Meet Our Playground Staff
Love My Doggy Day Care and its management team earned a certification from the Outstanding Pet Care University (formerly the American Boarding Kennel Association).
The certification program is a 60-day, 11-course program that covers areas such as pet behavior and handling, facility sanitation and disease prevention, maintaining pet safety in our facility, pet nutrition and more.
Additionally, each management team member participated in a 5-day facilities and operations course that teaches about the logistics, process flow, and day-to-day management of a smooth-running pet facility that offers multiple services from grooming to boarding to training. This training is provided by Richard Witherill, a recognized industry expert and published author and reviewer of numerous publications related to the pet care industry.
And of course, each of our specialists – our groomers, trainers, and veterinarian – hold professional credentials relevant to their specific area of expertise. Find out more about our individual team member’s qualifications below!
Lisa Flaiz, Owner
Lisa Flaiz, a pet owner her whole life, is starting Love My Doggy Day Care with a love of animals at the core of her purpose. She believes that every dog deserves a chance to reach its full potential as a healthy, confident, socialized, and well-balanced member of the family. She believes that responsible and loving pet owners need a state-of-the-art dog day care with 24-hour supervision so that pets can be safe, secure, healthy and happy–and that this helps ensure a happy home and peace of mind for the whole family–people and dogs alike.
When it comes to Lisa’s business philosophy, she adheres to a customer-centric belief and value system that allows her to make authentic connections and create long-term relationships with her customers. With a twenty-year history in the healthcare industry, and a passion for the welfare of animals, Lisa embarked on over two years of research, consulting, and training in the pet-care industry. With her deep experience as a leader and manager, Lisa will ensure that Love My Doggy Day Care will be managed and staffed with trained dog lovers you can trust to love your best friend as they love their own, and to treat you with respect, courtesy, and personal attention. Additionally, Lisa is a Certified Professional Animal Care Operator (CPACO), an accreditation earned from the Professional Animal Care Certification Council.
Lisa invites you to reach out to her at any time! She can be reached through the contact info, and will answer you personally. It is her goal to be accessible and get to know all of the dogs and their parents that come to play! Lisa’s pet family members include Zachary, a black lab-pit mix, Sabrina, a boxer-lab mix, pictured above, and her two cats, Damien and Gable.
Bryl Villanueva, General Manager and Facilities Director
Bryl Villanueva is an entrepreneur in heart and spirit – not to mention a talented jack of all trades. So he’s the perfect team member for getting us started on the right foot!
Having had his hands in a variety of small businesses over the years, he has a proven ability to wear any hat necessary to tackle a task, and he has mastered the art of contractor and vendor management. As a team leader at Petplan Pet Insurance, Bryl was the lead contact for clients, vendors and strategic partners, and was responsible for the hiring and training of both the sales representatives and the customer service team, as well as for directing and managing internal sales representative and 20 outside sales representatives. Bryl also developed the Petplan.com doctrine for providing customer service. As an experienced manager adept at coordinating efforts across a multi-disciplinary and remote team, a client service professional, a person with a passion for start-ups and animals, Bryl is the ideal management team member for leading and directing our day-to-day facilities’ needs. And, as a key member of the management team, Bryl has participated in the same level of dog/pack-related and operations-related training as the rest of the management team, so you can expect to see him pitching in all over the business!
Bryl is pictured here with Buckaroo, his pit bull rescue, who was found as a stray on the street in the Kensington area of Philadelphia.
Yev Hovhannisyan, Grooming Salon Manager and Professional Pet Stylist
Since moving to the United States in 2001, Yev knew from a young age that her goal was to work with animals. She started her grooming career in 2015 and immediately realized she had found her passion. Grooming provided Yev the perfect combination of working with dogs, seeing to their care, and having an artistic outlet. It also provided the perfect combination of spending time with the animals she loves, and building deeply valued relationships with their owners as a trusted advisor. Since then, she has been a dedicated leader in the field of pet care. With a deep love for animals, she believes that every pet deserves the opportunity to thrive as a healthy, confident, and well-groomed member of their family. Throughout her career, Yev has honed her skills and expertise in grooming and styling various breeds of pets. Her commitment to providing exceptional care and attention to detail has earned her a stellar reputation among pet owners. She prides herself on creating a safe and comfortable environment for pets during grooming sessions, ensuring their well-being and happiness.
As a skilled manager, Yev possesses excellent leadership qualities and the ability to effectively manage a grooming salon. She has successfully trained and supervised a team of groomers, ensuring that each pet receives personalized care and grooming services tailored to their unique needs. Yev’s passion for pet care extends beyond the grooming salon. She actively stays updated with the latest trends and techniques in the industry through continued education in order to provide the best services to her clients. Additionally, she is dedicated to promoting responsible pet ownership and educating pet owners about proper grooming practices and pet care. Outside of work, Yev enjoys spending time with her own pets, fostering a deep bond and leveraging the power of positive reinforcement-based training techniques. She has a particular focus on helping rescue dogs overcome behavioral challenges and develop strong connections with their new owners. Yev journey in the pet care industry has been a fulfilling and rewarding one. Her dedication, expertise, and love for animals make her a trusted and valuable asset in the grooming and pet care community.
Dr. Caroline Patten, VMD, PhD
Dr. Caroline Patten graduated from Princeton University and earned her VMD and PhD (in Neuroscience) from the University of Pennsylvania. Since graduation she has worked in greater Philadelphia as a general practice and emergency veterinarian. Dr. Patten has extensive experience in preventative care, dental procedures, emergency medicine, and soft tissue surgery. She has experience working with greyhounds as well.
Dr. Patten first fell in love with animals as a child. Through years of lobbying and negotiation, she convinced her parents to adopt a dog from the local animal shelter, a floppy-haired terrier mix whom an 8 year-old Dr. Patten named Lollipop. Since then, Dr. Patten’s love of animals has only grown. She currently shares her home with two dogs: Cruz, a pitbull/lab mix, and Mabel, a chocolate toy poodle.
Gayle Kurtzer, Promotions Director
Gayle Kurtzer, RN, CCRC, having supervised Emergency Departments and Intensive Critical Care Units for 300-bed hospitals, is ready for anything! She also spent more than twenty years in customer service for a major pharmaceutical company, where her focus was creating great customer experiences for patients and caregivers alike. And can she multi-task! This is a good thing, because Gayle is going to be busy as the Love My Doggy Day Care Promotions Director! She will be responsible for managing all of our promotions, contests, giveaways, special events, affiliate partnerships, adoption programs, community relations, and charity functions. If you have an idea for a great event you’d like to see us host, let Gayle know! Gayle’s first order of business was planning our Grand Opening Event. Please let us know your feedback if you attended! An animal-lover and pet-owner her whole life, including her dog, Lucy, pictured above, Gayle has spent the last six months training, volunteering at shelters, and educating herself, alongside the rest of the management team, on the various aspects of dog day care, as she prepared for her transition from human healthcare to animal care.
Loretta Cleveland, CPDT
Loretta Cleveland, CPDT, owner and trainer of The Positive Pooch, is a certified dog trainer with the Council for Pet Dog Trainers and a member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT).
She has been training dogs for over 20 years and is committed to providing the most effective, convenient solutions to meet all her clients’ dog training needs.
Loretta avidly pursues ongoing professional development, including continued education classes and keeping current on all industry standards. In addition, she has completed Living & Learning with Animals by Dr. Susan Friedman and Brenda Aloff’s The Engaged Dog courses.
When she is not helping her clients, Loretta enjoys competing in obedience trials with her black Labrador Isaac and taking daily walks and runs in the park.