Who we are
Challenging Dogs Pet Care is a pool of trained caregivers that specialize in caring for dogs who are reactive towards other dogs or people, or are extremely fearful. We provide a variety of sitting, daycare, drop-in/walking, and boarding services.
We serve the District of Columbia, several DC-Metro areas in Maryland, Baltimore and the surrounding suburbs, parts of Northern Virginia, and Richmond, Va. Most staff can travel up to 20 miles outside of their home location. If you are located further than that, please contact us, we may still be able to help.
Our Inspiration
Meet Molly
“Dogs do speak, but only to those who know how to listen.”
In 2002, I adopted a six-month old lab mix from my local animal shelter. According to her history, she had been rescued after being locked in a basement for most of her life. She was the first dog I’d ever had, and I thought a lab mix would be best for my five-year old nephew. The very day after I adopted Molly, I discovered that she barked, lunged and growled at other dogs and people. If I could have been objective, I might have been impressed by the intensity of her reaction, but not being objective, I was horrified and embarrassed. I almost brought her back to the shelter but at the last minute, I realized I had to stick to my commitment to her or I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.
Desperately searching for some kind of help, I asked my vet for suggestions. I don’t know who the vet tech was who answered my question that day, but her answer probably saved Molly’s life. Her suggestion to read Pat Miller’s The Power of Positive Dog Training made me realize that Molly was terrified of new things. If I was going to help her, I needed to get her slowly used to new things and help her change her reaction to them.
Throughout her long life with me, I learned about using small steps to get her used to scary things. I worked on changing her reaction from “This is horrible!” to “Oh, my human has chicken!”. In my neighborhood, there was a small dog frequently outside on a light chain. Ever so slowly we got closer and closer to that small dog as I rewarded Molly for calm behavior. I’m not ashamed to say that I had tears in my eyes when my 50-pound girl skittishly decided she was ready to greet this 10-pound dog. In hindsight, although I introduced Molly to the little dog, I should not have. Despite the work I put into it, having a challenging dog meet another dog – especially while on leash – is never a good idea. Also, while another dog who had inherited a confident, outgoing personality might have come through unscathed from the experience that Molly had as a puppy, she could not. I believe that her shy, fearful personality combined with a lack of socialization made her the reactive dog she was.
Getting Molly used to humans and any other dogs was a constant effort. Humans tended to look at me as if I was crazy when I outlined the slow, careful process that Molly needed to get to know someone. Some people insisted that Molly would be okay with them, but I knew better and if I couldn’t change their mind, she didn’t meet them.
Molly died in March 2017 at 15 and ½ years old. During her life she had several absolutely treasured human and doggie friends. Never an extrovert, she and I were both happy with her small group of companions. I miss her terribly, but I know she’s not afraid anymore.”
-Susan, Owner and Founder of
Challenging Dogs Pet Care
Meet Our Team
Susan
Owner,
Lead Caregiver
Susan had a very reactive dog for 15 years. During that time, she did a great deal of self-study and apprenticed under dog trainer Pat Miller with Peaceable Paws, where she observed private behavior consults, assisted in training classes, learned how to do assessments of dogs in shelters and did direct reading. Susan did 3 years of dog boarding services through Rover and founded Challenging Dogs Pet Care in 2021. She has a Masters Degree in both Social Work and Instructional Design and Technology.
Nicole
Operations Director,
Lead Caregiver
Nicole joined Challenging Dogs Pet Care in January 2022 as our Operations Director. She is also a Lead Caregiver for our Baltimore and DC-Metro service areas. Nicole has a BA in Psychology with an emphasis on evolutionary theory and animal behavior as well as 15 years of experience with applied behavioral analysis with children and adolescents. Her family bred and confirmations trained German Shorthair Pointers, a tradition she continued briefly in her 20s. Nicole is a Fear Free Certified Pet Care Provider.
Lauren
Manager,
Lead Caregiver
Lauren joined the team in October of 2024 as the Lead Dog Care Manager of our Richmond, VA service area. Lauren is Fear Free and Cat/Dog First Aid Certified and has experience caring for a variety of animals. Lauren enjoys getting to know new dogs and providing their pet parents the peace of mind when they are away that their dog is being cared for by someone who truly understands and is able to manage their special dog. Her favorite Challenging Dogs success story so far is a dog who was very skeptical at first but bonded with her over his LOVE of playing fetch.
Kim
Administrative Coordinator, HR
Kim joined the admin team in June of 2023 after closing her home daycare after 18 years of service. She provides admin support to the Challenging Dogs team and took on an additional Human Resources role in January
of 2025.
Kim is the mom of three and grandmother to two. She enjoys all forms of crafting, reading and spending time with family and friends.
Antonio
Lead Caregiver
Antonio came on board in April 2023 as a Caregiver and through hard work and dedication to his work, he has now taken on the role of Lead Caregiver. In addition to providing care services to his many happy clients, he also guides other Caregivers through the Getting to Know You process with new clients. Antonio is Fear Free and Cat/Dog First Aid certified.
Antonio’s favorite Challenging Dog’s success story is “becoming Morty’s friend”. Morty is an Irish Wolfhound who is people reactive and takes time getting to know new people. He has been a client since summer 2023 and Antonio is now, in 2025, introducing his friend to two new caregivers! Definitely a success!
Eli
Caregiver
Eli joined the Challenging Dogs team in October 2023. While also attending Montgomery College, Eli provides care services to many of our DC-Metro and NOVA clients. Eli is Fear Free and Cat/Dog First Aid certified.
His favorite success story is Sadie. She is people and dog reactive and resource guards. She also has a bite history with new people. Sadie was assigned to her first Challenging Dogs caregiver and it took 24 GTKY visits before she was comfortable enough with her new provider. Eli was introduced to Sadie after her first caregiver moved on from Challenging Dogs. With a lot of patience and understanding, Eli and Sadie became fast friends and the most rewarding moment for Eli was to see Sadie excited to see him for the first time.
Emily
Caregiver
Emily joined the Challenging Dogs team in August 2024 and serves as a caregiver for the DC-Metro and NOVA areas. She has completed Cat/Dog First Aid certification.
Shortly after her start, Emily was assigned to Couscous, a very fearful and people reactive dog. Emily took her time, and with patience and dedication, she was able to gain Couscous’ trust. Couscous is now excited to see Emily and asks for lots of pets and scratches!
Emily’s favorite part of her job is helping clients gain the peace of mind knowing that a special part of their family is safe. She considers the reward for her hard work is gaining their dog’s trust and creating a bond with a new cuddle buddy!
Macy
Caregiver
Macy has been with Challenging Dogs since March of 2022 as one of our first caregivers. She is Cat/Dog First Aid certified.
Macy had the pleasure of knowing Molly, our owner Susan’s own challenging dog that was the inspiration for the company. Molly was the first dog she knew and is where Macy started learning all that she knows about dog behavior now. She has many great memories with Molly and those memories remind her that with enough hard work and patience, all things are possible.
Macy’s favorite part of her job is affording clients with the chance to go out and be able to enjoy activities or get things done, knowing that their dog is being taken care of by someone that knows how to handle challenging behaviors.
Marissa
Caregiver
Marissa has been with Challenging Dogs since February 2022 as one of our first Richmond, VA caregivers. She is Cat/Dog First Aid certified.
Marissa has gained tons of animal care experience as an independent caregiver and through her work at animal shelters.
Marissa’s favorite success story is Chester. It took some time to figure out the best routine for him but once she did, he has become one of the dogs she looks forward to spending time with the most. Marissa finds it extremely rewarding to earn the trust of a dog, especially the ones it takes a very long time to offer it.
Susan
Caregiver
Susan became a part of the team in June 2024. She is a certified dog trainer at PetSmart and has logged over 300 hours professionally training dogs. She is currently preparing to take the Certified Professional Dog Trainer Knowledge Assessment Exam and has completed several other dog and animal behavior trainings. Susan is Cat/Dog First Aid certified.
Along with her extensive animal behavior background, Susan is the pet parent to two reactive dogs of her own and is able to empathize with many of the challenges pet parents with reactive dogs are facing.