|
Ryan and Niki Covert Niki Covert has owned Sylvan Pet Lodge since February of 2005. Niki joined the Sylvan Pet Lodge team in July of 2001, with extensive experience in pet care. She grew up in Shelton and was always around animals. Many of her pets included, dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, and hedgehogs. She worked as a volunteer for Adopt-A-Pet, a non-kill shelter for abused or abandoned animals, from 1994-1998. She graduated from Shelton High School in 1998 with an AA degree from South Puget Sound Community College, after completing the Running Start program. Niki followed her interest in an animal care field, by completing her Bachelor’s Degree from Washington State University in 2000. She received her degree in Zoology with a Specialty in Animal Care. When Niki returned to the Shelton area after graduation she took a position with Mason County as the Animal Control Officer. This caused some frustration, with only being able to deal with the "bad dogs", not those that she could help or rehabilitate. Niki obtained her American Boarding Kennels Association Pet Care Technician Certification and her Advanced level certification. She continues to attend seminars in the field of animal care. Some outstanding ones include Clothier’s seminar on Dog to Human Relationships, Ian Dunbar’s Instructors course on Dog Behavior and Training and Sue Sternberg’s class on managing dogs in shelter and confined areas. These are all classes utilizing positive handling techniques. Niki’s other passion is her interest in playing soccer. She has been playing since she was five years old and continued to play through High School and College, and is still active in the adult leagues in the area. Niki’s husband Ryan is also active in the business, doing all of the maintenance and landscaping on the property. They have one dog and a cat. Cinnamon is a 7 year old German shepherd cross and Tweakers, the kitty, is 5. Ryan and Niki added a new little helper to the crew named Austin on September 9, 2006. Now that he is walking, many of you will see him out and about on the property, or helping us in the kennel with his new “ears” on. Chelsi Claussen Chelsi joined Sylvan Pet Lodge in 2002. Chelsi was born and raised in Shelton and attended Shelton High School, graduating in 2003 with an AA degree, like Niki. She is now in her last semester at Saint Martins University, where she participates in the track and cross country programs. She is also a soccer player. When Chelsi graduates from St. Martin’s she will have a degree in Biology. You will see Chelsi in the kennels taking care of the small dogs and is very partial to yorkies, having one of her own, named Precious, but everyone calls her Peanut. Precious is 10 years old and was brought to the kennel, in February, when her owner couldn’t care for her any more. Chelsi decided to adopt her. Chelsi is currently working on obtaining her Pet Care Technicians certificate through the ABKA program. Beth Benedict Beth Benedict
joined Sylvan Pet Lodge in October of 2001. She was born and raised
in Lodi, California and had German Shepherds and mixed breeds as
companions. She says occasionally her dad would bring home pigeons,
snakes, and lizards! Like Niki, Beth is an avid soccer player. When Beth had
knee surgery in High School, she looked for another satisfying activity,
and found a program for raising puppies for Guide Dogs. She toured
the main campus in San Rafael, California and fell in love with
the program. Beth raised a Yellow Labrador Retriever, named Thurber,
from 8 weeks to 9 months, and then sent him to Boring, Oregon for
extensive training for a year and a half. While Thurber was in his
last stages of the training he developed an allergy and was dropped
from the program. Beth was given the first option for adoption and
took him back. He is now ten years old and the love of her life. Other members of her family includes Zeek(pit-bull/Boxer), Angel(shepherd/Lab), Carmen (Shepherd Mix), Gus( Springer), 3 cats Garfield, Willow, and Mia.
Beth previously
worked for Pet Spa in Olympia, Wash., doing doggie day care, for
3 years and acquired a lot of her knowledge about behavior from
there. She says that the dogs were the teachers and she was just
their student. One summer, Beth took time off and worked for a Veterinary
Hospital in California. Even though bandaging dogs, watching surgeries,
and delivering puppies was fascinating, she still enjoyed training
and playing with dogs better. She wanted to be on the positive side
of handling dogs, rather than pricking them with needles, so she
returned to the Pet Spa. Beth misses her days with her day care buddies, but gets to see many of them here at the Lodge. Beth has also completed her American Boarding Kennels Pet Care Technicians Certification and her Advanced Level Certification as well. She has previously attended a dog behavior seminar given by Patricia McConnell. She also attended the Clothier seminar and the Ian Dunbar seminar. Mindy Kretzer Mindy joined Sylvan in February of 2006. She was born in Lodi, California, and then moved to Shelton when she was 12. Mindy has 3 kids, and a dog and a cat, which she treats all the same. Buster is a boxer and her cat’s name is Bob. Mindy was raised around many animals and helped her mom bathe, brush and dry dogs at the local grooming facility. She is currently working on getting her ABKA Pet Care Technician certification. Affiliations
and Memberships
(360)
426-3052 |
    |