I wanted to talk a little about who we are, how we got started, and where we're going as a company.
Matt Heikkila
Owner
I will try to make this long story short (as possible). And I will fail. I'm from the Bay Area. I was one of those kids who said he wanted to be a veterinarian because it was the only animal job I could think of. I brought home dogs and cats and once, an injured snake.
A friend and I found that snake, with a large wound, likely from one of our outdoor cats, and I promptly called my mom, who very quickly did the google of the day (Yellow Pages) and found the number for Lindsay WIldlife Hospital. They told us to put Neosporin on the snake and let him go when he was healed. That took about two weeks.
When I was in high school I discovered two separate Animal Planet shows that would really set me on my path: The Crocodile Hunter, and another less known show called Moorpark 24/7, about a school that trained animal trainers. It essentially gave me a goal, and a way to get there. Crikey.
4 years later I was at that school. I worked with mountain lions, a baboon, a water buffalo, hawks, lemurs and a number of other species. It was a school where we learned things like veterinary care, husbandry, behavior, training, nutrition, and wildlife education in the classroom and then used what we learned in classroom out on the zoo with the animals. Beyond the education, it was a good hands on intro to the animal kingdom.
Before I attended, I wanted to work with big cats and that didn't change. After I graduated, for almost four years, I did just that. I worked with tigers at an amusement park in New Jersey. Since we 6-7 trainers were the only humans able to safely (ish) enter the same space with those cats, we did everything for them, including feeding, training, giving them shots, exercising and giving them enrichment, etc.
Next I went back to the Bay. I worked for a dog walking company called Woofwalks in Alameda County, and learned the ropes of our flagship service: off-leash group dog walks.
And in 2013, I started Diablo Dog, where we provided that service to Contra Costa County. For the next 10 years we grew and expanded to serve most of the central part of the county, thanks to our ever growing staff.
In 2023 we opened a storefront, where we now provide grooming and training services, and sell pet foods and supplies.
I personally try to run the company by the philosophy of only hiring people I trust to take care of my own pets. And with that, I'll introduce you to our team.
Anthony Travaglini
Dog Trainer
Anthony ended up pursuing being a professional dog trainer only in the last few years, but when I interviewed him I recognized a good understanding of animal training, and that he has similar animal training philosophies and methods as me. He'd most recently worked as an apprentice dog trainer for another local company learning the dog training ropes.
He mostly learned through training lots and lots of dogs with his previous company and with us, and through pursuing knowledge of experienced primarily positive reinforcement based dog trainers. Soon after helping to develop our dog training program here he got certified by the CCPDT (The Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers), a professional organization that certifies legitimate, experienced, and positive dog trainers.
Anthony has worked with over 100 of our Diablo Dog clients in the year plus he's worked with us on things ranging from general obedience, to jumping, reactivity, recall, socialization, and a number of other training issues.
He provides his training service through us via a number of different training session types: including private sessions with the whole family, one on one training sessions with the dog, our group classes, as well as our full day "Day Academy" where he picks up a small group from their houses, takes them on a hike, then trains them throughout the day before dropping them off back at home."
He earned us Best Dog Trainer in Diablo Magazine's 2024 Best of the East Bay.
Alexandra Dickt
Dog Groomer
Alexandra has 8 years of total grooming experience, certificates in working with Difficult Dogs, Geriatric Dogs, and Canine CPR/First Aid. She’s also done a lot of training of groomers as well.
Her most recent job is managing a branch of a large mobile grooming company. She’s thrilled to put down roots and help us continue to build Diablo Dog into the best Grooming Salon in the Bay Area.
She will help us continue to provide great grooming and excellent service to you and your pups. We look forward to your dogs meeting her and having you see her results.
John Prelock
Dog Walker
John's first professional dog experience was with Diablo Dog when he started in 2018. He has had his own dogs, including Hank who was a vocal, sweet boy, and we always enjoyed him joining company functions. John savors every moment out with the dogs, and walks a group of dogs that only go out with him. The dogs love him as much as John loves them. John is friendly, professional, and he gets the Perfect Attendance Award.
Michael Camara
Dog Walker
Mike started with us in 2018. He, too, had no professional dog experience before he joined us, but he has always had his own dogs. While he's now part time thanks to attending UC Berkeley, he hikes a couple of days a week and has a very controlled calm style with the dogs. He's always done well with some more challenging dogs and we're happy to have him as long as his education will allow him.
Matt Jolly
Dog Walker
Matt started with us in 2022, but it feels like it's been longer, since he's become established as a very thoughtful walker. He notices small changes in dogs behavior and really cares about their experiences with us. His dogs and his clients love him. He has owned his own dogs, and owns a reptile company outside of Diablo Dog as well.
Pamela Wilde
Dog Walker
Pamela started with us in 2023. She had done a lot of neighborhood walking before she joined our company, while also attending school. Having joined her groups, I can tell her dogs enjoy her energetic walks and form a line behind her. She is also very helpful providing walks on weekends and rides from Diablo Dog for grooming dogs.
Angela Dorsey
Dog Walker
Angela started with us in 2024. Angela is a small business owner herself and owns a spa in downtown Martinez. Previous to us she worked for another dog training company in downtown Martinez. She's a professional at anything she does, and does a great job with the dogs.
Cortney Johnson
Dog Walker
CJ started with us in 2024. He previously worked doing group hikes in San Francisco, which is very similar to how we do things out here, only they're lucky because they don't have to deal with the heat as much. He also used to run a dog rescue. Safe to say he's a dog guy, and as he began I could tell he's was ready to take responsibility for your dogs.
Joey Damianakes
Dog Walker
Joey also started with us in 2024. He's a creative guy, so he's going to get some great photos of your dogs on hikes. He grew up raising guide dog puppies, so he has lots of dog experience. He's also working with me to develop our dog photography studio, and we look forward to bringing that to you all in the near future.
Jake Heikkila
Store Manager
Jake has been with us since we opened the store in 2023, and before that he's helped me take care of your dogs when I've been out of town over the years. If you call us most days, he's the one you'll talk to, and if you stop into our store, he's the one you'll see. Also he's my brother.
What Diablo Dog Does
We provide on and off-leash dog walking services, grooming and baths, and training. We also sell pet foods and supplies in our store at 725 Alhambra Ave.
What Diablo Dog Will Do Next
We're going to be adding Pet Photography to our services in the near future. Right now we're working on getting to a point where we feel confident that what we can provide can rival any more established competition in the area.
Thank you
for reading. If you have any questions or comments, let us know below. You can also stop into our store Tuesday-Sunday 11AM-5PM or call us at 925-215-0410. Feel free to explore the rest of our site, or create an account with us, and we'll welcome you and your pets onboard.
Matt Heikkila
Diablo Dog
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