Kat

How long have you worked at Ruff House?

I've been here a little over a year (since last October) and it's been awesome.

What's your favorite part of working at Ruff House?

I love getting to know all the different personalities and habbits of the dogs. I enjoy working with them at their level. I have learned a lot from our dogs and they make my job a lot of fun.

What do you want to be when you grow up?

I just want to work with dogs. I would love to open my own daycare/training facility. I really want to work with therapy/service dogs too. I think it's amazing what dogs can do and what they can teach us. I want others to know how awesome dogs really are and help them connect with their furry friends. Some unhappy people believe that dogs are nothing more than parasites living off their owners. These people are missing out on so much and have surely never had a relationship with a dog. I couldn't imagine life without all of my doggy friends.

Tell us more about you!

I grew up in southern California (Antelope Valley area) and my family currently lives in Florida. I just got married a little over two months ago. I have never had a job that doesn't involve animals. I attended BYU for four years. I am working on getting my dog training certification. I'm also a huge geek and I'm so excited for Avengers with Joss Whedon!

Do you have any pets?

I've had all sorts of pets growing up. My family has a rat terrier named Scamp and a cat named Sabrina. As soon as I have enough money to care for a dog, my husband and I are moving to a pet friendly area and I'm getting a golden retriever (probably a rescue). :)

Meet Karinsa!

How long have you worked at Ruff House?

I have worked here since March, 9th 2011. I remember the date cause this job has change my life.

Whats your favorite part of working at Ruff House?

I love everything about my job, these dogs are my life.

I really enjoy getting to know each one of their personalities they are all so wonderful, I can never get enough of them. They bring so much happiness into my life, this job is my passion.

What I want to be when you " grow up "?

When I was younger, and asked this question my answer was always " Super Hero ". Now a days I know that is just a dream but I could never see myself doing anything but working with dogs. I am going to school for graphic arts not sure what I am going to do with it. Most likely just keep doing the newsletter here. This is what I am meant to do even when I was young I was ether reading comic books or anything about dogs. From all of the breeds out there, To there anatomy. I was in school for a while to become a vet but I decided I would rather see animals happy then see them sick.

I guess this is my calling in life :).

About me?

Well I am 23 years old, I am going to school at Stevens Henager Collage I enjoy it. I am an artist I love anything creative, painting, drawing, poetry, or making things. I am into yoga, hiking, outdoorsy stuff is always wonderful. But in the winter if I am not at work you will find me hiding in my house playing my video games. It is one of my vices. Lets see I am really into tattoos I have 23 I think.... Its hard to keep up with them sometimes. I am very family oriented my family is my first priority in life. I love music, I am always singing the dogs seem to enjoy it I am not sure about the humans though. Dancing is a need in my life I can not get enough of it. I am from Utah and will most likely be here forever. I do want to travel one of these days. Well that is enough about me I could go no babbling forever if I let myself :)

Do you have pets?

I have 3 cats, a dog, and a hamster.

My dogs name is Ichigo most of you have met her. She is a Corgie/Heeler mix and is 2 yrs old. She is a handful, but so am I she learns from the best.

My Cats.

Baby is 6 yrs old. She is so funny she will go into my neighbors yard and gather nuts from there tree then bring them to me as gifts it cracks me up.

Then Tofu she is 2yrs old, unlike Baby she is a hunter she will bring me birds instead of nuts. She is so funny when you look at her she looks cross eyed it is the funniest thing.

The last of my cats is Bruce Wayne, She is 1 1/2 years old. Yes Bruce is a girl I could help but name here that it looks like she is wearing a batman mask. She is the spaz of them all, one minute she will be clam and cuddly and the next she will be up the door frame just hanging there.

Then there is my hamster his name is Toki Wartooth. He doesn't do much other then be cute and fluffy. They are all my furrie babies I would be lost without them.

Meet Marissa!

How long have you worked at Ruff House?

I have worked at Ruff House now for about 5 months.

What is your favorite part of working at Ruff House?

My absolute favorite part of working at Ruff House is the simple joy of interacting with all the dogs and playing with them. I also enjoy learning more about different breeds as well as working with the different personalities of the doggies that come to Ruff House.

What do you want to be when you "grow up"?

I am considering taking classes from the Animal Behavior College to become a dog trainer, but for now I am working on completing my GE at BYU.

Tell us more about you!

I am 21 years old and I grew up in Beaverton, Oregon. I got married this past June and my husband, Kevin, and I enjoy road biking as well as camping and hiking. I have been a dog lover at heart since I was in elementary school, so on my free time I enjoy reading about different breeds as well as different training philosophies. I also enjoy spending time with my family and watching movies.

Do you have any pets?

Unfortunately, I do not have any pets at this time. The apartment my husband and I live in doesn't allow pets. We plan on getting 1 or 2 dogs within the next couple of years when we move, though. We would like to get a Doberman and a Golden Retriever.

Meet Molli!

How long have you worked at Ruff House?

2 years! Yay!

What is your favorite part of working at Ruff House?

Well obviously getting to play with dogs all day is awesome! I love getting to know all of our customers and their 4-legged babies. I love learning about canine communication and getting to understand these amazing creatures every day.

What do you want to be when you "grow up"?

I want to be a professional dog trainer! I would love to be able to one day travel around the country talking to people and kids about understanding how to communicate with dogs and how to be safe around them.

Tell us more about you!

Currently I am attending Animal Behavior College to get my ABC Certification in dog training. I intend to do lots of extended education programs with them after that and also want to learn about training service dogs, search and rescue dogs, Sniff dogs, etc. I love art, movies and movie making, camping, and anything that involves getting to spend time with other people.

Do you have any pets?

Yes! I have a 1 1/2 year old Border Collie/Heeler mix named "Suki." She is quite a handful but I love her lots and she has been an awesome help with my training ^_^

Meet Jon!!

How long have you worked at Ruff House?

Well, that depends on what counts? In early 2010 Jon officially became a Ruff House team member, but was a familial face through 2009 and has been a great help with caring for the dogs, and basic repairs just as long.

What is your favorite part of working at Ruff House?

Being with the dogs! Playing with them, interacting with them, learning their personalities. Some of them are such comedians.

What do you want to be when you "grow up"?

I'm in school for Forensic Chemistry, but sometimes I can't imagine doing anything else but working with dogs.

Tell us more about you.

Well, I was married in December 2009, and we live in Orem with our six dogs and three cats. Yeah, six dogs. So, it's kid of like daycare at home, too. When I'm not at school, or Ruff House, or my other job, we go to the Sandy Dog Park a lot, or just hang out and watch a movie. That's the great thing about Great Danes- they're as mellow as I am.

Do you have any pets?

Me? pets? NEVER! Just kidding. I have five Great Danes: Mousse, Zailey, Braxton, Timber, & Kola. And Annie the Boxer... and the three cats. I guess my wife and I are animal people.

Meet The Staff

Watch in the following week as we spotlight each of our amazing staff members for you to get to know.

We love to maintain an inviting atmosphere and safe play environment for all of our guests- human and canine. Over the past three years, we could not be happier with our growth and progress not only as a small business, but as a neighborhood friend. None of it would be possible without our dependable, educated staff. Whether it's a quick check-in, or an hour long chat, we enjoy our customers so much and since we are trusted every day with your "furkids" we thought we'd let you get to know us- if you haven't already!

Check back as one-by-one our amazing crew is spotlighted in the next week!

Howl-O-Ween Costume Contest!

It's October, which means the start of our First ever HOWL-O-WEEN COSTUME CONTEST! To enter, submit a photo of your pet in their Halloween costume to utahruffhouse@yahoo.com and later this month, we will post all entries here. You will be able to vote for your favorites, and the winner will be featured in our next newsletter, and get a Spooktacular basket full of all kinds of canine goodies!
The entry deadline is October 17th. Voting will open up immediately after we post the pictures on our Facebook page. You will vote for your favorites by "liking" the photo, send it to your friends and family and get as many votes as you can, because on October 30th, the winner will be announced, with the winner's photo displayed in our lobby, in our next newsletter, and of course here, and we have a spooktacular doggy bag full of all kinds of treats and fun stuff for the winner!
*If you haven't signed up for our newsletter yet, you're missing out! Email utahruffhouse@yahoo.com and see what all the ruff's about!

Local Artist WOWS Us With Her Talent!

We are the proud new owners of a wonderful work of art by the wonderful Mallory Johnson!

If you've been in our lobby lately- and we hope you have- perhaps you noticed the amazing painting of Sekoya, the beautiful Golden Retriever that has been one of the furry faces of Ruff House since the beginning.

If you're interested in having a portrait of your furkid(s) done, we would love to put you in touch with this fantastic local artist!