The best dog services are operated by individuals who love animals and know that in pet care focus is key. Local operations such as the Santa Monica Dog Walkers (www.santamonicadogwalkers.com) are essentially one person, and with only a few clients, can focus on your pet without regard to draconian scheduling. It's usually best to find a pet care professional as geographically close to you as possible. This will more often than not suggest a small, uncomplicated service with a short client list.

To be avoided are large, franchised outfits, or with a few exceptions institutional outfits since there is often little attention to quality control.