviours. Every dog owner should have a dog walker, ideally at Bow Wow Ventures :)

We’ve been customers of Shasta’s for many years now and are very satisfied with the service. The walkers are all great with the dogs, and work with them on behavior issues. Our dogs are always super exhausted when they return from a walk. We also use them for boarding. Bow Wow Ventures is reliable and friendly.

Shasta and her highly trained and expertly vetted team are the real deal for walking and boarding.
We’ve been 2+ walks a week clients of other dog walking services and came to Shasta last fall. Wish we had done so a lot sooner since Bow Wow Ventures provides the best hands-​on training, and trustworthy and friendly walkers we’ve had in 10 years. We also appreciate her high standards, obsession with personal service and attention to detail. This is evident in the care they take with the dogs and their follow up: writing creative, individual dog logs, emails, pictures and facebook posts. It’s like being on the walk or in training with them. This team is truly passionate about working with dogs and creating experiences that nurture growth, activity, social and behavioral skills, and happiness.
Thanks to Bow Wow Ventures we have the sweetest dog in the world, of all time, even in fiction.

Shasta and her walkers are seriously as good as it gets!
My husband and I were hesitant when trying to find a dog walker. Our Puggle lead with her nose and has taken off on us before. The walkers have worked with her on her recall and after several trips to Point Isabel, we have restored our faith that she can be an off leash dog. I owe this all to Shasta and her team.
We also love using Bow Wow Ventures to board our dog, We can spend our vacations not worrying about our dog’s well being. Shasta has always been more than accommodating with our needs and schedule, taking our dog in while we had our daughter. It was a relief to know that she was in great hands and was one less thing to worry about.
Our dog loves her hike so much, she almost bounds out the door when her walker comes to get her. I’ve even caught her waiting by the door on a Saturday. She was sad to learn it wasn’t a hike day. Please, do your dog a favor! Give Bow Wow Ventures a go. You won’t regret it!

Shasta is amazing! I have been working with her for almost 2 years this coming fall. She has truly played a MAJOR role in my dogs transformation. I honestly never thought I would be able meet dogs passing by on trails without being embarrassed of his reaction or even have my dog off leash. Instead of clenching my leash in fear, he now he has learned how to approach and meet/​ignore dogs and have some off leash time. She not only trains your dog but trains YOU on how to train your dog. It is a rare thing to find someone so passionate about trade and Shasta truly is a prime example of someone who absolutely loves their job! I could go on and on about Shasta but to sum it up… I HIGHLY recommend everyone to choose BOW WOW VENTURES. They treat you and your pups like family. 5 Paws up from our household!

My wife and I recently asked Shasta to watch our pit bull, Mickey, for a week. When we got her back, the transformation was nothing short of fantastic.
Before Mickey went into Shasta’s care, we were working to train her, but were having trouble (we’re not experts in dog training, by any stretch of the imagination). It’s not that we didn’t care, or didn’t try, we just weren’t very good at it.
Shasta took care of that like a champ — in an extremely capable and professional manner. Daily progress reports and pictures, updates and excellent care… we wouldn’t think of taking our dog to anybody else. Her prices are really reasonable, as well.
To us, there is nobody else in the world of dog care and boarding.
If you find yourself in need of dog boarding, training, or walking services, you’d be wise to call Shasta, and foolish to go anywhere else. Seriously.

Shasta is wonderful and has boarded my dog several times over the past 3 years. He always comes back relaxed and happy so I know he had a good time. She even offers pick up and drop off service, which is extremely helpful. I am a stress case about travel but I don’t have to worry about my dog at all when Shasta has him.

Bow Wow Ventures is the best! Our sweet dog Tucker has been walking with them for the last 4+ years (his entire life) and he loves it! Our dog is more balanced and happy due to his walks with his pack. Both our pups board with Bow Wow Ventures and when we go away there is no worry for us-​we know they are in good and safe hands with Shasta. I highly recommend Shasta and her team for walks and boarding. I value the care they have for our pups and the high quality of customer service they provide with scheduling, communicating and follow up.

I love my dog Nandi and he loves his twice weekly romps with BowWow Ventures in the Oakland Hills. After 12 years of continuous quality service Shasta and her team never disappoint me or my hound.
Louise R

We can’t recommend Shasta and her walkers more highly. They’ve walked our dogs for years, but we have a Special Girl who’s very nervous around other dogs who hasn’t been walking with the group for long.
We took the dogs for a walk to Pt Isabel on Sunday. It’s always been a stressful thing — Clementine would want to be there so badly, but no matter what, she would whine and pull and worry about every dog that came up to her.
But on Sunday? Somehow, we took a perfect dog to the dog park. She met and greeted happily ALL THE DOGS. Wag, wag, sniff, and away we’d walk. Another dog got screwy with her, and she just ignored him. She was calm for the entire walk, and it was like a miracle. All we could do was look at each other and say, «DO YOU SEE THAT?»
It was wonderful. Keith and Angie seem to have fixed her brain. Is that possible? It has to be! It’s a non-​Christmas miracle!
(Also, today we got home to find that Clara had gotten into the trash (again), and either Keith or Angie had swept it up for us. That’s just above and beyond the call of duty. They’re amazing.)

Bow Wow Ventures continues to be my company’s #1 dog walking and boarding company to refer to folks when, for some reason, we can’t help them or feel like they’re a better fit.
Recently one of our walkers had a family emergency and was suddenly unavailable to take care of a very high-​energy German short haired pointer over a weekend. I emailed Shasta and told her the situation and they helped us (and the client) by taking great care of the GSP girl. The clients raved about the great care their dog received, just as do many other people I’ve referred to Bow Wow Ventures.
I see Shasta and her crew on trails regularly and they are not the dog walkers you might see on their cell phone or standing with a coffee in hand chatting up other walkers. They’re hustling their pack up the trails, often with a harder-​to-​manage dog or two on leash – the rest off leash. (I hope other walkers would say the same of me and my handlers.)
BWV also does in-​home boarding and training. I highly recommend this team.

I’ve used Bow Wow for overnight boarding and I cannot recommend them enough. My dog (Timmy) is my life and I don’t leave him with just anyone! Shasta was reliable, responsive, trustworthy and most importantly, she made our dog feel comfortable and safe.
Not only did Timmy have a great time at her home, Shasta took him for a long hike. I know this because she took a picture of him and sent a full update so I wouldn’t worry. She really put my nerves at ease. I know Timmy will be excited to visit Shasta and her team again, and I love that I can feel confident that he’s safe and having a great time.

Bow Wow came to the rescue when my pup and I needed extra help in mid-​2008. Lucy was having trouble getting along with other dogs. She is an athlete, so she needed the intense exercise you can only get off leash. I was a single dog mom, working full time, so she needed more than just a ½ hour lunch leash walk.
Bow Wow said «yes» — and succeeded — when other folks could not. The walkers and the pack trained Lucy to control her own energy and play nice. They leave a daily report card, so I can track her progress, and sometimes I receive pictures of the dogs on the trail. Lucy boards with BowWow when I travel. I feel better knowing that she is with people (and dogs) she knows and loves when I am away. Raul, Teresa and Shasta have also spent extra time with me, training me to be a better doggie mama.
Bottom line: My dog is happy and healthy and I have peace of mind.

Shasta and the team at Bow Wow Ventures are the best!
Ajax walks with Theresa and Raul 3 days a week and LOVES it. They provide not only an outlet to release some of his pent up energy, but also a great reinforcement for his training. I look forward to reading his report card after each walk.
Raul and Teresa have offered great advice when we’ve had frustrations with Ajax’s behavior and has helped us sort out approaches that we may not have considered. Raul has a true gift… he is a like a Jedi Master of dogs.
Whenever we travel Ajax boards with Raul and Teresa and comes home such a gentlemen. They take very good care of the dogs and I sometimes think he may actually be a little disappointed to come home.
I’m grateful for finding them and feels as though they are part of our extended family. I highly recommend them for walking, training and boarding.

Shasta and Bow Wow Ventures have been an amazing service to us and our dogs. Our first dog was part of Raul and Teresa’s pack and coming from a shelter beginning he really blossomed and became less anxious and much better socialized. I accompanied him on a couple of the walks and witnessed just how much Raul really runs the dogs up and down the trails. Maki was always very tired on his Bow Wow days which was nice and allowed us to go out to dinner guilt free on Fridays. He had some separation anxiety and Shasta was incredibly helpful with advice.
When we adopted our current crazy boy, Helix, it didn’t happen on the time schedule that we had planned and we ended up bringing him home a week before we had a 5-​day post xmas vacation, uh oh. Shasta was more than willing to accept him sight unseen for boarding and gave us a great report of all of his quirks and pointers for his behavioral improvement. He now is a twice-​a-​week regular and Shasta continues to help us with his socialization.
Shasta is way more than just someone who you pay to tucker out your dog a couple times a week. She’s really an investment! I’m constantly worrying about our pup and I leave a lot of little notes and emails. She is very prompt to reply and address my concerns. I’m always impressed with how generous she is with her advice and knowledge. She truly cares about your dog and your dog-​human relationship rather than it just being a business.
I really love that Helix comes home with a report card with a little blurb about how his day was, who he played with, and how he’s doing with his «needs-​improvement» areas. We been a client for almost two years and I still look forward to reading about his day everytime :)

Full disclosure: this review is based on a consultation only, and not with the boarding/​walking service itself as I have no experience with that.
I’m trying to find a holiday boarding situation for Brea, my super lover-​bug pit mix. After a bit of phone tag, Shasta called to tell me that she had no availability for the dates I needed. In 99% of all cases the call would have ended right there, but she spent a good 30 – 40 minutes on the phone with me pointing me to other resources and giving me advice on how to find a reliable sitter and a good fit.
That is well above and beyond the call of duty, especially for someone who isn’t even your customer yet! She is clearly devoted to her trade and has great insights about what matters most when your doggie is in the care of someone else. I wouldn’t hesitate to contact her for my future boarding needs based on this refreshingly wonderful first impression. Thanks, Shasta!

Shasta has been a godsend for our pups, Cosita and Joe. Cosi used to be totally agro-​punk, beating up on her homies for no good reason, and killing skunks in our backyard just to tick us off. But then Shasta came along, and now she’s the goofiest, sweetest girl there has ever been. Cosi, not Shasta.
So, when we adopted Joe as a puppy, we knew exactly into whose hands we needed to entrust him. He is growing up to be a wonderful dog. He’s hyper as hell, but that’s not Shasta’s fault. He’s a puppy. And puppies have energy. Much more energy than their old, decrepit parents.
Anyway, Shasta has always been wonderful about not just training our dogs, but training us. She will take as much time as needed to make sure that you are thoroughly competent and confident in the techniques needed to train your pup. She makes sure that you create a bond with your dog, so that they don’t just look at her as the boss.
To make a long story short: Shasta has a magic touch with the pups in her care. She has turned a family on the verge of giving up into one close-​knit group. Shasta is Aces.