About the Owner, Dorinne Whynott

Dori Whynott

Dorinne Whynott is the creator/founder/owner of the Animal Care Center of NH and Professional Pet Sitting Etc, author of many educational articles,  and has been in the animal field all of her life.

Professional Pet Sitting Etc. is a very successful business, established in 1990.

The Animal Care Center of NH is a brand new state of the art facility opening in September 2020.

Since we are caring for your most beloved pets and you are giving us access to your homes, it seems fitting to give you a background history of the most important person, the owner of the company.

Ms. Whynott was born with a special gift with animals and is most passionate about all animals and their welfare. In her life, she has rescued numerous animals – however only a few major rescues are featured here. Let me introduce you to, Dorinne Whynott.

Here is her story

Dori with kittens, 1962

Dori and Mitzy, 1964

Ms. Whynott was born a surviving twin and grew up in Saugus, Massachusetts. She has always shown a deep connection with animals and at a very early age, all animals seemed to be drawn to her. Growing up she had many pets, a few pets are Mitzy, Husky and Spot.
Ms. Whynott started pet sitting as a child (from 7 – 15 years old) caring for her neighbor’s horse, Black Jack (a black and white Quarter Horse who was a retired champion barrel racer). Her payment was being able to go horseback riding. She was taught to ride (at 5 years old!!) by Kathy Wheeler (Black Jack‘s owner), a wonderful woman who was proud of her black foot Indian descent. Kathy was instrumental in helping to develop the special skills Dorinne had with animals.
Kathy and Blackjack

Kathy & BlackJack

Mathilda Whynott

Tillie, Dori’s Grandmother

Ms. Whynott experienced her first big loss, when her grandmother, Matilda Rose Whynott (Katka-maiden name), passed away and soon there after, her family decided to move to Nashua, New Hampshire, where she attended Nashua High School.
Duke, black husky mix and Prince, white samoyed

Duke – Black Husky Mix

Sammy – Samoyed

Ms. Whynott’s first dog after she left home was Duke.  Duke came into Dorinne’s life when she answered an ad in the newspaper, featuring $5 puppies (the money would be going to spay the mom). Duke was a Labrador/shepherd/husky mix. He was the most obedient all around dog that Dorinne has ever encountered to date. He was certified for obedience and pet therapy. He was used in many educational seminars, in schools, demonstrations and used next to other dogs in training sessions. Ms. Whynott found training dogs was faster when used next to a dog that was already trained.

1979 – 1984

Ms. Whynott considers herself an animal advocate and is very dedicated to animal welfare. She was thrilled to read about a job opening at the Nashua Humane Society (also known as the Humane Society of Southern Hillsborough County and now known as the Humane Society of Greater Nashua). There she excelled under Nancy Soule, who was the Director and Darcy Langdon the Manager. Ms. Langdon stated on Dorinne’s first day of work, “ As a humane society, we are here to put ourselves out of business. For if we did our job correctly, there would be no need for a shelter”. This was an ideal statement, however, it was one that Ms. Whynott lives her life by and thus her life long passion of education in animals and animal welfare was born.

At the shelter, all employees were taught various veterinary technician and shelter duties. Dorinne learned how to do physicals on dogs and cats, proper animal handling, drawing blood, heartworm checks, fecal examinations, parasite control, administering vaccinations, euthanasia, wound management, along with numerous other important medical, shelter and kennel duties. She was also responsible for animal statistics gathering, office management, daily record keeping, deposits, minor book keeping, grief counseling, interviewing, behavior modification, public education, and much more.

Ms. Whynott considers working at the Humane Society one of the best jobs that she has ever had. Of course she loves her present company, however, working at the shelter fulfilled her passion of helping animals so completely that other jobs only filled partially.

What made this job so amazing first was the great group of people that worked there. It was a family unit, everyone cared for everyone and worked well together, learned together and always put the animals first. In the time that Ms. Whynott worked at the Nashua Humane Society, this facility had many functions. Ms. Whynott met many long time friends there, two were Norma Lavigne and Pat Konecny (who is the current office manager of Hudson Animal Hospital).

Dorinne stated “Every day was different. We could be going out to rescue a Heron shot by someone with an arrow, or help a group of ducklings whose mother was hit by a car, or help a family who did not know what was wrong with their dog (frozen in his doghouse was the problem). Then we could be going to various organizations to visit with some shelters animals, to educational talks at the local schools and children’s organizations, to television, radio or newspaper interviews and so much more. We were an animal shelter, that meant that we were there for ALL animals, domestic, wild, feral, exotic. One thing that was paramount, was that NO animal was ever turned away, EVER. Whether it was a baby squirrel, injured seagull, unwanted pet, all were taken in with no waiting, everyday. It was taught to us that if someone brought in an animal for whatever reason, they made this decision and needed to let the animal go now. If these people were turned away or talked into waiting, the risk may be that they would drop the animal off on the side of the road or something much worse. The risk to the animal was unacceptable. Of course, we would try to educate the owner and alleviate any problems that may have been the reason a pet was being relinquished, but on many occasions, the reasons given were just an excuse for not wanting the pet anymore“.

Dorinne even had someone give up a dog because it did not match the furniture!

Ms. Whynott learned to become very efficient in rescue and rehabilitation of abused and neglected animals. She was especially good with aggressive animals (and showed the scars for it – being bit by just about every species, from dogs, cats, squirrels, various wildlife to even a seagull!!). She became licensed (along with many shelter employees) in the state of New Hampshire to rehabilitate wildlife. She was in the public eye for the humane society quite a lot, you could find her in the newspaper showing off her many foster animals looking for homes, or doing public seminars in animal education or visiting many facilities including Greenbriar Nursing Home and the Plus Company for Pet Facilitated Therapy (PFT).

Ms. Whynott took many classes and training in Animal Behavior and Obedience. Working at the animal shelter gave her extensive on the job experience in a wide variety of animal behavior. She became a Dog Obedience Trainer (later to be part of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers). She worked with adoptive owners who adopted animals with behavioral problems to help ensure that animal and new owner had a long and happy life together. To this day, her passion is helping owners with pet problems.

Ms. Whynott was instrumental in implementing many new ideas at the shelter which helped the shelter to run more efficiently. One idea she started was the protocol for lost pets and for people looking to adopt certain pets. She also developed and implemented the out of cage cat room, where cats who were healthy could roam freely. Her protocol was instrumental in keeping disease down. Allowing cats to roam freely helped to house more cats and alleviate depression that occurred when felines are caged for long periods of time. She also helped work on the policy and procedures for the shelter along with by-laws.

She became the Shelter Manager until she left to move north and a new manager was hired.

During this time period, Dorinne acquired a few animals:

Kiki was an all black Domestic Short hair (DSH), spayed female with one white whisker. She was a free kitten, and lived 18 years passing away at home of natural causes.

Pandora and Angel
Pandora was a brown tabby with white DSH, spayed female. She was adopted from the Nashua Humane Society and died of kidney failure.

Angel was a grey DSH, spayed female. She was from the Nashua Humane Society and also passed away from Kidney disease.

Armouk, black and white Siberian Husky

Armouk

Armouk was a black and white Siberian Husky puppy brought to the Humane Society because the owners could not deal with the work it takes to have a puppy. They purchased him from a pet store and as many pet store puppies are, Armouk had many health issues and died with complications of heart and kidney disease.
Appollo, black and tan tabby cat

Apollo

Apollo was a brown tabby DSH, neutered male who was brought into the humane society after he was found with a tail injury possibly an abuse case.

Magic was a grey and white Dutch Dwarf rabbit, brought into the humane society after the owners purchased her for their children as an Easter gift. Then the owners decided after a month that they did not want her any longer.

During this time, Ms. Whynott was also the vice president of the NH Veterinary Technicians Association.

1984 – 1987

In 1985, Ms. Whynott moved to Thornton, NH and rented a home that used to be the Robin’s Nest Restaurant and Motel. There she shared her home with 2 dogs (Duke, Armouk), 4 cats (Kiki, Pandora, Angel, Appollo) and 2 horses (Trinity, Quincy).

Ms. Whynott worked as a Veterinary Technician for Plymouth Animal Hospital. Since this was a small animal hospital, all duties (other than veterinary) were her responsibility, including the duties she performed at the Humane Society but also assisting in surgery, x-rays, lab work, and much more. Animals cared for ranged from domestic pets to livestock to horses. Patients were seen in hospital as well as in their own home environment.

Squam Lake Science Center located in Holderness, NH was also a fascinating working experience once held by Ms. Whynott. Her title as an Animal Care Technician included caring for bears, coyote, foxes, bob tail, owls, osprey and other birds of prey along with raccoons, and other native wildlife found in New Hampshire.

Trinity, white Horse, Quincy, palomino horse, Dule, black dog

Trinity, Quincy, Duke

Ms. Whynott rescued two abused and neglected horses, Trinity and Quincy. She designed and built a large barn for them. Shortly, thereafter, the Pemigewasset River flooded the paddock and barn – the river swelled to 20 feet over the natural level of previous years. Her home and some contents were slightly damaged. The horses and barn were okay, but the barn needed a good cleaning, since the water rose 4 feet into the barn.
RR Tack and Feed store sign

RR Tack and Feed

1986

Dorinne Whynott had her first and only child, Rachelle in August.

Ms. Whynott saw that there was a need for an animal feed and supply store in that area. She strategized and in December, she opened RR Tack and Feed (named after her daughter – Rachelle Rose, thus RR). Being young and anxious, she wanted to open the week before to get a bit of the Christmas rush. A big mistake was opening the business before the insurance kicked in after the first of the year.

Robins Nest fire, Thorton, nh 1

Fire

Unfortunately, the fire was caused by a crack in a heating duct. Everything burned to the ground 2 days before Christmas. No person or animal was harmed, but the building and all contents (personal and business) were destroyed. She was forced to place her horses with a kind person.  She was homeless for a while until a gracious family allowed her to live in one 6×8 room with her newborn, 2 dogs and 4 cats. They lived there for a few months. She cooked on a small hot plate and slept on a mattress on the floor. As a new mom, with no real home, no job and suffering the loss of everything, she was completely traumatized and devastated but somehow prevailed.
Robins Nest fire, Thorton, nh 2

Fire

1987

Finally she got back on her feet and her best friend, Norma Lavigne, offered her a wonderful basement apartment and the move back to Nashua was in order.

1987 – 1992

Ms. Whynott found work with Hudson Animal Hospital. Ms. Whynott speaks very highly of Dr. Allen Conti, whom she considers a great boss and a superior surgeon. This animal hospital has now and has had in the past many great Veterinarians. She worked with Dr. Michael Dutton (now in his own practice, Weare Animal Hospital) and Dr. Lisa Anderson (now working at the Milford Animal Hospital) , both great veterinarians, mentors and teachers. Pat Konecny is the current office manage , whom Dorinne met working at the Nashua Humane Society and is a long time friend. During this time, Benson’s Animal Farm was still open and Hudson Animal Hospital helped to care for elephants, tigers, etc. What a sight to see an elephant in the parking lot!! Ms. Whynott became Office Manager Assistant and was responsible for boarding schedules, veterinary appointment schedules, intake and return of boarding pets and patients, medical record accuracy, counseling and solving animal problems for clients over the phone, grief counseling for clients, dispensing medications prescribed by the veterinarians, retail sales and invoicing, daily receipts, deposits, and reception duties. On very rare occasion she helped fill in for veterinary technician duties, however, she loved and preferred to be out front helping clients with problems they were experiencing with their pets.

1990

She started pet sitting in 1990 when she obtained her first client, Samantha, a longhaired black and white cat. Many clients at the hospital started to ask if there was such a service who would visit their home and care for their pets while they were away on vacation. This led to the establishment of Whynott Professional Pet Sitting, later to be known as Professional Pet Sitting Etc (PPSE). Ms. Whynott comes to this field with unmatched superior credentials in business and animal experience. Ms. Whynott takes the professional in PPSE very seriously and as a result, she registered the business in the state of New Hampshire, became bonded, and acquired liability insurance. She is responsible for every aspect of the business. She created each piece of PPSE advertising, literature, brochure, and presentation book. Ms. Whynott is responsible for the advertising in all newspapers in southern New Hampshire, on WMUR TV, and the Yellow Pages.

NOTE: It would be a long 6 years of hard work, lots of money and time, driving long hours (some days driving 150 miles) and covering many towns on her own, before PPSE would become a full time business, have enough clients and be able to make enough money to be supportive.

Fudge, Siberian Husky cut out

Fudge

1991

While working at the Hudson Animal Hospital, a wonderful client came in, with a dog she had just rescued. This client wanted to place him but he had many problems. The dog she was referring to was Dorinne’s favorite breed, the Siberian Husky!

To read more about “Fudge”, check his story out by going to Case Studies. Since Dorinne had an extensive background in dealing with abused animals, she decided to adopt him. With her training, Fudge earned his obedience certificate and also was certified as a Pet Therapy Dog in 1996.

1992 – 1996

 Along with working a full time job, being a mother and starting her pet sitting business, Ms. Whynott decided to go back to school and earn a degree. She went to Springfield College earning her Bachelor of Science degree, majoring in Business, Animal Science and Behavior,  and Human Psychology with a GPA of 3.97! Ms. Whynott has also received credit from Mount Ida College for Veterinary Science Clinical Methods. Her educational courses include: business and marketing, business development and management, highly effective business management tools, numerous psychology courses, case management, counseling and interviewing skills, veterinary sciences, computer skills, preventive holistic health, substance use and abuse: prevention to treatment. She interned at Brookside Hospital in Nashua, working with dual diagnosed patients (patients who had an addiction and a disorder – for example – alcohol addiction with multiple personality disorder). Ms. Whynott was the only student working on her Associate’s degree allowed in this internship, which was for Master’s level students only. Dorinne’s supervisor, Ms. Jan Bruce stated, “This students works with masters level students and consistently participates at their level”.

As part of her degree with Springfield College, Ms. Whynott needed to complete a mandatory group study project. She chose the subject of Pet Facilitated Therapy (PFT) and studied the pros and cons on children in trouble. Ms. Whynott took an additional certification course for Pet Facilitated Therapy with Linda Hume (she runs a great PFT program at the Northeast Rehabilitation Hospital in Salem, NH ) . At this time, Fudge was also certified as a pet therapy dog. The most satisfying visits were at the Nashua Children’s Association in Nashua – working with children with abusive backgrounds. They seemed to identify with Fudge’s abusive background (see his story in our case studies section on this website). One child who had not spoken for a while suddenly just began talking, talking about Fudge!

She also received certification as a Pet Care Technician. The very last course, she completed for her degree was “Coping with Disease and Death” – little did she know that this course would be the most important tool she would need in just a few months time….starting in August 1996.

Barney, black greyhound

Barney

1994

Ms. Whynott was asked to help Greyhound Pets of America with fostering greyhounds off the track, trained them and placed them in permanent homes. She fostered quite a few greyhounds over the next few years.

Jappaloup, greyhound and Fudge, Siberian Husky

Jappaloup (Greyhound)
Fudge (Siberian Husky)

WMUR Channel 9 and WHDH Channel 7 had special interest in Ms. Whynott’s involvement with the Salem Animal Rescue League (SARL) on the 16 abused Shepherds from Salem (read more about the Coh case). Ms. Whynott worked closely with all of the foster homes to help the abused Shepherds on their way to happy homes.

Tyler, black and tan Shepard

Tyler

She, herself, took in the two worst Shepherds (Schultz and Tyler) to work with them so they could be placed in great homes. After a few months of hard work, both dogs were placed in great homes. Schultz eventually was returned after a few months. He was diagnosed with advanced kidney disease due to the past neglect, starvation and poor diet. The new owners were unable to care for him medically. SARL entrusted Ms. Whynott to care for Schultz until he was too ill and needed to be euthanized.

1995

Ms. Whynott created and wrote her own Obedience Training Manual and started to give in-home training as a new service.

Ms. Whynott  helped to start the NH Pet Expo.

1996

PPSE is now successful enough and has become a full time business.

Ms. Whynott helped to create a Christmas greeting on WMUR Channel 9 and the ad ran for a few years until WMUR no longer offered these great advertisements. Three wonderful commercials were also created at this time and ran a few times, however, due to the high cost of television advertising, it did not pay off. As a result of much advertising and recent media exposure, Ms. Whynott was sought out to do numerous articles and interviews about her background and business.

She was asked to be involved with a radio call in show on WZID for pet related problems and was interviewed for a local business show for Channel 50. Overall, she has conducted many animal education talks for schools, animal welfare groups and other organizations in past, present and future.

Penny was a new addition to the family. She was a free grey and white lop eared bunny given to Dori a friend. Penny did not enjoy to much handling and when she had enough, she would growl!!!

1996 – 1997

Devastation hit during August of 1996 to December of 1997, Ms. Whynott experienced the most traumatizing 14 months of her life. She literally lost 18 family, friends and pets in that time span, which included her best friend (Norma Lavigne), her mother (Eva Whynott), her father (Robert Whynott) plus her 4 cats – Pandora to kidney failure, Kiki to old age, Angel to a fatal injury and Nikki to heart failure.

During this time of loss, Ms. Whynott felt that her clients and pets in her care were not getting the service they should, and she decided to hire employees. She wrote a 40 page policy and procedure handbook, devised an extensive application, and required a police background check. All to ensure that clients, pets and PPSE were as safe as possible and that good quality care was given.

Tex the cat

Tex

In spite of all of the losses, Ms. Whynott continued to fill her home with more furry loves. Tex was inherited when Dorinne’s mother passed away.

Danny and Nikki were adopted from SARL. Danny was a DSH, brown tabby, neutered male and Nikki was a flame point Siamese, neutered male (unfortunately, Nikki passed away from heart failure at 5 months old on December 10, 1997).

Danny, tiger kitten and Nikki, flame point siamese kitten

Danny & Nikki

Pooh, orange tiger cat and Spanky, black & white cat

Pooh (orange)
Spanky (black/white)

1998

Pooh and Raji were adopted from the

Nevins Farm MSPCA in Methuen, Mass. Susan T., a client who had become a friend, worked there.

Pooh was a DSH, orange tabby with white, neutered male and 

Raji was a double pawed, DSH, black and white, neutered male.

Ms. Whynott and her, daughter, Rachelle Whynott were certified for Pet First Aid and CPR.

Raji, black and white cat

Raji

bunny

Nephratiti

Nepheratiti was adopted. She was a grey and white lop eared bunny, who had no bottom teeth in the front.

2000 – 2002

Ms. Whynott and her, daughter, Rachelle Whynott attended Tufts Animal Expo (no longer being held) each year for continuing education courses in:

Dog Behavior – Dog Breed Characteristic Behaviors – Cat Genetics – Loss and Grief Counseling – Benefits of early neutering in cats and dogs – Shelter assessments of cats and dogs (A.D.O.P.T.) – Behavioral assessments – Business productivity – Business marketing – Prevention and management of cat diseases – Understanding cats: assessing, temperament, handling, and techniques – Enhancing a shelter environment for cats and dogs – The ins and outs of a better multi-cat household – Dogs that bite the hands that feed – Criteria for behaviorally healthy dogs – Promoting behavioral health through environmental enrichment – The basic nature of cats, who plays best with others – Intro to the Human-Animal bond and grief – Take me to your leader, understanding the dog’s need for leadership – How to run a safe doggy daycare – Behavior Knowledge – Positive reinforcement training – Loss and grief, a footprint for mourning – Cat clicker training – Clicker training to shape behavior – Humane education that makes a difference – AKC good citizen program – Animal cognition and its role in behavior – Overview of feline nutrition –

Sazar

Sazar

2000

Sazar and Desilu were rescued from a barn in Mason, NH. A friend of Dori’s, called her about these kittens in fear of them being harmed. Miss Desilu had no fear and would walk up and rub on the horses’ legs at 5 weeks of age. People who worked at this barn feared that they would find the kittens crushed if one of the horses had a mis-step.

2001

Dorinne learned of a new product that was installed on top of an existing fence, to discourage cats from getting out of a fenced in yard. She installed this cat fence to allow all the cats to play outside, yet keep them safe. This has been a wonderful product that has worked beautifully for many years.

Sazar

Desilu

Ricky 2, black & white kitty

Ricky

Spanky kitty with hat closeup

Spanky with his favorite toy on his head !!

In the very cold month of early April, Ms. Whynott was made aware of 30 cats and kittens in a cold trailer, with no heat, no water, no food and living in filth, urine and feces. Read more about Ricky in our article – Ricky, my Soul Kitty.

She organized and carried out the rescue. To read more, go to case studies. This is where she obtained Ricky, Lulu and Spanky. Ricky being her sole kitty…

Lulu, black and white cat

Lulu

2003

Sazar had major surgery to remove a long piece of invisible nylon thread wrapped around his tongue and going through his entire system to somewhere in the intestines. Ms. Whynott’s previous employer, Dr. Conti performed the much needed surgery successfully. This is one very good reason, to always watch your pets, know how much they are eating at every feeding. This may mean that you need to stop free feeding (which most veterinarians advise) and feed once in the morning and once in the evening. The only way Dori knew that some thing was wrong is because he stopped eating and this is a cat that LOVES to eat. Please watch your cats. To this day, the source of the nylon thread is unknown, which is scary.

2004

Ms. Whynott’s daughter, Rachelle graduated from Nashua High School with honors. Rachelle is responsible for the payroll of Professional Pet Sitting, Etc. Rachelle started college in the fall at Rivier College (see 2008 for graduation).

2005 – 2006:

Ms. Whynott completed two courses, Strategic Thinking and Business Planning and Executive Leadership Action Plan with Strategic Directions, LLC and has written her Business Plan to help aid in the progress of the Animal Center and Professional Pet Sitting Etc. Ms. Whynott also completed courses in The doggie daycare business, How to own and operate a dog daycare and The boarding kennel business.

With the horrors of Hurricane Katrina in the past, Ms. Whynott was devastated by the lack of preparedness for animals (and people) in a disaster situation, she read as many books and articles she could find on the subject. She sought out and completed as many educational outlets on the subject as she could find. She then wrote her own article on Disaster planning for you and your pets, which you can view on this web site.

Ms. Whynott obtained certification in the following:

Animal Emergency Services Training by American Humane Association

Disaster Animal Response by Humane Society of the United States

Emergency Animal Sheltering by Humane Society of the United States

National Incident Management System by FEMA

Animals in Disaster, Awareness and Preparedness by FEMA

Animals in Disaster, Community Planning by FEMA

A Citizen’s Guide to Disaster Assistance by FEMA

Ms. Whynott was asked to be the team leader for the greater Nashua area for

NH Disaster Animal Response Team.

Linus, tiger and white cat in snow

Linus

2005

One of Dori’s best friends became aware of four 10 day old kittens needing help. Dori adopted and added two to the family, bringing the number of kitties in the house to 10! Felice (lilac point Tonkinese mix, spayed female) and Linus (DSH, brown tabby with white, neutered male) are the new additions.

Felice, lilac point tonkinese cat in garden

Felice

This is also the time that Dorinne started to think about evacuating her own animals. How would she round up 10 cats, which includes 2 feral-like that run if they know you want them? Especially since a couple of them were not fond of carriers, in fact Danny would stress out so much in a carrier that in the 15 minutes it took to drive to the animal hospital, he would have his nose completely scraped up and bloody trying to get out….So, the first thing would be to get them used to carriers. A set up of 10 carriers, 3 across, 3 high with the 10th one on the very top, 4 foot boards were placed in between the rows, to steady all the carriers. Each carrier was labeled with each cat’s name, description and date of birth (in case evacuation led to cat’s being housed away from owner). The easiest way to get any animal used to something generally is food. So, this would be used for all feeding. A special call (command) would be used, so that when it is pronounced, all the cats knew that food was coming. On the first few days, it was a bit chaotic, the cats did not know where to go or what to do. Each cat was methodically placed in the appropriate crate, then given food and the door closed. Very surprisingly, it only took a few days before most of the cats would quickly jump into their crate and be standing in it waiting to be fed. In feeding this way, it was found that each cat would get the appropriate measured amount of food, each cat could be fed a different food if needed (for any cat with medical conditions or food allergies), each cat could be monitored for food intake (thus a cat not feeling well would be noticed immediately), each cat was eating slower (no competing cat hurrying to eat neighbor’s food), no cat was vomiting up food (due to eating too fast before another cat barges in), AND they were all calm and happy in the crates. They were left in for about 15 minutes and then up to 30 minutes. When they finish eating, they just curl up and go to sleep. No more stressed cats in crates and they were all running for feeding time, jumping into the RIGHT crates. Feeding 10 cats used to be a frenzy and now it is simple, calm, fast, healthy and if evacuation was needed, all 10 cats could be crated in 3 minutes, even the 2 feral-like!!!

Dorinne Whynott and Rachelle Whynott completed a UNH course for certification of Animal Cruelty: NH Laws, Investigations and Prosecution to become Animal Abuse Investigators.

Fudge passed away in October. He would have been 16 years old in January!

2006:

Another rescue of a cat (named Raina), who apparently was thrown from a car window just before exit 4, southbound on the Everett Turnpike, Nashua. (Read more in Meet the Cats We have Helped).

Ms. Whynott’s daughter, Rachelle, turned 21 and is now officially a pet sitter, since all pet sitters must be 21 years old and older. Rachelle also is responsible for various office duties along with payroll, as mentioned earlier.

2007:

Ms. Whynott acquired a wonderful silent investor/grantor and animal lover, who was impressed with her business plan and wanted to assist with her spectacular vision to help all animals. She started her search for a unique property to expand Professional Pet Sitting Etc. to the Animal Care & Education Center of NH. Shortly there after, this angelic investor had a devastating family tragedy and had to back out.

Note: We are looking for a replacement silent investor/grantor who loves animals, is interested in a vision to help make a difference in the lives of all animals and possibly the people who love them….

Ms. Whynott was asked to be a consultant to the Humane Society of Greater Nashua.

2008:

Ms. Whynott’s daughter, Rachelle, graduated from Rivier College with her Bachelor’s degree of Science, majoring in Biology, minors in chemistry, psychology and women’s studies. Rachelle will be working full time at PPSE, learning all aspects of the business and adding new services. Her long term goal will be to finish her veterinary studies after a break. Rachelle comes to the business with life long experience growing up handling all kinds of animals, abuse cases, rescues, wildlife and obedience training.

Rachelle and Dorinne took a continuing education certificate course on “Mega Dog Daycare”. A great course teaching dog handling, daycare specifics, reading dog body language, etc.

2009:

Dorinne has taken courses in living green.  We moved to a better location so as to help with the continued growth of Prof. Pet Sitting Etc, its employees and personally.

Ms. Whynott was able to purchase a large building with much room to grow for the company and her ever growing number of rescues.

2010:

Dorinne is currently working on the space for the office and developing training courses for employees.  We moved into our new forever home and office.  Putting up a new cat fence for all our kitties to get fresh air and sunshine but to still be safe.  We will be getting a new Siberian Husky to join our family soon.

Tex passed away of Kidney disease.

2011 – 2012:

Raji passed away of Intestinal Lymphoma Cancer.  Raji contracted one of the most fast acting cancers.  He was gone shortly after his diagnosis.

Dorinne constructed a bird feeding station.  To date we have the usual finches, jays, sparrows but have seen woodpeckers, indigo buntings and catbirds at the feeders.

Talks of getting a new Siberian Husky to join the family are happening !!

Fostering – started fostering orphaned and abandoned kittens forManchester Animal Shelter.  Fostered Je T’aime (adopted) and Gus Bennett

Adopted Gus Bennett (read his story here).  He just jumped into my heart as soon as Manchester Animal Shelter placed him in my arms to foster!

2013:

Petsittingology Pet Sitting Conference in Las Vegas !!

At the conference, we heard many great amazing speakers and got to Meet Marcus Sheriden of the Sales Lion (one word – AWESOME).  Learned more about social media, SEO, marketing and animal behavior.

Spanky, black and white cat closeup

Spanky

2014

Spanky passed away of Nasal Cancer.  After a long 6 months of tests and going to Tufts, Spanky lost his battle with cancer.

After a year and a half of living with a family of kitties, Mystic attacked Linus, kitty. It was a serious attack with 12 puncture wounds and a $2000 vet bill.

Linus kitty after being attacked by dog

Linus
June 2014, after being attacked by Mystic (Henry).

Linus almost passed away but he survived and has healed completely.  Unfortunately, and with a heavy heart, for the safety of all, it was decided to rehome Mystic.  6 months after the attack on Linus and searching for a home, none of which were right for him, Mystic was returned to Marlena, who had rescued him. They had been working with Her to rehome and she decided, she would take Mystic to live with her and her Husky, Penny. This was one of the hardest things for Dorinne, to give up a beloved pet.

Having been in rescue, giving up an animal was extremely hard.  The safety and quality of life for all was the deciding factor.  A life lesson learned was that every situation is grey.  There is no such thing as black and white.  In order to help animals we must learn to help people.  In rescue, helping people, especially those who love animals, will always help the animals.  Listening and helping with compassion and empathy when in rescue or in any other animal profession, is the number one rule.

2014 was a hard year, losing two beloved animals, the trauma of Linus and a very ill family member (who wishes to be private) 

To make matters worse, one Sunday morning,  Dorinne woke up to find that her entirely website had been completely deleted due to a virus on the hosts server.  On the bright side, a NEW updated website was built by Dorinne !!!  It did take months but was accomplished.

Easier navigation, more information, lots of great pictures, videos.  The old website was completely deleted from the web by the host, after a virus infected their servers.  It was devastating,  since Dorinne had no idea what to do.  So, She did some research and taught herself on how to rebuild a website.  After two months of working around the clock, 7 days a week, the new website went live.  It is completely updated and does so much more.  There is lots of room for growth for years to come.

Lots and lots of educational articles were added to our blog list! Check out the article on Free Pets, it is eye opening.

Danny, kitty looking down

Danny

2015

We had to say good bye to our oldest kitty – Danny.  His health was failing due to kidney disease.

Lulu, black and white cat

Lulu

Signed up with the Humane Society for Greater Nashua to help the with fostering.

Re-Certified for Veterinary Assistant

Ricky and Lulu were taken to Radiocat to cure their thyroid disease with radiation.  Ricky came through with flying colors and is doing perfectly.

Lulu, unfortunately, succumbed to low platelets resulting in the high radiation dose that was given.  We are deeply saddened at the loss of our Lulu.

Bengals

Bowie, Jewel, Katniss

2016

I was called upon to once again foster for Manchester Animal Shelter.  Three young (5-6 months old) purebred Bengal cats were surrendered and they were not doing well with shelter life.  They had completely stopped eating and were just shaking and hiding.  I picked them up and started the long process of getting them relaxed and eating began.  They seemed to act like they were not handled very much or not at all.  They would cringe and back away at the foreign feeling of being touched, petted or held.   After a few months of rehabilitation, I decided to adopt all three.  So, April 2016, Jewel (snow bengal), Bowie (sepia bengal) and Katniss (brown bengal) became part of our family.

ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF A PROFESSIONAL PET SITTING BUSINESS

– Continuing Education

Petsittingology Professional Pet Sitting Business Conference for Continuing Education October 2016

Rachelle and Dorinne headed to the conference in Las Vegas, Nevada

Some great topics and Speakers

  • Understanding Dog Behavior
    • by Mikkel Becker (Daughter of Dr. Marty Becker)
    • Website
  • Master business Class
    • By Beth Cotrell
  • Centered Success
    • By Nicole Taggart
  • Conflict Resolution
  • Cancer Advances in Pets
    • by Dr. Sue Ettinger aka Dr. Sue Cancer Vet
    • Website
  • Social Media Success
    • by Danielle Lambert
  • Public Relations & How to Utilize it
    • by Charlie Gikey
  • Compassiona Fatigue in Pet Sitting
    • by Holly Cook
  • Money Mindset
    • by Aly Michaels (Anthony Robbins)
  • Grassroots Marketing
    • by Cindy Vet
  • Challenges in Business Growth
    • by Beth Greenberg
  • Panel Discussion on Making Professional Pet Sitting Certification Known with PSO, PSI and NAPPS

As part of the conference, we were treated to a professional photographer

Dorinne Whynott
October 24, 2016

Ricky

My Ricky, the love of my life

2017

The loss of my Ricky to cancer was VERY hard.

Please read his story – Ricky, my Soul Kitty

Then later that year, I also lost my Sazar with a severe intestinal infection.  My beautiful boy

Sazar

My beautiful Sazar

 

Petsittingology Professional Pet Sitting Business Conference for Continuing Education October 2017

Rachelle and Dorinne headed to the conference in Washington DC

Some Continuing Education topics – SEO and Marketing for business, Mastering Google, Dog and Cat Behavior workshops with Arden Moore and Jamie Migdal, Pet Sitting Business Masterclass

Arden Moore is author to many books and is a Master Certified Pet First Aid Instructor

Jamie Migdal is a multi Business Owner and Animal Behaviorist

2018 

Petsittingology Professional Pet Sitting Business Conference for Continuing Education October 2018

Rachelle and Dorinne headed to the conference in Las Vegas, Nevada

Some topics – Power Networking, you and Google, animal behavior, beyond pet first aid

Keynote speaker – Dr. Marty Becker!!

Dr. Marty Becker, “America’s Veterinarian,” has spent his life working toward better health for pets and the people who love them. He is the founder of Fear FreeSM, an initiative to “take the ‘pet’ out of ‘petrified’” and get pets back for veterinary visits by promoting considerate approach and gentle control techniques used in calming environments.

Dr. Becker was the resident veterinary contributor on “Good Morning America” for 17 years. He is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the American Humane Association as well as its Chief Veterinary Correspondent, a founding member of Core Team Oz for “The Dr. Oz Show,” and a member of the Dr. Oz Medical Advisory Panel.

He has written 25 books that have sold almost 8 million copies, including three New York Times best-sellers — one of which is the fastest-selling pet book of all time, Chicken Soup for the Pet-Lovers Soul. He has been a contributor to Parade magazine, Reader’s Digest and AARP.com. Animal Radio hosts him monthly as their Chief Veterinary Correspondent.

Ricky

Speaking with Dr. Marty Becker

Dr. Marty Becker

Rachelle, Dr. Marty Becker and Dorinne

We helped to create “Our Pet Sitter Song”!!!

Look closely, you will see Dorinne and Rachelle!

Thank you to Jason Waggs for the song, lyrics and great voice!

2019

It seemed like the best time to start thinking about the Animal Center.  Dori contacted a few real estate agents, who really did not help with finding any suitable buildings.

Finally, Lisa Ferrari of Prolman Real Estate was found.  Lisa was essential in finding quite a few buildings that we saw and researched.  However, none seemed to work for leasing.

Lisa then suggested we try to buy and everything fell into place once we found the Fallon’s Furniture building in Merrimack. In December 2019, we started working on obtaining this building for the Animal Care Center of NH.

2020

After many years of planning and searching, the dream of the Animal Care Center of NH was realized!

In May 2020 the 13,000 square foor building at 257 Daniel Webster Highway in Merrimack, NH was purchased.  

Roger Blais was our AMAZING General Contractor and created a building that was beyond was Dori had imagined.  It truly came out gorgeous.  Roger was essential in bringing in the businesses that we needed and getting us through all of the stages to our opening day. 

September 15, 2020

OPENING DAY

We had a very successful Open House, in spite of being in a Covid Pandemic.  

“In my PERFECT WORLD, there would be no need for humane societies or animal shelters, if we, as pet professionals, worked hard to educate the public in proper humane pet care. Then every pet would be wanted, healthy, safe and happy in a loving home for life and have us for a pet care provider!!”

Dorinne Whynott

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