I’m Val – a dog whisperer

I bring decades of successful experience providing dog behavioral training, obedience training, puppy training, pet sitting and much more to clients in the Carmel, Pebble Beach, Monterey and Pacific Grove communities.

I have a passion for helping animals and their owners and am committed to delivering exceptional training results for you and your dog. I use balanced training techniques to build your dog’s confidence, trust, and good behavior while addressing any behavioral issues they may have.

Dog Behavioral and Obedience Training

All dogs need some form of training and education. I focus on behavioral training – teaching your dog proper behavior in each situation – via effective communication between humans and canines. Based on respect and compassion, my approach allows you to keep your dogs safe and secure.

Puppy Training

My puppy training gives you everything you need to successfully train your puppy at home, including how best to deal with the many common problems that occur in the first six months. It should be started a few days after your puppy has settled into their new home.

Pet Sitting

I provide daily pet visits for cats, dogs and other small animals throughout the Monterey area. I am also available for select overnight pet sitting. With years of experience, you will know that your pets will be safe and in good hands.

From my customers …

I hired Val to walk my doberman a couple of days a week. Val has helped me tremendously training my dog to be a better walker and has incredible knowledge when it comes to aggressive breeds that need extra training. My dog instantly took to her (which is very unusual) and has taught her to walk without pulling and distractions. Val goes above and beyond and truly cares. She also helped socialize my dog by introducing her to different people and situations. I highly recommend Val to anyone who is searching for a pet walker, pet sitter, or dog trainer. She does it all. She is also incredibly responsible and very prompt which is a huge plus for me.

Val was terrific! She has a great understanding of dogs. Our puppy was very difficult and Val had a great way of training our puppy in 2 visits.

A bit about me

I am a Dog Whisperer. I have worked with other animals but at this time I am concentrating on dogs. I have been working with animals for 45 years.

Here is a little history about me. I grew up in Carmel, California. My father Dr. V.J. Marasco was a veterinarian and operated Carmel-by the-Sea Veterinary Hospital for over 50 years.

All of my life, I have been around animals either working for my father, assisting him in treating them, or working on my own with animals who have behavioral problems. I have been given a gift to understand and connect with animals.

I owned a Saluki (dog). Her name was Fazia, and at the age of 4, she earned her lure courser of merit certificate. The breeders I bought her from had not had one of their dogs ever win this in the 25 years of breeding. I accomplished this in one year of racing her. She was fourth in the nation with the American Sighthound Field Association that year. Granted she was fast but lure coursing is a race in an open field and is a zig zag course and most dogs try to cut across the course to catch the lure, which would disqualify them so there is a lot of time and training put into this.

I realized my passion and purpose in life is to work with animals, especially ones with behavioral problems. Behavioral problems stem from people not understanding the dog’s role and purpose that would fulfill them and bring harmony to the pack (family). This is explained further under my dog training philosophy.

At the age of 15, I was an accomplished equestrian rider competing in the Carmel area. With very little training, I took a 5-year-old mare named Sure Enough and, after one year of working with her, won the Pebble Beach Classic Horse Show. This was only the 3rd show I had been in. This event brings elite riders from all over to participate in this event. It consists of 5 days of competition, and out of a group of 25 entered I won the event. Generally, the training would take many years for the common competitor to compete on this level, let alone win it.

As a side note, I graduated from Law School and earned my doctorate in Law.

CALL OR TEXT TODAY!
(916) 521-2195

My connection to the communities in the Carmel and Monterey area is deep. My work is guaranteed, my goal is to have happy people and happy pets. – Val