Hello Everyone!  My name is Kirsten!  I was born into this business and wouldn't change a thing.  My parents started Kountry Pet Resort almost 40 years ago and now I have taken it over for them.  I love the work I do and especially love my clients and their pets.  My goal everyday is to make sure that all my clients feel confident and comfortable leaving their "furry" loved ones with us!  I have my certificate for Pet First Aid and CPR training. In my spare time I love scrap booking, cooking and spending time with my family and friends.  I look forward to meeting your "furry" family member soon!

Hi, my name is Sue.  I am the master groomer here at Kountry Pet Resort.  I've been here since 1998 and have probably styled your pet at least once.  Originally I went to beauty school and realized that I wasn't happy styling people and thought maybe I would be happier grooming pets instead.  So I went to grooming school and quickly figured out that 4 legged customers were a lot more enjoyable than 2 legged customers I previously had.  I started grooming full time from that point on, which was back in 1988.  I'm married to a wonderful man named Joe and together we have 4 "fur children" Opus, Abby, Layla and Millie.  In my spare time I enjoy listening to music, reading and spending time with my family.

Hi, my name is Jerid. I am the Lodging manager at Kountry Pet Resort and Spa. I have been working for this wonderful, family owned company since 1999. I have an Associates degree from ECC. In my spare time I love watching the Bears, and taking my two wonderful pups to the dog park.  When I decided to get a dog the hardest thing was picking what kind. One of the reasons why I love my job soooooo much is, it's like I have a dog of every kind. From my beautiful Great Dane (Lilly) to my super smart Rott (Sadie) I truly love them all like they are mine.

Hi, I'm Deb!  I’ve been blessed.  I began my career as a pet stylist in 1984.  My mother-in-law owned and operated 2 grooming shops in the area and was a well known and respected professional dog handler, breeder, trainer and groomer with many years experience, who took me under her wing.  We worked side by side for many more years.  She mentored me in so many facets of the business up until she retired.  I grew up here, and have been married to a great guy for almost 27 years now.  We have 2 grown children and 10 growing grandchildren.  (Not a typo, that’s ten!) Again, I am blessed. We are in pet transition right now, having had several wonderful dogs for many years.  We are currently looking forward to a new addition to our family as I am writing this. Yay!  I have been with Kountry Pet Resort since 1999.  I started as a groomer to the rescue helping out as needed and quite frankly found a home here.  I was in awe of Roger’s beautiful landscaping.  It was impressive how very clean the staff kept everything.  Judi’s professional attitude coupled with her devotion to her clients was exactly what I had been used to.  It was a fit.  As time went on I was so impressed with the pride of my co-workers in all they do and most of all, the loving family atmosphere that Kirsten and her giant heart, and everyone here has afforded me as I fought through several life challenging issues.  I am most grateful and very proud to work here.  Once again, I am blessed.

Hi my name is Erin.  I have been working at Kountry Pet Resort since 2005; it has always been a joy for me to have the opportunity to work with animals.  I have had dogs in my life and in my home for as long as I can remember and usually we have several dogs at one time.  Right now I have 3 dogs, 2 male yellow labs and a male German shepherd puppy.  I am a recent college grad; I graduated in May 2010 from Roosevelt University with a B.S in Biology.

Hi I'm Christina, the mother of two wonderful boys, a boxer mix and a Bengal cat. I have always had a great love for all living creatures. It is a great joy and privilege to work here at Kountry Pet Resort since 2005. Many of the pets that walk through our front doors I have adopted as my own during their stay.

Hi, I'm Katie and I've been employed with Kountry Pet Resort since 2005. I have had dogs in my life for over 20 years and in that time I had 9 dogs who I've loved with all my heart. Of those dogs, I currently own two yellow labs named Reilly and Marley, and one German shepherd named Chase. I am presently a senior at Northern Illinois University and in May I will graduate with a Family Infant Development degree from the College of Family, Consumer, Nutrition Sciences.

My name is Jenny, I have been with Kountry Pet Resort since 2006. I started out as a Kamp counselor when I was sixteen and I have been here ever since. Now I do everything from walking dogs to feeding, medicating, and bathing dogs. I have such a strong passion and love for these animals that I have decided to make a career out of it. Therefore, I am currently training to be a full time groomer. Although I have decided to be a groomer I will always find time to sneak into group Kamp to spend time with all of my favorites.

My name is April. I have been employed by Kountry Pet Resort for most of my adult life; I have been an employee for the last 11 years. I grew up and went to school in Elgin, and also started college to become a nurse.  I’ve lived in Hampshire for the last 7 years and am married to my high school sweetheart. We have two amazing daughters, Morgan and Jozie. Our four legged kid Roxy is a 1 year old brindle boxer.  In my free time I love spending time with my family, reading, photography, and shopping.  I am a loyal cubs fan, and also a fan of the Black Hawks and Bears.

HI! My name is Nicole and I have been with Kountry Pet Resort since early 2010. When I was a little girl I used to say I wanted to work at a pet shop when I grew up.  My love for animals goes back for as long as I can remember.  I am a licensed cosmetologist and avid sports fan.  In my spare time I enjoy being outside in the sun, walking my dogs and spending time with my family. I am the proud mother of 2 furry babies, Ginger and Gracie.   They are my entire world.  If getting unconditional love from those 2 weren't great enough, I am even luckier to be able to go to work and get unconditional love from hundreds more! I promise to always care for your pet just as if they were my own.

Okay, my name is Jill and I've got a little story to tell: My oldest brother Chase, who is now 24, worked at Kountry Pet Resort for 4 years during his high school and college years.  He used to come home and tell me all the stories of him and the dogs he got to play with.  I've always loved animals and I've always had a huge variety of them at home, from deers to dogs and chickens to horses.  It was practically a farm.  So when I became old enough to work in early 2010, I figured working at Kountry Pet Resort would be wonderful because I'm not afraid to get slobbered on and I love the company of dogs!

Hey everyone, my name is Sam and I am an avid pet lover!  I am a certified pet groomer with about 4 years experience and graduated top of the class from a Professional Pet Grooming School in Wisconsin.  Since early 2010, I have loved working for Kountry Pet Resort.  I also have had the pleasure of working under some excellent and seasoned Groomers.  I have two wonderful dogs that are very well behaved even though I spoil and dote on them unconditionally.  A one-year- old Miniature Schnauzer named Dante and a two-year-old Jack Russell named Daisy-Mae.  They are a huge part of my life and mean the world to me. I have an amazingly supportive family. I’m also a youth leader in my church and love serving with the junior high and high school kids that I absolutely adore.  I love being an example that they can look up to when there aren’t very many of those left in society.

My name is Stephanie Joanne Van Dyke. I have lived in Plato Center all my life. I attended Central School district while growing up and I am now at ECC in the SAIL program. When I was a child I was always the quiet one but I would always try to join in the fun activities. Now I may seem a little outgoing but I’m still a little shy about doing things. The one thing that I have always enjoyed doing is writing stories, watching movies, and taking care of animals. I have always had a creative mind. I always get ideas for stories from things that happen in my life. I try to always include animals in my stories. I spend a lot of time on my stories by either working on them or organizing them. Of my love for animals, I believe it started when I was 4 years old. I would love to watch the movie “The Lion King.” So I think that I’ve loved animals ever since. While growing up my family and I always had pets but I would say my favorite is my dog Mabel. We adopted her as a puppy when I was 11 and I have always loved her. Mabel is a mix of a Rottweiler and a sheltie as you can see in the picture. She’s an excellent dog who loves people.

Hi everybody! My name’s Raechel.  I’ve had a love for all animals since I was a young child and begged my mom and dad for a rabbit for my fourth birthday.  My family always thought that when I grew up I’d become a Veterinarian because I have a super weak spot for animals in need of help.  I was going to college to get my bachelors degree in criminal justice, when one day I woke up and realized that the one thing that always made me smile was animals and decided to switch my career path.  I’m a mom of three amazing kids.  My oldest is Boomer my Boxer, he’s 3 ½ and my golden child J  Boomer’s my big goofy bundle of love!  My middle child is Dewey my Dachshund he’s 1 ½ and full of spunk!  Dewey’s a little dog with a big attitude but underneath that is a little baby that just wants to cuddle up next to you.  My youngest is Jinx my long haired fluffy black cat.  Now I was never really a cat person until I got Jinx.  A little over a year ago I was watching the news and saw that hundreds of cats were being euthanized because shelters were running out of room.  So I took it upon myself one day to go to a Chicago animal shelter and rescue a cat.  Although Jinx is not your typical cat, since she was raised with my two boys she loves to wrestle with Dewey and jump out and scare Boomer!  They’re pretty much your typical kids just with a lot more hair!  I was given the opportunity to join the Kountry Pet Resort family in mid 2011.  I have never been happier!  I love that I get to wake up every day and do what I love, to me it’s not work.  I’m lucky that I have a job that makes me happy and that I love doing.