Vicky "Bersie" L.'s Profile

I had the good luck of meeting Michaela at Crissy Field, where my dog and I were romping around one morning.  She had a wide range of dogs in her group, and when my pup wanted to play with every single one of her dogs (including Violet, THE most adorable little pug in the world), I asked her what her dog walking business was called so I could Yelp her when I got home.

She gave me her card and told me that she actually isn't a "dog walker," but instead more like a doggy daycare, since all her dogs are out playing for 4 hours (not including travel time).  They spend a few hours at Crissy Field, then head to Golden Gate Park for the rest of the afternoon after a short break.

This seemed too good to be true, so I asked her about pricing, and she said that for 1-3 days a week it was $25/day, and for 4-5 days it was $20/day.

She's really great with all the dogs - she uses positive reinforcement and is never harsh with the dogs when they play too rough.  My cowardly dog is now wading elbow-deep into the ocean, whereas before he met her, he'd run away from the waves.  She's also helping with his recall, and I must admit that he's better at coming back when called.

Michaela also calls and lets me know how Huckleberry did during the outing, and who he played with (Violet is now his new BFF, and she's probably the size of his head).  Huckleberry is excited to go for his daytime outing now, and he comes back clean (even after playing in Crissy Field).

Best of all, my dog is TIRED when he gets home, and he's almost NEVER tired.  Actually, he's more than tired; he's exhausted and absolutely pooped.  She picks him up around 9 AM, and drops him off around 4 PM.  For $25/day, you can't go wrong.

So, thank you thank you thank you for being able to wear out my energetic labradoodle for $25/day!

An open letter to the management at One Rincon Hill:

You'll notice that this "review update" only has two stars, which is stark in contrast to my previous review of four stars.  Why, you ask?  Let me give you a piece of my mind.  If you have time from your busy day of "taking care of your residents," that is.

Lindsay P. hit it spot on when she said that this "dog-friendly" building is anything but dog-friendly.  It's ridiculous that we have to walk our dogs down the hill and down another block to have them stand on gravel, which my dog absolutely hates.  When it's hot outside, the stench is unbearable, as the smells from previous dogs' waste waft up into the air.  I understand you want to keep your lawns nice and pretty, but I'm sorry, I'm paying upwards of $700+ for my monthly HOA dues, and you can take some of that precious money and use it to replace the grass every so often.

The manager approached me today when she saw my dog (a 70-lb lab mix) water the wood chips on the hill (there used to be a plant or something there, but it was gone, and so it was basically just dirt that he lifted his leg on).  She told me to "make sure" my dog made it down the block to go to the bathroom.

When I first moved in, one of the front desk agents told me, in a very unfriendly manner, that dogs were not allowed in the front lobby area, or else.  Huh.  Really now.

Honestly, I'd like to see you fine me and the other dog owners for making the poor choice of living at ORH and not dragging our beloved pooches down the windy hill to get to the "waste spot."  You can't even be bothered to put in a patch of grass anywhere just for dogs, yet you're just so "pet-friendly" and "love to meet" our dogs, right?  When my dog has to go, he has to go.  I'm not going to stop his piss mid-stream to pull the poor thing down a block and a half to let him finish his potty.  It's not that I purposely let him out there, because your plants aren't even good enough for him most of the time.  He prefers a nice patch of real grass down at the Embarcadero.

In case you're wondering why I (and others, obviously) am making a big deal about this, it's probably because you don't have a pet.  Our dogs are our babies.  It's a dog-owner thing that non-animal lovers just don't understand.

One more thing:  there's one front desk agent who is an absolute piehole.  Despite numerous complaints by numerous residents to the management, he's still there (I'm pretty sure he's the lazy, stuck-up staff that Lindsay P. is describing).  Real caring and attentive, that management staff.  They're definitely good listeners.

As soon as I get the chance, I'm moving out of this uptight high-rise dump and into a real "home."