Tammie Cain is the owner of Tammie’s Dog Services and Training, a training, daycare, boarding and grooming facility proudly serving the Portage community. It was the adoption of a pit bull mix about a decade ago that sparked Mrs. Cain her business.
“When we adopted a pit-bull mix in 2015, I wanted to become very educated on the breed,” Cain said. Then, we wanted to become foster dog parents. Our first foster American Staffordshire came with lifetime free training and that’s when “I reached out to a trainer who helped us learn more about the breed and be more educated on how to work with dogs.
The education involved in the dog training instilled in Cain a passion for the physiology behind this type of pet training. She became so passionate about it that she decided to make it her full-time career by starting her own business in 2020.
Tammie’s Dog Services first started as an all-mobile company, offering dog training and dog walking. In 2021, the company expanded to an office space of 1400 square feet and started offering daycare for dogs. But it quickly became evident that demand was outpacing the size of the space. In the fall of 2022, Tammie’s Dog Services moved into a 2nd office space that was 2800 square feet where we were then approved to begin boarding dogs, but again it quickly became evident that demand was outpacing the size of the space. “We were super limited too,” Cain said. “I could only hold 12 dogs maximum, if they were medium or large breeds.
In the fall of 2024, Cain moved the business to the old NorthShore Building, which allowed Tammie’s Dog Services to hold more than double the amount of dogs for daycare and boarding. Once in the new building, the company grew to include a grooming service, and so many more things for dog parents.
“It’s nice because we’re now able to hold more than 30 dogs,” Cain said.
The business currently offers daycare Monday through Friday starting at 6 a.m.- 6 p.m each day. Puppy training, for dogs five months and younger, is offered on Tuesdays. Adult dog training for dogs six months and older is on Thursdays.
“We have extra services other than just dog training, boarding, and grooming here,” Cain said.
Tammie’s Dog Services also offers a holistic boutique, has a dog food nutritionist’s, offers red light therapy for dogs, dog massage, and other specialized services.
The company also offers home pet sitting for owners who prefer not to board their dog while they are away. “This is where will stay at the owner’s home to do house-sitting instead,” Cain said. Which is sometimes easier on the pet.
For Cain, her work is quite literally also her hobby. While she does it for a living, caring for the dogs is what she likes to do for fun.
“I love playing with the dogs,” she said. “Watching them and learning their personalities is so much fun.”
Cain has three children and two grandsons who are 5, and 2 years old. When she’s not at her business with the dogs, she’s spending her time with her grandchildren as much as she can with them.
What started as an interest / hobby has grown into a business that continues to grow in terms of clients, services offered, employees, and a physical space that we can stay now for a long time. Cain is an example of how pursuing your passion, heart and soul will set you up for success.
For more information on how Tammie’s Dog Services can help with your dogs’ needs, visit tammiesdogservices.com.
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