animal caretaker

veterinary technician

receptionist

dog daycare attendant

veterinary assistant

Destination Pet, LLC

Working at DP is incredibly fast-paced and the expectation to outdo yourself daily comes with little to no actual support from upper management. No matter where you fall in the 'pack', you are on your own. My first role I was working directly with customers and their pets in a center. If you're in a similar position, brace yourself for constant short staffing - either from a complete failure to hire or a laughable retention rate - and don’t expect your requests for help to go anywhere. You’ll be strung along with promises of budget availability or that a bid is out, but nothing will happen unless you keep begging. Good luck getting the training you need for managing groups of high-energy dogs or how to prevent fights; it's likely to be nonexistent. 

Forget about a stable management presence at the center level. DP stopped prioritizing pet industry experience for its managers, favoring people with general business knowledge over people who actually know how to handle animals or practice medicine. On the rare occasion you get someone with the right experience, they’re likely running multiple centers because, unsurprisingly, turnover is through the roof. So even if you find a decent manager, you’re unlikely to get the attention you, your customers, or their pets deserve. It's not fair to anyone!

My second position involved scheduling and fielding calls for a handful of locations, and although I had the benefit of working remotely, I quickly realized I was doing more harm than good. Communication between centers was abysmal  - policies, scheduling, daycare sales - none of it was consistent, and I was left with the mess of figuring out how my job should work. I had to teach myself how to streamline operations by physically working at locations to get even the slightest handle on things. Then, after the program had been expanded to almost 15 employees across multiple districts, DP outsourced scheduling to a third-party company, bringing back all the original problems of the customer contact being disconnected from the actual centers. They learned nothing from the work myself and others did in order to build them an internal guest specialist department and employees were thrown to the wolves and demoted.

By the time I moved to my third position, I was beyond disillusioned. Once again, I had no direct manager for most of my time there and had to train myself entirely. And here’s the kicker: I went without a single cost-of-living raise or merit-based increase for two years. Two years! I repeatedly requested 1-on-1 meetings with the department director, and I was consistently ignored or told it wasn't the right time. Miracles do happen though! Before the then-current director transitioned to a different position themselves, I was given something like a $1.50-$2.00/hr raise a month before I was laid off, so perhaps expect the same treatment if you've been working without a raise and are suddenly recognized!

Why did I stay? Because my role involved training centers on DP's app and wellness plans, and supporting customers through the countless issues they faced with both. I took too much pride in doing my job well and trying to help people who needed it, even if DP couldn’t care less. The app rollout was a complete disaster. It overwhelmed staff and customers alike, leaving a yellow-tinted stain on DP’s reputation that I don't think enzyme-based cleaners will remove. Requests for training, questions about functionality, and issues with the platform were all shoved aside in favor of rolling out the next half-baked 'update' or forcing more centers to work with the app. The app itself is built on an embarrassingly limited infrastructure, incapable of even basic scheduling functions, let alone communicating with veterinary software. It’s still the company's biggest flaw, and both customers and employees have seen through the company’s empty promises about how it's supposed to "save on vet bills." No one believes it, because no one wants the headache that comes with the program.

DP had the chance to lead the industry with their app and wellness plans, but they didn’t care about being the best - they just wanted to be the first. What they delivered was half-baked, poorly received, and impossible to train others on, leaving me to struggle through endless sessions of “building the plane as we’re flying it.” That phrase became a mantra, and it perfectly captures the chaos and nonchalantness that defines DP's operations across the board.

DP doesn't hire for competency, as anyone could see by glancing at the lineup of executives and managers. DP has become a stepping stone for C-Suite surfers to build their salary, and their complete lack of experience in the pet industry speaks volumes about the company’s priorities. They don't care about pets, pet parents or employees, and the only top dog in their mind is Profit. 

What is the best part of working at the company?
The work environment has been challenging due to perceived favoritism in management and inconsistent treatment of employees. There appears to be unequal opportunities and decision-making that may not be applied fairly across all staff. This has impacted morale and created concerns about workplace equity and professionalism

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The workplace is highly stressful and has begun to affect my physical well-being. There are ongoing concerns regarding unethical practices, including inappropriate handling of customer payments, frequent negative talk about clients and coworkers, and poor treatment of animals in their care. Overall, the environment feels unprofessional and harmful

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
This company has a concerning workplace culture that feels unprofessional and inconsistent in how staff and responsibilities are managed. There are ongoing issues with communication, accountability, and overall morale. In addition, there are serious concerns about the standards of care provided to pets, which is particularly troubling given the nature of the work. Overall, the environment does not reflect the level of professionalism or ethical responsibility expected in an animal care setting

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
The day may start with unclear communication or shifting expectations from management, leaving staff unsure of priorities. Throughout the shift, favoritism may influence who receives help, better assignments, or support, while others are left to handle heavier workloads or more stressful tasks. The overall atmosphere may feel negative, with frequent gossip, criticism, or unprofessional conversations that affect morale.

In a pet-care setting, this could also mean inconsistent standards in how animals are handled or cared for, with less attention given during busy or poorly supervised periods. Staff may feel pressured to focus on speed over quality, especially if financial concerns or customer transactions are handled poorly or inconsistently. This can create additional stress, especially when employees feel unable to speak up or address concerns safely.

By the end of the day, it’s common in environments like this for employees to feel mentally and physically drained due to constant stress, lack of support, and the emotional strain of working in a setting that doesn’t feel stable or ethical.

So this job was.. interesting. I had been planning on going to vet school for years and thought this would be a good job to get while i'm studying. I was wrong. The amount of pure anguish and unrealistic expectations was insane. I was given my shift hours every week, never the same as the one before so I never had the flexibility to have a life. Speaking of those hours, never accurate. Not a single day I worked there did I get to clock out relatively close to the end of my shift. We had a large list for morning and afternoon shift, the shift working would have to complete the corresponding list before they can clock out. This means that if none of your coworkers want to do any work for most of the day or are just being slow/lazy, you won't get out until hours after your shift "ended". And no, there is no overtime pay. All employees also had to work holidays, not just a few, not the majority, ALL holidays. This means Christmas Eve, Christmas, New Years Eve, New Years day, Valentines Day, Easter, Etc. It was terrible. It got to the point where I wasn't able to walk due to my feet being so swollen and bruised. Every night I would have to soak my feet in boiling hot water with pain relief epsom salts to just make it to my bed. As for management, one of the managers was nice and pretty relaxed. The other was TERRIBLE. She once screamed at me and gave me a lecture about showing up SIX minutes after my shift started on CHRISTMAS EVE. Hated her. The best part of this job was spending time with the cats since they had their own separate room that was always quiet and had a big window. I absolutely love animals and have worked with them for years professionally, but this was by far one of the worst experiences I ever had working somewhere. They also told me my starting ay would be $10 and moved up to $15 after the first 3 months, nope. Started me at $8 without telling me and by the time I quit was STILL getting $8/hour. 

This entire experience has honestly turned me against going to vet school. Who knows, maybe I still will, but this job sure did a good job convincing me not to. 

The only half okay thing was that I felt pretty secure in my job. So many people quit in the first month that they don't seem to really fire anyone.

If you're looking for a fun, safe, professional or organized place to work, Destination Pet isn't the place for you. The corporate management is atrocious, expecting the facility to house twice its capacity by squeezing dogs into crates for the night just to make a few extra bucks. The assistant managers will do almost nothing but sit on their phones whilst yelling across the building for someone to come and help them with something, by which I mean do it for them and will often leave early making jokes about how they are salary employees and get paid whether they work or not. They also have a habit of talking about people behind their back, swearing and yelling at people. and making fun of other workers for their weight. Most of the employees don't do their jobs and will sit around waiting for someone else to do it for them but they're quite happy to take credit for the few good employee's work. Corporate management will not tell aggressive dogs that they can't come back even after they have severely injured several employees because they care more about making money off of one customer than they do the safety of their employees. Getting bitten is common. Advancement is almost nonexistent and when someone is promoted it is only because they are friends with someone higher up, not because they deserve it. Instead of paying for facility upkeep for the comfort and safety of the dogs and workers corporate sets aside a budget to give commissions to people signing up customers for more services that they don't need, something only receptionists and assistant managers can do. Company lies about outbreaks of kennel cough and oral papillomas that can be transmitted to other dogs in the facility so they can keep dogs coming and making them more money. They even instruct employees not to tell customers about those illnesses. 

When I began my employment for Bark! it was privately owned. It was an amazing place to work despite the minimum wage pay and not having benefits. The owner cared for the staff and most importantly the dogs in her care. Immediately after corporate (Destination Pet) moved in the quality of care for the dogs and the employees drastically decreased. I stayed on as long as I did because of my love for the dogs. However, there is no life/work balance as a manager. Managers are expected to work 60+ hours a week with little compensation. I received two "bonuses" while working there which barely totaled $100 combined. When asked for a raise the regional manager said yes but I never received a raise. I was never given an explanation why. Regional managers provide little support and don't actually reside in the states they supervise. Every 6 months or so she would make an appearance. She has little knowledge or understanding of the day-today operations and even once admitted having NO idea of what we did at Bark. At one point a dog was injured and we sought medical attention. With no emergency procedures in place we took the pet to a local vet to receive the care he needed. When I notified my regional manager her concern wasn't for the pet but rather the cost of the vet visit (secondary in my opinion).  Destination Pet eventually covered the cost of the vet bill but it became increasingly obvious where their priorities were. In the 2+ years I was employed by Destination Pet, our location had FIVE different regional managers, THREE different general managers, and FOUR different assistant managers including myself. This shows how little job security there is.

Money driven, they don't care about your pet or their employees AT ALL. Numerous hazards for employees and pets. Some boarding rooms were easy for dogs to chew apart, which many did. They easily tore huge chunks of wood out of the walls and doors, and this hazardous problem was NEVER addressed, let alone corrected. Also, half the boarding facilities had NO drainage. They cut so many corners putting the place together that in less than a year's time, the ceiling leaked all over the retail shelves, and there were THREE places where the plumbing leaked through the walls. Again, the issue with the walls was never corrected. Employees were NOT initially instructed on what not to do regarding touching/petting animals being admitted into the hospital side of the facility, resulting in a potential spread of Parvo.
Management was a total joke. They did nothing to address any serious issues, such as what I've already mentioned, but also including things like other employees being lazy and not cleaning/disinfecting equipment or dog bathing facilities. The management simply let the lazy employees slide and instead viewed those of us who would complain about it as rabble rousers. Upper management was even worse. They refused to pay for repairs on the building's multiple issues, instead opting to pay to have the retail area rearranged by a glorified interior decorator for a month and a half so it'd look pretty.
Easily one of the worst places I've ever worked.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The dogs are the only thing in that place worth staying for.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The management is chaotic and all over the place with no clear direction. Your concerns are never actively listened to or just neglected and tossed aside. You get told to do something specifically then get reprimanded for doing exactly what you've been told. Again management gives you little to no support and besides working with the dogs you're in a state of constant stress. There is no communication or feedback on performance, but if management does not like you or you try to add diversity, you will be written up without any discussions on the matter and targeted until you quit or are terminated.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
You feel you are working under a dictatorship. Management says they will listen to new ideas and that you are doing a good job but in actuality there is one person in constant control that will not delegate responsibility properly and if you try to work within the job description provided you will still be written up because general management needs to micro manage everything and you get no legitimate responsibility.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Again the dogs and other employees that love the dogs make the days worth it, honestly if the company had a different general manager everything would be less stressful.

Our facility was run very well for years. Then Destination Pet bought us and took over. They promised no changes in day to day work and how things were run, just different owners. Sounded fairly good, until they started changing literally everything. How we check in dogs, medical supplies we use, cleaning supplies we use, training supplies we use, how daycare and boarding operate, new treat times and “story times”, new procedures to get things fixed… These are just a few things they changed within just a couple months of taking over. And they’re still changing stuff. Management doesn’t listen, corporate for sure doesn’t listen even if a majority of employees try to bring stuff to their attention. Everything is just about money to them. Constant push for more dogs all the time even though we’re already full and can’t even take care of the dogs we have. Staff work like crazy but aren’t paid well enough for it. Lot of good long term clients are frustrated and have left because of the new policies. All of the long term employees who have devoted a lot of their time and money for years are fed up with how things are run. There’s no communication at all from corporate about anything, they don’t listen to any of the local staff about anything. Has for sure gone down hill since they took over. They will continue to lose good clients and good hard working employees if they don’t change. 

I work in the Home Office for Destination Pet, and it's great! I have amazing co-workers who are supportive and always willing to chip in to help on a project or just listen to a work-day rant (we all have them, no matter how great our company is!). We're a small team, but that's a plus because I can honestly say I am friends with my co-workers, and would gladly hang out with them outside of work--and I do! Everyone is devoted to the idea of creating the best pet care centers, and so it's a fun culture of fellow pet lovers.

I do a lot of different projects for both the corporate team and the centers, which is exciting because every day brings a new challenge. Because it's a small home office with a lot of store employees, it can feel like a start-up sometimes in how much you have to pitch in, but I'm never bored at work. I do have to make sure I'm maintaining a good work-life balance, which can be hard (and is probably the hardest part of the job), but having such supportive co-workers makes it easier to take a step back and know that they will understand if you need some flexibility in your schedule. 

We have great benefits offered to all employees, both corporate and at the centers, and Paid Time Off that is eligible across all types of employees. It's a truly special company, and I would definitely recommend working here!

I came into this clinic hoping I would learn the skills needed to be a CVT.  What you’ll get is none of that. Managers play favorites and when brought up they act like they never knew. Fellow coworkers have no basic knowledge of veterinary medicine and makes you wonder why they are still here. Oh that’s right they are favorites. You will work so hard and trust me it goes unnoticed. There is no team morale and too many cliques. If coworkers don’t like you they are not mature enough to put there feelings aside and work with you. No training So good luck. This place is so backwards they rather have the maintenance man running anesthesia then a trained or qualified technician to do it. Same with surgical rounds. Only two people do it but when you’re hired you are told you will be trained on it. Yup that never happened. Rat droppings everywhere even where you place your belongings. No communication skills within the team. You feel bad for the other assistants here because they are really only trained for rooms and that’s about it. A functional team should be cross trained on everything. Corporate won’t do anything. Many people have sent emails and calls and we don’t hear back. Surgical technique is horrible leaving the door open while operations are going on. If you want a relaxed clinic where you won’t do much go for it but there won’t be any growth. The only good thing here are the doctors. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Animal caretaker 2 salaries reported	$15.00 per hour
Veterinary technician 5 salaries reported	$27.60 per hour
Receptionist 199 salaries reported	$14.86 per hour
Dog daycare attendant 45 salaries reported	$13.71 per hour
Veterinary assistant 143 salaries reported	$18.72 per hour

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