What People Are Saying
These aren't reviews. They're stories — about pets who have been loved completely, about families navigating some of the hardest and most ordinary moments of having a pet, and about what it meant to have someone in their corner who genuinely understood both.
They're organized below by the kind of support each family needed — hospice and end-of-life care, complex medical and behavioral needs, senior pets and long relationships, and the everyday trust that comes from knowing your pet is genuinely cared for. Wherever you are with your own pet, there's likely a story here that feels familiar.
Every name below belongs to a real family and a real pet. Nothing here has been altered.
Hospice, Palliative Care & End-of-Life
For families who were navigating a diagnosis, a decline, or a loss — and what it meant to not do it alone.
Our time with Lorrie/Telos was invaluable.
When faced with a terminal diagnosis for our beloved Goldendoodle, Roxie, we were lost. We wanted to be sure that her last days, weeks, months were meaningful and comfortable.
Lorrie was with us, guiding us every step of the way. She is responsive and thoughtful with all her responses. We always knew that “Lorrie would help us navigate what to do.”
Roxie’s departure from this life was peaceful and done in accordance with our values and providing Roxie with all the love, respect and comfort she deserved. When faced with a furry family member who needs hospice in the future, Lorrie will be my first call. We remain grateful.
— Amy Clayman, Bethesda, MD
It can be isolating and overwhelming to care for a beloved pet during the last months of their life. Throw in a pandemic, and a health challenge for a (human) family member, and it's an understatement to say that we were so lucky to have found Lorrie!
Lorrie, with her high level of skill/knowledge, kindness, deep love for and connection with animals, and fun sense of humor, walked right along-side us, and helped us navigate that crazy time. We felt strongly supported through the last months of our beloved, almost-16-yr-old dog's (Trucker Grace) life. With respite visits/encouragement/guidance/suggestions from Lorrie, it felt like we were being kindly and expertly supported through the ups and downs of that time, with Lorrie on one side of us, and our wonderful veterinarian on the other side (and clear, helpful communication between us all). Not only did Lorrie walk right with us through that time, she also stayed a couple steps ahead, anticipating what Trucker Grace and we would need next, thereby making everything much easier.
Our dog's life was full and good, right to the end. She and Lorrie, without a doubt, enjoyed each other, and Lorrie showed us ways to add comfort and ease (and fun!) to Trucker's days. Lorrie put emphasis on all the positive things that were truly, right there, but could get over-shadowed by grief or fatigue.
Though we miss our "pup" so much, we have deep peace of mind about how her last months unfolded, and we'll always be grateful to Lorrie; our whole family was helped. We also greatly benefited, after Trucker Grace passed away, from Lorrie's kindness and support of our grief.
— The Bradley-Schnaidt Family, Ann Arbor
I can not overstate how lucky we are to have Lorrie in our lives. She has cared so well for our dogs - especially for our geriatric end-of-life lab. I never thought that we would be able to leave town with an older, high-maintenance dog at home, but Lorrie changed that completely. We were totally comfortable leaving Lily in Lorrie's care because of Lorrie's incredible knowledge and capacity in veterinary medical issues (to say nothing of her love for the dogs!). Last year, our younger dog Rosie was a bit droopy one day, and Lorrie was the one who nudged me to take her to the vet, as she is tuned in to signs and symptoms that I am not - even though I have had dogs my entire life! What followed was a long weekend of emergency hospital visits and tests and difficult diagnoses, and Lorrie was available to help me with every decision I faced. When Rosie passed away very quickly, Lorrie checked in with us and our older dog frequently to see how we were doing.
Our old girl - Lily - kept on going for a while, with lots of medication and veterinary support, and Lorrie helped to translate all the information coming at us from the vet and took great care of Lily whenever we were away. A few months ago, Lily finished her very long and wonderful life, and Lorrie helped us to navigate that decision as well, and has helped us to manage our grief during this difficult time. She understands dogs and she understands peoples' relationships to their dogs. She has cared wonderfully for our dogs, but that is only part of what she has done for our family. She helped us navigate the loss of two beloved dogs in a short period of time. Her compassion, perspective and knowledge - combined with her willingness to talk things through - make her an invaluable person to anyone with pets!
— The Ellis Family, Ann Arbor
I am completely confident leaving my dog with Lorrie. She is knowledgeable, compassionate, and professional. Lorrie visits our dog LuLu for everything from medication administration to week-long stays at our house. She is totally reliable and has the highest standard of care. When our other dog, Oscar, neared the end of his life, Lorrie provided expert comfort and treatment for him. She also helped us navigate the experience as a family, providing education on how we could help him live his fullest life for as long as possible.
LuLu is picky about her people, but she adores Lorrie. If you need care for an elderly animal, a respite, med visits, overnight stays, or even just someone to help you through a tough time with your pet, Lorrie is the only person I would recommend. It's a real gift to have someone that not only cares for your pet but enhances their life, as well.
— Kelly Daniels, Dexter
Complex Medical & Behavioral Care
For pets with medication schedules, mobility challenges, behavioral needs, or conditions that require real expertise — not just willingness.
Lorrie is a 100,000/10!!!! I am not sure where to start with this review since everything Lorrie does is above and beyond! We have two dogs, one has extensive medical challenges and the other who is a wild ball of energy!
From the first email exchange with Lorrie I knew that she was the one we wanted to watch our pups! From the in-depth phone conversation, meticulous paperwork and meet & greet, I knew she had the expertise to be able to handle our boys and OCD me :) (this one may even be a bigger task than our dogs)! We have a routine household and I am never worried about everything being done correctly when Lorrie watches our boys. Medications, raw food, feeding times, walk schedule, crate and rotate, enrichment play time, she has it covered!!! We have had Lorrie stay with our crew multiple times and for two extensive overnight trips and it is the first time having someone stay at our house with both dogs that I have actually been able to enjoy the vacation and not be worried the entire time! Our dogs adore Lorrie and love having her here with them! She is a wonderful communicator, expert at catching even the smallest changes in our pups and our house is well taken care of. I also really appreciate the ability to book ahead of time and lock in for larger travel trips! Lorrie has a calm nature that really is evident in her approach to handling our pups!
This last trip we had a major issue with a basement flood the morning we were leaving for New Zealand and Lorrie handled it much more gracefully than I would have, haha. She reassured me that the dogs would be fine, the house was what it was and would be fine and we needed to go on our trip and she had everything under control. Rest assured she DID! Dealing with my frantic call as we were heading to the airport to her flexing her schedule to get over to our house sooner and not being able to have more room to be with our pups, she was masterful managing it all! I cannot recommend Lorrie enough, you want her to watch your pets and you will never want anyone else to watch them because she spoils you and them! I feel so incredibly lucky to have found Lorrie when I did and so thankful that it is such a wonderful fit for us! It is so hard to find someone who can handle both a dog with medical needs and two high energy high drive dogs, it takes a special person and Lorrie is that! I could go on and on even more, but I will stop here! Lorrie THANK YOU for being YOU! We appreciate all that you do for us!
— Pawsitively, Ilana, Ryan, Rio & Lago, Ann Arbor
I'm so lucky to have found Lorrie. I can't give enough praise for her knowledge, professionalism, and genuine love of animals. I feel very secure leaving my two aging, and demanding, cats in her care. More than once she has gone far beyond the call of duty to deal with challenging situations. And my cats think she's great, too!
— Pat Truzzi, Ann Arbor
We have been fortunate to have Lorrie dog sit for our dog, Quinn, on several occasions. Because Quinn is a special needs dog (he is blind and has mobility and behavioral issues), he requires someone to stay at our home nights and also to administer medicine during the day. Lorrie has cared for Quinn with skill and kindness.
Lorrie is a true professional. Her knowledge of behavioral and medical issues which affect dogs is remarkable. She shows true affection and caring for Quinn. Her communication with us while we're away is super. She sends us updates on Quinn and videos of him. In addition, she has given us many good ideas for keeping Quinn entertained and happy. Knowing that Lorrie is taking such excellent care of Quinn while we're away gives us the opportunity to relax and enjoy the trip!!
— Anita Bosky & Bob Vaughn, Ann Arbor
Lorrie's approach with pets is different, her understanding of animal behavior and consideration of their life stage helps form a relationship that is a positive experience from the pet's perspective. For geriatric and special needs pets, she has excellent working knowledge of medical conditions and the treatments needed to support these pets in the home as diagnosed and directed by a Client's veterinarian. Great effort is taken to deliver this care in a kind and low stress, fear-free manner. Lorrie's professionalism, experience, and love for her work is apparent. We couldn't be more grateful, she truly does go the extra mile when your pets are in her care.
— Judy Conley, LVT, Pinckney
It is hard to find a pet sitter you trust will understand your pet the way you do. It is so much harder to find one that you trust to care for a chronically-ill pet. I know that I can make sure my sweet cat gets his meds on time, that his days have as little stress as possible and that he knows he is loved every minute. But until I found Lorrie Shaw I didn't think it would be possible that anyone else could take care of him, including those in my immediate family! When some mandatory family travel came up (no one had traveled in over a year because I couldn't leave my little guy), I had to take a chance on someone else.
Lorrie turned out to be the absolutely magical combination of animal lover, experienced caregiver for ill pets and complete professional. Lorrie can handle complicated medication schedules … when they go right and when they go wrong. She is flexible, determined and primed with more tricks to get a dose into a cat than I knew existed! Most importantly, she is an exceptional communicator. Through both of our trips away I knew exactly what meds my cat had taken and when, and I also saw daily video proof of how well my two healthy guys were doing (and how much they liked her!) … which allowed my family and I to relax and enjoy both trips way more than I realized possible.
I can't recommend Lorrie highly enough – she took wonderful care of my healthy cats and kept my sick cat relaxed and on his medication schedule. Like I did, you may think you are the only one that can care for your sick pet. But trust me … Lorrie can, too!
— Annemarie Dolan, Ann Arbor
I highly recommend Lorrie as a pet sitter for pets with special needs. One of my 3 cats is a 19 year old senior kitty with kidney disease. In addition to her 6 regular oral medications, she gets subcutaneous fluids daily and needs a lot of encouragement to eat. Lorrie not only managed all of her medical care with ease, she spent the time necessary to get her to eat and adjusted plan of care as needed depending on how my cat was doing.
She reached out to me in the months leading up to the pet sitting visits to see how things were going with my senior cat, she even had recommendations for things that could help in my cat's care. During the pet sitting visits, she kept me well informed of what was going on. She made me feel relaxed and comfortable enough to actually enjoy my vacation away, which was the first time I was leaving my cat alone overnight in several years.
I will definitely be contacting Lorrie again for all of my pet sitting needs for my senior kitty cat. She is truly amazing!
— Pam Johnson, Pinckney
Lorrie Shaw has my highest recommendation as a caregiver for older dogs with medication and special handling needs. She was recommended by my veterinarian who also specializes in these situations … a high endorsement. She not only made our vacation possible, but worry-free. Her care in scheduling getting-acquainted visits with 14-year-old Toby before we left worked very well. Lorrie is a genius at getting a finicky dog to take his meds! And her quick, daily videos of Toby were reassuring, often funny and actually, a fun way for me to start my day, too. She is a respectful visitor in the house, plus being warm, helpful, inventive, thoughtful and compassionate toward both canines and humans. Her level of experience and training is top-notch. I'm so grateful for all of her help, which continued even after the vacation ended. She is truly a gifted person and a gift. Thanks, Lorrie!
— Susan Elliker, Ann Arbor
As our beloved Labrador Retriever's health began to deteriorate at age 11, we began to search for someone who might provide responsible care during the times we'd need to be away from our home. The challenge? The caregiver would need to be reliable, knowledgeable, comfortable dealing with a complex medical condition and medications, loving, and responsive.
We're so grateful that Lorrie Shaw came into our lives and (immediately!) began to improve our situation. In addition to her "official" services, we've discovered that Lorrie provides us with informed insights into some of the behavioral and medical issues we're confronting.
She's accessible for consultations and down-to-earth when discussing our options. Our dog Stanley adores her (and the feeling seems mutual). When we travel – or just need extra care during the day – it's wonderful to know that Lorrie will do whatever necessary to ensure Stanley's comfort.
— Deborah Linder, Ann Arbor
I can't recommend Lorrie highly enough. She's cared for my dog for many years, and understands her personality, quirks and needs, and regularly negotiates a challenging neighborhood where two nearby dogs have bitten my dog. I trust her with the most difficult pet challenges, physical and behavioral, and I am so grateful to have her on our team!
— Katy Mattingly, Ypsilanti
Senior Pets & Long-Term Trust
Relationships built over years — families who came back again and again as their pets aged and their needs changed.
We have worked with Lorrie for over 10 years now! She was with us for our first pup right to the very end. He was very scared of everything and only comfortable with certain people and Lorrie was one of his favorites. She was there every step of the way at the end going above and beyond at all times. I don't know what we would have done without her. We finally got the courage to get another pup and she was one of the first people I called. She's already given us amazing advice and has helped already. I would recommend her to anyone, she is fabulous!! Thank you Lorrie!!
— Janelle Monaco, Dexter
I met Lorrie about three years ago when I needed care for my four beagles. Prior to that, they had always stayed with family and I was nervous! During our initial meet and greet, I knew we had found a keeper when two of them curled up next to her on the couch and went to sleep. Lorrie tended to my 14-year-old with grace and compassion to the end. My younger girls love their walks and play time with "Auntie Lorrie" during the week.
When I schedule time away, my first message before committing, is to Lorrie to see if she is available for overnight stays. I know they are in the best of hands during my absence. The daily videos and reports are incredibly reassuring. I admire her honesty, integrity, compassion and professionalism. I am confident she would handle any situation with the utmost care.
— Jenny VanHouten, Dexter
Lorrie has been taking care of my cats for the past three years. She's definitely the best pet sitter I've had in my 30 years of adult life with cats. I tend to be a bit of a worrier when I go out of town and leave my three guys, particularly because my oldest cat has some health issues. But I know that I can trust Lorrie completely - she knows her stuff! It's been such a relief to be able to leave town and not worry one second about the cats. Lorrie is competent to handle anything that could possibly arise. She touches base regularly, including sending a daily video which features all three cats and an update on how everybody's doing. It's clear my cats are 100% comfortable with her and that they get to follow their typical routine, including playing their favorite games. Lorrie's absolutely the best, and I can't recommend her highly enough.
— Jamie Taylor, Ypsilanti
We have known Lorrie for 6 years now and have entrusted her with the care and love of our two dogs Lucy and Alex, when traveling. She is a highly motivated pet care professional, organized, dedicated and a limitless resource for pet care advice. I cannot recommend her enough! Our well loved dogs are a bit emotional with new routines. It could not be more relaxing to know they are in Lorrie's hands. The communication before the visit as well as during gives us peace of mind. Many times if we are on vacation without the dogs it seems as if Lucy and Alex are on a staycation with her. We return to happy healthy dogs who no doubt miss her.
— Christine Jordan, Ann Arbor
Lorrie is a dedicated person who is extremely knowledgeable about pet care. We trust her implicitly with our two cats, who can sometimes be challenging to care for - but they love her! One of them has some special needs and requires medication twice a day. Lorrie is patient and has provided helpful suggestions regarding his medicine. The peace of mind she provides when we're away makes our trips more enjoyable.
— Wendy Hains, Dexter
General Trust & Reliability
The everyday confidence that comes from knowing your pet is genuinely cared for — whatever their needs.
Lorrie is a trusted member of our extended pet family, and, as a veterinarian, I am very comfortable traveling for long periods of time when Lorrie is in charge. Her attention to detail, knowledge of each of our 5 pets, and willingness to jump in at the last minute if she is able has made her our pet sitter of choice! We are not the kind of people who would travel if it meant leaving our pets in cages at a kennel…. Lorrie has enriched the lives of both us and our pets. Five stars!
— Cathy Theisen, DVM, Dexter
Telos Companion Services, LLC provides in-home care for my dog Teddy while I am away, whether for a few days or a few weeks. I rest at ease knowing Teddy is with his second mom, Lorrie Shaw, its owner and operator.
Teddy is not special needs, which is Lorrie's specialty, but he is special to me.
Lorrie is exceptionally qualified as a Fear Free Certified Professional, Certified Hospice & Palliative Care Advocate, and Certified Animal Hospice Practitioner. I'm grateful Teddy has formed such a strong bond with Lorrie, and I know he will be in loving hands whenever the time comes.
— Janis Paul, Ann Arbor
If we had to define Lorrie Shaw in three words they would be: "Knowledgeable, Professional & Dedicated". We were impressed with the thoroughness of the initial meeting and interview with Lorrie and her high level of organization to ensure that complete information and history on our pet was being provided.
We believe that Lorrie is the perfect person to stay in our home with Rip, our 12-1/2-year-old English Mastiff, and she provides us with peace of mind while we are traveling. Beyond that, Lorrie has the experience to think ahead and incorporate the "what-if" scenarios into the care of Rip.
An example of Lorrie's connection with Rip was her suggestion to stop by for a visit with Rip prior to our next vacation. Our cleaning person was here when Lorrie visited and later told us how "sweet" Lorrie and Rip interacted, a "True Bond."
It is great for all pet owners that Lorrie is so involved in promoting the pet care industry and continuing to pursue even more knowledge. We need more people with Lorrie's skills, and she is working to help make that happen.
— Lisa & Frank Johnson, Pinckney
Lorrie just looked after our 3 cats for the 1st time last week. They loved her, which is unusual because they can take a long time to warm up to people, but they warmed right up to her. One of them has an intermittent urinary problem and we totally trusted her to know what to look for as far as symptoms and what to do if he got sick. Huge relief! She's going to be our go-to from now on!
— Siobhan Donnelly, Ann Arbor
Lorrie Shaw is a highly skilled professional. I would never trust my sweet pup with anyone else. She's a lifesaver!
— Diane Dues, Dexter
Every family above started exactly where you are now — with a pet who needed something, and a search for someone who could actually provide it. If something in these stories felt familiar, the next step is the same one they took.
The best first step is an email.
When families first reach out, they’re often overwhelmed and carrying a lot. Email gives you the space to share what’s happening at your own pace — and gives Lorrie the space to respond thoughtfully, with real information, rather than reactively. It’s how this works best, from the very first contact.
Lorrie personally reads and responds to every email — typically within a couple of hours, and always the same day. You will not be waiting.
Or, book a 15-minute Zoom conversation — $35
For families who'd rather talk than type. A brief, focused conversation to share where things are, ask questions, and figure out together whether Telos is the right fit. No obligation beyond the conversation itself.
Twenty-four families. Twenty-four pets. One thing in common — they reached out, and someone was there.