Allow us to introduce you to the incredible Mari-May staff!

The staff at Mari-May Kennels is a group of dedicated people working together in the great tradition of a hard working family - even our co-workers are much more like extended family than employees! The well-being of our dogs is the top priority of each and every day.

Marion

Marion is our head groomer. She keeps all of our dogs looking their very best. She is always willing to give grooming tips to new families to make the experience fun and stress-free for pups.

Marion keeps track of and carefully maintains the health schedules of all the dogs and puppies and plays an important role in the temperament testing process with the pups. She is also one of the people who conducts the initial telephone interview and is very happy to answer any questions you have!

Summer 2007 update- Congratulations Marion, for being accepted at MSU Law College! Marion graduated from WMU with a BA in English at age of 20, having made the Deans list and being elected to "Who's Who in American Colleges and Universities"!! Marion works very hard to put herself through school and will be entering Law School hoping to work one day as an environmental lawyer. Who says homeschoolers aren't accomplished!

John

John is head of our VIP Pet Transportation Services department. He arranges deliveries and personally escorts pups to their new families both by air and by ground throughout the U.S. and around the world. He is an absolute travel expert who cares very deeply about attending to the needs of pups during their journeys! John is also our accomplished photographer who takes extraordinary pictures of the dogs!

In our community, John has served on the local fire department as a volunteer fire fighter since he was 17 passing the state exam at 18. He loves being a fire fighter! John feels very strongly about the importance of community service and also works with the local HAM operators group as a HAM radio operator (since age 14!) regularly volunteering with the group to provide emergency management services to our and surrounding communities. John founded the Alcona Mounted Search and Rescue Posse in 2001 and functions as the current group Captain and horse safety instructor. Another highly accomplished former homeschooler!

Bill

Bill, our Dad, is a licensed contractor. He's our kennel manager who designs and upgrades the operating facilities at Mari-May Kennels. A lifetime dog trainer, he spent many years training and hunting with hounds.

He is currently designing our new training center. He really enjoys the work he does for the dogs he loves and is constantly creating new and innovative ways to improve the educational training of our puppies. Bill is an accomplished classical guitarist and performing artist and insists that the puppies are introduced to the only the best classical music at a very early age! Click here to read about Bill's new proposal at a recent Mari-May meeting and see if the rumors are true about him monkeying around!

Casey

Casey, our Mom, coordinates the daily activities at Mari-May Kennels. She carefully researches pedigrees, oversees the breeding management, and is our on-site professional Midwife who skillfully attends every mom during birth. She also develops our natural canine diet schedules and very often conducts the phone interviews.

Casey is pictured with one of our exquisite Shih-tzu, "Mari-May's China Doll". In 2003, China, Casey and Marion starred in the musical theater production "GYPSY". A true to life mother/daughter team, Casey performed the part of "Rose", Marion performed the part of "Gypsy Rose Lee" and China was "Chowski-wowski". The pictures of Casey & China above and Casey and Marion below (click to enlarge) were part of the productions photo-shoot.

Family veterans of the performing arts, this real-life mother/daughter team performed together contributing over 200 hours of community service in support of the arts. Casey summed up the experience in these words: "Working with Marion was, without question, the most awesome thing I have ever done as a vocalist and performing artist. To play such an incredible role with my very own daughter defined for me what it meant to be accomplished and fulfilled the dreams of having done everything I ever wanted to do in life as an artist. That was it. I honestly wouldn't care now if I never sang another song ever again or ever performed on another stage. There will simply never be another stage that will hold the allure and the magic of the one I shared with my daughter - with my son John supporting our performances as stage lighting manager - in what was quite simply the role of a lifetime. And, being able to work with one of our very special Mari-May dogs was an extra special bonus!"

Casey is a lecturer, writer and trainer as well as a consultant in the fields of natural canine health and training. She is a registered evaluator for the American Kennel Club's Canine Good Citizen Program and provides consultation services on the subjects of holistic diet & canine behavior. Read more about Consultations with Casey at our Contact Us page - scroll down that page for more information.

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Christel

Christel is our Animal Care Specialist. She works especially in the nursery and weaning areas keeping things clean, sanitary and orderly. The puppies keep her on her toes with their antics and they absolutely love the time she spends with them!

Christel is always quick with a smile for both people and dogs and a real joy to work with.

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Chris

Chris works with ground maintenance and is part of the construction crew for the new training facility. He is a wonderful asset to the Mari-May team and his easy going manner is always appreciated!

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Cam

Mari-May pups get lots of early socialization, especially playing with our grandson Cam who loves to run and play with the puppies!

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Haying season!

We raise a great deal of our own farm produce (meats and vegetables) so we can feed ourselves and our dogs a diet of wholesome natural foods free of pesticides and other harmful things. Haying season is one of our most favorite times of the year.

Read more about our holistic dog nutritional program here.

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