Welcome to Mountain Pals

Mountain Pals Pet Sitting is the best choice for animal care in the Summit and Park County communities of Colorado. We provide pet care for the Alma, Fairplay, Breckenridge, Blue River, Frisco, Dillon, Silverthorne and Keystone areas. We are an in home boarding facility where we specialize in mountain exercise and lots of love. It’s like the canine adventure camp your active and off leash trained dog has always been looking for.

Happy dogs are tired dogs!

Our Services

OVER NIGHT DOG BOARDING/DAY CARE

Mountain Pals offers boarding and day care for your canine companion in a home environment. Dogs who thrive off-leash our most common guest as the terrain isn’t as leash friendly up here in the mountains as it may be in the flat lands.

Dogs enjoy a long walk each day (time depending on their energy levels). Dogs who need leashes get the same treatment, we just modify where we go so they don’t get tangled in the trees. (We only take a very limited amount of dogs that require leashes and genrally only small dogs.)

Every day is different so we can cater to the health and happiness of each animal in our care.

If your family is blessed with a new puppy, day care is a great way to give pups the consistent training and exercise needed to:

  • Minimize their destructive behavior at home.
  • Avoid household accidents and become house broken sooner.
  • Get a good night’s sleep. A tired puppy is a well-behaved puppy who is more responsive to learning good manners.

THE MEET AND GREET

We require a “Meet and Greet” before your first scheduled drop-off day to learn about your dog’s social skills with help from our resident canine Ethan, and to give you a tour of the home where your dog will be staying. We can also provide animal transport from your house to our mountain adventures in a new 2019 Dodge 2500 Ram we’ve specially tricked out for canine comfort and is a Colorado state approved and licensed animal transport vehicle.

CARE FOR SPECIAL NEEDS AND GERIATRICS

Rebecca Cardennis, founder and owner of Mountain Pals, began working with animals in California shelters, where she learned valuable positive reinforcement and behavior training. Next, she honed her skills for several years as a Veterinary Technician in numerous specialty practices. Animals are very special to her, and she provides them with high quality care when they’re under her roof. She is skilled in administering treatments from SQ fluids to injections. If your animal has special needs that require medication, a nurturing caregiver with a medical background is ideal. We take special care of geriatrics, so no worries there. They do need to be able to do 15 steep stairs to get in and out of the house.

At Mountain Pals, animals generally don’t spend time in kennels, they are treated like members of the family, just like they are in your own home. If any dog needs time alone, we have a couple of large crates handy, but those are usually only for those that “need” them.

PICK UP AND DELIVERY

We understand that coming over from Summit County to Alma is sometimes hard depending on your travel direction. For a small $20.00 fee each way, we offer pick-up before you leave or drop-off once you are home. (we prefer to know that you have at least landed safely before dropping any dog at home incase that you may be delayed) Our 2019 Dodge 2500 is 4×4 enabled so Mountain Pals can travel when needed in rain, sleet, or snow.

OBEDIENCE TRAINING

Mountain Pals will always work towards improving your pet’s manners by the end of each day in our care. Rebecca, trained with world-renowned dog trainer Ian Dunbar, the creator of the “Puppy Kindergarten” concept and positive reinforcement techniques now used by shelters around the country. We always use positive reinforcement methods. Let us help them practice their Sits, Stays, and Rollovers and of course work on their off-leash hiking skils while you are at work!

Does your dog have any sensitivities? We will dedicate some one-on-one time to you and your pup, teaching you how to help him behave in the way he potentially can. Your whole family, canine included, will enjoy a more fulfilling life by knowing one another’s boundaries.

CATS/SMALL ANIMAL VISITS AT YOUR HOME

Mountain Pals also visits felines and other small animals, including exotics, in their home environments where we believe they do best. We can visit once a day, or as needed, to make sure they are happy and getting proper attention.

Prices

Here at Mountain Pals we do not charge by the hour or do we have half days. A day is a day and a night is a night. If home before 9am (either picked up or dropped off, then there is no last day charge). I am with your dog 24/day and night. We don’t have private suites or kennels they sit in all night alone. Mountain Pals, is a Colorado state licensed kennel but we are not a kennel, we are home. Your dog gets a comfy couch, a warm fire and a person 24/7 to give them lots of love. Mountain Pals is not a “traditional” kennel. Your dog is treated like my own dog Ethan in every way. My clients are family.

We accept Cash, Personal Check, Credit Cards, Paypal, Zelle and our current favorite Venmo. (Why pay fees if you’d don’t have to. Fees raise consumer prices.)

  • 1 Dog Day Care = $50
  • 2 Dogs Day Care = $70
  • 3 Dogs Day Care = $90
  • 4 Dogs=$110

  • 1 Dog Over Night Care = $60
  • 2 Dogs Over Night Care = $90
  • 3 Dogs Over Night Care = $120
  • 4 Dogs Over Night=$140

  • Pickup or Delivery = $20/each way

Here is an example of pricing for 1 dog Friday-Monday (pm) = 3(nights)x60+50(last day)+(pickup and delivery from  Alma to home )40= $230

I will happily give you a total before your stay. We accept, Cash, In State Checks, All major credit cards (processed through Square), Paypal, Venmo, Zelle and Popmoney at this time.


For kitties or small animal visits we only charge 30/visit and generally only stick the the immediate area around Alma for those visits (Alma, Blue River, Fairplay). Unless, your kitty or small animal only needs a visit every couple days, then we are happy accommodate your needs as far as Frisco. Cats, will be fed, water changed and litter box cleaned. A happy cat is a clean cat.

About

THE MOUNTAIN PALS MISSION

At Mountain Pals, our mission is to provide the best pet care in Park and Summit County community. With a balance of attention, socialization, and exercise, we help all animals be as happy and healthy as possible. Owner Rebecca Cardennis has worked for over a decade as a Veterinarian Technician and animal behaviorist. She specializes in geriatrics and special needs animals, and has many years of experience with dogs, cats, and exotics. We also visit dogs who can’t be around other animals in their homes, and absolutely love cats!

Canines in our care stay in a home facility, which means your dog won’t spend endless nights in a cold, dark kennel with only periodic attention. He’ll enjoy a home environment where he’ll be less stressed while you’re away. Stress negatively impacts animal immune systems just like ours, and they become more prone to to illness. No animals have become sick after staying with us in our loving home, where we enjoy dog movies together and give everyone’s pet lots of hugs.

Our mantra at Mountain Pals is “A Tired Dog is a Good Dog,” which is one of Rebecca’s secrets to managing many dogs with very little drama. We have never had injuries or a case of Kennel Cough in the 5+ years we’ve been in operation. Dogs who stay in a home environment receive more attention and suffer less anxiety and stress while their people are away. A stay with Mountain Pals is a vacation for dogs, too, not just their owners!

MOUNTAIN PALS HISTORY

Rebecca and her partner in this business Ethan TornadoMountain Pals first came to fruition when Rebecca adopted Maize, her big orange dog, from the Berkeley Humane Society. At the time, she was a Vet Tech, a job that generally affords ample opportunity for pet sitting. However, she was disappointed she couldn’t provide the animals in her care all the attention they needed. Owners returned home from five to ten day vacations to hyper dogs who were desperate for exercise and attention–bathroom breaks weren’t enough to keep them healthy and happy.

When Rebecca moved to Park County, she vowed to level up and become the pet sitter she wanted as a loving dog owner. She knows first-hand that reuniting after long trips is more enjoyable for owners and animals when dogs are relaxed, happy, and well-exercised by a sitter who cares for them as her own. In turn, owners can enjoy vacations knowing their dogs are receiving the attention they deserve. Mountain Pals offers guilt-free care for everyone.

THE DAILY ROUTINE

Each day usually starts at about 6:30am with breakfast and potty breaks in our fenced in yard. At this time, medication and treatments are administered to dogs in need.

After breakfast, everyone climbs aboard our specially modified truck for a mid-morning mountain walk. These are our primary form of exercise, and our mountain adventure lasts anywhere from 1 to 4 hours depending on the size and activity needs of each day’s group. Mixing young and mature animals invigorates older dogs to new energy levels, who gift pups with their experience in return. Park County has a wide variety of places to explore for all dogs, so no one is left behind.

After our walk, the whole gang returns to the house. As long as there are no food-aggressive dogs, everybody gets a couple of health carrots to enjoy for the afternoon. Dogs lounge anywhere they want, including laying in the sun in the yard or on the deck, or they pile on the couch. This is a dog-friendly house to the extreme.

Dinner is between 4-6pm, then we all hang out until bedtime.

THE HOME

Mountain Pals, is based in a three-level mountain home. The ground level is where all food is kept away from curious noses (All dogs food need to be supplied by the owner and contained in a plastic/critter proof container)  at ground level that is surrounded by an 8 foot tall fenced in yard. The main living level, is accessed via stairs to a deck where pups can sun themselves after their walk. (Because of the steep mountain house stairs dogs do need to be physically able to do the stairs on their own or they are not good candidates for Mountain Pals.) The living room is where all the main action happens. Dogs spend most of their time after walks on the main level lounging on various dog beds, the couch, or under the kitchen table, where ever they feel the most comfortable. We keep the main living room under-furnished to make way for doggy wrestling and antics at all times.

ANIMAL RESIDENTS


Our resident dog’s name is Ethan Tornado aka E.T. We only have 1 dog of our own and he is a full on partner in this business with us. Ethan is a 14 year old (going on 7 year old) Lab/Pointer mix, who is very well socialized and has been Rebecca’s partner in this business since the original Mountain Pal, Maize passed away in 2014 of bone cancer. (all the orange dogs on this page are modeled after my beloved Maize Dog. The cat in our logo was also one of our own pets, Pander. Maize and Pander (Mountain Pals) We were are all saddened by the news of Maize’s cancer but I can honestly say I gave him the best dogs life for 14.5 years and it lead me to creating this business in 2001 so he would have as many pals as possible for his entire life.

With the adoption of Ethan at the age of 5 now 8 our team has kept going. We all need a partner and Ethan has had some big paws to fill but has done wonderfully as a canine mentor,  to the dogs that come through our doors.

MEET AND GREETS

All dogs are required to meet with Ethan before their first stay. This is so Rebecca and Ethan can gauge their social skills to insure Mountain Pals is a good fit. Before your dog’s first drop-off, please schedule an appointment for a meet and greet at a convenient time so she can assess your dog’s sociability and discuss any special needs. Meet and greets in the afternoon if possible, after after all the other dogs have been out for their walk.

You will also have the opportunity to see where your dog will enjoy his time away from home, which we feel is very important for owners to be aware of. We do not take short notice reservations without all requirements being met. (required mountain pals intake form, proof of vaccinations up to date and meet and greet.

Contact Us

The best way to contact Mountain Pals is to just text us (303-507-2002).  If you insist on email, we have provided you with a form below. If for some reason, this form is not being corporative you can email your request to info@mountainpals.com. I find this form to be a bit of a pain sometimes and I’ve fixed it so many times I feel that it needs this disclaimer. Taking care of the dogs is a lot more important than a website form. 🙂

Happy Tails!

-Management and Ethan

Contact Form

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