Anne VanderMeulen loves animals — so much so, in fact, that she left a career in banking to follow her dream of working with them. At first, Anne’s dream took shape in a veterinary setting, where she had the privilege to care for dogs, cats, birds and other small animals since the year 2000. Now, Anne continues to follow her dream as founder and president of Who Wants to Pawty, LLC.

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A local business focused on dog walking and pet sitting, Who Wants to Pawty, LLC provides assistance to people who have to work long days and need a daily dog walker, as well as for vacationers who want to leave their pets at home.

“We give people peace of mind,” Anne says. “When they are away, they know that we can provide the care their pets need — whether they’re big, small, sick or healthy. Our clients can also rest assured that their pets are being cared for as if they were our own.” What’s more, the pets cared for by Who Wants to Pawty, LLC have the benefit of staying in their own environment, rather than a boarding or kennel facility, which can be stressful to them.

That’s important, because Anne believes every pet should receive compassionate, quality care. “Every pet deserves reliable and capable pet care — whether someone has a young, healthy pet or a furry friend with special needs,” she says.

“After working in a veterinary clinic for many years, I was able to see first-hand the true need people have for at-home pet care when they are away. I know if I had a long day at work or was on vacation, I would want a trustworthy and experienced caregiver. We make that possible for people and their pets.”

Anne’s clients — humans and pets alike — certainly agree. In fact, one dog was so impressed with Anne’s service that he wrote about it on his blog! “I recently had the opportunity to provide care for a family with six cats and two dogs,” Anne says. “As you can imagine, they spend a lot of time caring for their pets, and one of the cats has special needs. The family was very nervous about leaving them!

“It meant so much for them to be able to go away on a much needed vacation and be able to leave their pets with a caring and capable caregiver. We were thrilled they were able to trust us while they were on their vacation.”

The family was so happy, in fact, that their dog Chloe, who has her own blog, wrote about how well they were all taken care of. See what Chloe has to say at chloepuppydog.wordpress.com.

Making people and pets happy is why Anne loves doing what she does. “Sometimes, I almost feel like part of the family as I build relationships with repeat clients and enjoy spending time with their pets,” Anne says. “Helping people and their pets… what kind of work can be better than that?”

To learn more about Who Wants to Pawty, LLC, please call 815-372-9002 or visit the website at www.whowantstopawty.com . You can also find them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/WhoWantsToPawtyLLC and Twitter at @WPawty .

Photo: Who Wants to Pawty, LLC Founder and President Anne VanderMeulen, pictured here with a satisfied client.