Meet the Owners — Chris & Kim

Husband and wife team Chris and Kim own and operate BlueDog together. They share a love for dogs and both come from families of business owners and entrepreneurs; so opening a dog walking & training company came very naturally to them.
They share a deep passion for providing quality service through their business, as well as maintaining a relationship with dogs based on respect and kindness. They also believe the same for their relationships with their clients and their team. Doing so has allowed them to build a company based around trust, dependability, distinction, customer service and compassion.
Chris & Kim share their home/yard with collies, Reese, Lincoln and Jane, miniature poodle Walt and golden retriever Fern, a flock of chickens, turkeys, ducks and guinea hens, and several bee hives.
Want to work for us?
BlueDog is always looking for passionate, experienced dog lovers to join our crew. Become a part of a fun, energetic team of dog lovers who spend their entire day improving the lives of the dogs!
Our Office Team
Sylvie
Also our Dog Walking Manager, Sylvie founded and managed Kids Karousel, a children’s clothing, toy and furniture consignment store in North Andover for 24 years before “retiring” to work as office manager for BlueDog. She was also the president of the North Andover Merchants Association for 3 years and held Read More
Sue Nowak
Sue grew up with animals and has always had a passion for them. When she moved into her own home (years ago) she got her first Bernese Mountain Dog Tucker. He was an amazing worker who introduced her to the fun world of clicker training and dog sports. Since Tucker, Read More
Susie
We are fortunate enough to have Susie return to BlueDog, as she worked for us back in 2011 as one of our house sitters and weekend dog walkers! In July of 2021, she rejoined our team as the Director of Training. Susie has always had a love for animals and grew up with beagles Read More
Our Trainers
Kim & Chris Palermo
Kim Palermo CPDT-KA, CCUI, Level 1 TagTeacher BlueDog founder Kimbery Palermo is a Certified Professional Dog Trainer, a Certified Control Unleashed Instructor, a Level 1 TAGteacher, and an AKC Canine Good Citizen & S.T.A.R. Puppy evaluator. She has a bachelor’s degree in Zoology from the University of New Hampshire with Read More
Jessica Meade CPDT-KA
Jessica is originally from Ohio, where her passion for dog training first started. Her mother worked in the pet care industry Jessica’s whole life and it sparked her love for animals. Her mom was always bringing home various critters and her friends always referred to their house as “the zoo.” Read More
Tori
Tori grew up in the south shore (Hanover, MA) but moved to Methuen in 2017 to attend North Shore Community College. She received her Associates Degree in Animal Care in 2019 and is currently enrolled in the CATCH Canine Trainers Academy. She’s had family dogs her whole life; her first Read More
Colleen
Colleen is a CCTA Certified Dog Trainer through CATCH Canine Trainers Academy. Colleen grew up in a small farming community in Illinois where her parents now operate a vet clinic. She enjoys competing in dog shows with her Great Dane named Sassy. Colleen flies for Delta Air Lines as a Read More
Nicole
Nicole was raised during an era when all a girl needed was a fluffernutter sandwich, a few hose stops, a bike, and her dog. She and her golden retriever, Tasha, hit the streets of Melrose, MA with her older brother like it was their job. They were free to explore Read More
Apprentice Trainers
Lilly
Jillian has had dogs all of her life. She currently has three dogs! Two mixed breed 7 year old rescues named Maggie and Clary. She also has a 10yr old Havanese named Boo. She is currently a junior at North Andover High School. When she is not playing with her Read More
Connor
Connor graduated from Northeastern University in 2017 and moved straight into the construction industry. After finding himself with lots of unexpected free time in Summer 2020, he finally pulled the trigger and adopted his first puppy, Cassidy. Connor and Cassidy attended puppy classes at BlueDog from the age of 12 Read More
Carla
Carla is originally from Portugal and is currently working as a School Social Worker. She holds her Masters degree in Social Work and her professional LCSW license. Carla has always had a love for dogs and would often be found playing fetch with the neighbors dogs growing up. She adopted Read More
Heather F
Heather grew up in Newburyport and has had pet dogs her entire life. She is a high school special education teacher during the day and assists in classes at Blue dog on evenings and weekends. Heather learned about Blue Dog when she started taking classes with her dog Thor and Read More
Our Walkers
Andrew
Andrew was born in the England and came to the United States in 2002, becoming an American Citizen in 2013. Andrew has been involved with the Salem Animal Rescue League since 2007 as a caregiver for dogs. Sirus, who he shares his picture with, is a former student here at Read More
Danielle
Danielle is from Butler, PA, but moved to New England in the year 2000. She started her career as a Quality Control scientist after getting a science degree from Penn State, but left that field after 10 years to work with her husband at his privately-owned company. After nine years Read More
Erin
I graduated in 2021 with my license in esthetics, and I’m currently getting my degree in business administration, but animals have always been my passion. I grew up surrounded by pets and I adopted my first rescue in 2020 and she is the sweetest girl. I love being outside and Read More
Kate
Kate retired from her full-time job at the end of July 2021. For over 35 years, she worked in Customer Service and Inside Sales for various industries which included medical, insurance, pet products and metals. Her favorite job was selling pet products to small independent pet shops. Kate grew up Read More
Kris
Years ago, Kris was blessed with meeting her boyfriend [soon to be husband] and they adopted a 10 week old mixed Siberian Husky/wolf, named Shauna. Shauna taught Kris so much and they bonded immediately through love and trust. After a short while, Kris was able to teach Shauna some things too! Shauna Read More
Mark
When Mark retired from the MITRE Corporation after 40 years, he knew exactly what he wanted to do – work with dogs! He considers himself lucky to have been adopted by several rescue dogs over the years and has always had a dog in his life. Mark and his wife Read More
Mary
Mary comes from a large family full of people & dogs. Her and her husband, Dan, raised two chocolate labs, Matty & Paffy, who would attend the many family parties, sporting events, and would enjoy hikes with her & her 19 nieces & nephews. They are now the proud parents Read More
Mike
Mike is from Reading MA and has lived in Andover since 1999. In 1997 Mike earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Health Education from the University of Massachusetts Lowell. In 2003 Mike earned an Associates degree in Paramedic Emergency Medicine from New Hampshire Technical Institute in Concord. Since 2003 Mike Read More
Rachel O
I grew up in North Andover and have owned dogs and many other animals all my life. But after rescuing my second dog Brady they became my passion. I started dog walking as a side job and wanted more of a commitment. After taking an online training course I really Read More
Steve
Steve grew up in Andover MA, earned a Bachelor’s of Science at Boston College, worked in corporate for the past 14 years, moved to multiple states / countries, and has always been passionate about dogs. He currently lives in Andover and owns two dogs, a 6 year old French Bulldog Read More
Tara
Tara shared her childhood with a Black Lab/German Shephard mix named Sadie. They went everywhere together; Sadie even walked her to the bus stop and picked her up from the bus stop, every day. Sadie taught Tara the concept of unconditional love and showed her just how wonderful dogs could Read More
Tori
Tori grew up in the south shore (Hanover, MA) but moved to Methuen in 2017 to attend North Shore Community College. She received her Associates Degree in Animal Care in 2019 and is currently enrolled in the CATCH Canine Trainers Academy. She’s had family dogs her whole life; her first Read More
Want to work for us?
BlueDog is always looking for passionate, experienced dog lovers to join our crew. Become a part of a fun, energetic team of dog lovers who spend their entire day improving the lives of the dogs! BlueDog also offers mentorship opportunities with Kim for those looking to become a trainer. Contact us directly for more information!