Who cares for your dog
Are Dogtown staff background-checked and certified?
Handing your dog to someone means trusting people you have only just met, so it is fair to ask who they are. This page sets out what Dogtown publishes about its team, what the word certified can mean in pet care, how hiring checks usually work, and the questions to bring to the front desk.
What we publish
Certified staff, certified trainers at the evaluation, and a training lead with a published background
Three things are on the record. Dogtown's staff are certified, and our certified trainers meet you and your dog to run the temperament test that opens every free evaluation. Cats are groomed by our cat behavior specialists in a quiet room away from the dogs. And the person who leads Dogtown Professional Training, our Director of Training & Canine Behaviorist, has a published background: a bachelor's degree in biochemistry and ten-plus years of hands-on work with behaviorally complex dogs.
What the site does not list is the name of each credential, who holds it, and how people are screened before they are hired. We would rather say that plainly than let the word certified do more work than it should. The team page describes each role in the building, from handlers and groomers to the front desk, and the evaluation is where you can ask about the people in those roles.
- Published: certified staff
- Published: certified trainers run the temperament test
- Published: cat behavior specialists groom cats in their own room
- Not published here: each person's credential, and background-check practice
What certified can mean
Certified covers several different credentials, so ask which one
In pet care the word has no single meaning. Trainers can certify through the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers, an independent body founded in 2001 that issues credentials such as the CPDT-KA and the behavior consultant CBCC-KA. Daycare and boarding staff can certify through the Professional Animal Care Certification Council, which offers independent testing and a certification that lasts three years. Grooming and pet first aid have separate programs of their own.
None of those is required by a single statewide rule that we can point you to today. Massachusetts passed Ollie's Law in 2024 to tighten kennel safety, and the detailed regulations for daycare and boarding kennels, which MDAR was due to issue in 2026, had not been released as of the March 18, 2026 advisory committee minutes. Until they are, the useful question is not whether a facility says certified but which credential, held by whom.
| Role at Dogtown | What Dogtown publishes | What to ask |
|---|---|---|
| Handlers running playgroups | Certified staff; trained team watching every dog | Which certification, and any canine first aid training |
| Trainers | Certified trainers run the temperament test | Which credential each trainer holds |
| Director of Training | B.S. in Biochemistry; ten-plus years with behaviorally complex dogs | Anything further at the training assessment |
| Dog groomers | Experienced groomers in an on-site studio | Training and experience with your dog's coat |
| Cat groomers | Cat behavior specialists in a separate room | Their training in feline handling |
Hiring checks
Background checks are a hiring practice we confirm in person, not on this page
A background check is a screen an employer runs on a candidate before making an offer, and the part most owners have in mind is criminal history. The MSPCA's checklist for choosing a daycare or boarding facility puts the question bluntly: have criminal history checks been done on personnel? It also asks whether staff are trained in animal handling and restraint, and in spotting illness and distress.
Those are the right questions, and they deserve a precise answer from the business rather than a line of marketing. Dogtown's hiring practice is not published on this site, so we will not tell you here that checks are or are not run. Ask at the evaluation, on a weekday morning between 6:30 and 9:30 AM, and the front desk will tell you what applies to the handlers, walkers and groomers who will look after your dog.
- Ask whether criminal history checks are part of hiring
- Ask how staff are trained in handling and restraint
- Ask how staff learn to spot illness and distress
- Ask who decides when a vet is needed
How to ask
Bring a short list of questions to the evaluation and you will leave knowing the people
The evaluation is the natural moment, because you are at 210 Eastern Ave with your dog, the front desk has your paperwork, and a certified trainer is about to run the temperament test. Ask who will run your dog's playgroup of 7 to 10, what that person's training is, and how the role is supervised. A good answer is specific and unhurried; it names the credential or the training rather than repeating the word certified.
If your dog will also walk with us at home or stay overnight, ask about those roles too, since a walker comes to your door and an overnight guest sleeps under 24/7 monitoring, with the overnight arrangement confirmed at the evaluation. Owners who book grooming first, which needs no evaluation, can ask the same questions when they book or at drop-off. Write the answers down; they make it easy to compare facilities across Cape Ann and the North Shore.
- 01
Ask who will run your dog's playgroup and what training that role requires
- 02
Ask which certification the trainers and handlers hold
- 03
Ask whether background checks are part of hiring for every role
- 04
Ask whether staff hold canine first aid training
- 05
For walks or overnight stays, ask the same about those roles
- 06
Write the answers down and compare them with any other facility you visit
At Dogtown
The roles behind each service
Handlers run the daycare and overnight groups, groomers work in their own studio, and the free evaluation is where you meet the team.
Asked and answered
Questions people ask about this
Short, complete answers you can act on today. More in the full FAQ.
Are Dogtown staff background-checked?
What does certified staff mean at Dogtown?
What is the background of the person who leads training?
Does Massachusetts require daycare staff to be certified?
Who grooms cats at Dogtown?
More questions? Read the full FAQ
Sources
- MSPCA: finding a daycare or boarding facility
- Mass.gov: Ollie's Law information
- Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers
- Professional Animal Care Certification Council
Rules and dates change. We re-check every beach, licensing and ordinance page each spring and fall; the source above is the current word.
Keep reading
Next step
Meet the team at the evaluation.
The free evaluation runs on weekday mornings between 6:30 and 9:30 AM. Bring your questions along with the vaccine records and city license.
- 01Free evaluationWeekdays 6:30 – 9:30 AM
- 02Book a dayOnline, in the app or by phone
- 03Play, rest, repeatReport card at pick-up
