About the Owner, Erin Crenshaw

A Raleigh native, Erin grew up with animals. As a child entrepreneur, she raised guinea pigs and rabbits and offered many of them to neighborhood friends. She also started riding horses competitively at age 7. At about that age, Erin knew small and large animals would be prominent in her future. After obtaining degrees in Psychology and Marketing at Western Carolina University, she returned to Raleigh to use her 20 years of animal knowledge and behavior to establish Hoof and Paws Pet Care, LLC.

Erin continues to enhance her knowledge of the animal world, always striving to be the professional her clients need to care for their pets. She is a graduate of the K9 Solutions Academy and is a Certified Trainer and Animal Behavior Consultant; an Equine Sports Massage Therapist, certified by Equissage, Inc.; is a graduate of the PetMassage Institute; holds a US Equestrian Federation professional card to teach riding lessons and coach riders at events; is a North Carolina Hunter/Jumper Association show judge; and holds certification from the American Red Cross in PET First Aid/CPR for both canines and felines.

Whether the family pet is young and needs the special care and attention to help it become a good canine citizen, or an elderly one with special medical needs to keep it healthy and comfortable, Erin has the expertise to care for them.

Erin's training philosophy is to teach the owner how to establish consistent, repeatable communication with the animal that results in a well-behaved family member for a lifetime.  She offers behavior consultations in the client's home as well as private sessions and group classes.  Classes are taught in city parks, on a private horse farm in the area, and on a rotational schedule to public venues for practice of appropriate canine behavior.  All the training is done with proven, consistent methods using positive reward techniques with the goal of helping the owner establish a leadership role with the canine/equine family member.

With any pet care professional, the owner needs to be confident that unusual behavior will be noticed and appropriate action initiated. Entrusting a pet’s training or care to Erin will create that assurance because she personally works with each pet in training sessions and sees each pet during pet care contract periods and is able to evaluate them.