Coco and Toto

Boarded my dog here recently and had a great experience. They were open to my mildly neurotic checking in on her, and the person on the phone always immediately knew about which dog I was calling every single time. They took really good care of her and while they are pricy, it’s not as expensive as other boarders in the area especially given the fact that it’s cage-​free. I’d love if they had webcams like some other places but I am also crazy about my dog so it’s perhaps better that they don’t :P

Girl at the front is sweet. The groomer sucks. Wasted 6 and ½ hours of my day. And the dog looks terrible. I made them Attempt to fix it twice and she still looks absolutely ridiculous. It cost me $ 136 for something i could have done in my bathroom at home. I wasn’t even offered a discount.

Facility is too small and overloaded with dogs during the day. «Temperament test» consisted of backing my dog into a corner and holding her there, 20 other dogs approaching her nose to nose, not letting her run around them. Not recommended unless your dog is comatose.

Coco and Toto kicks butt! We boarded our shih tzu, Dougie, there for 8 days while we went out of the country. He had an awesome time, and Valerie was great about updating us. They are super friendly and professional, and don’t rely on their reputation to charge obscene rates and make you feel stupid for asking questions, like other boarding places. We will use them exclusively moving forward for all of our boarding needs. Dougie was tuckered out from all the fun!

THE ABSOLUTE WORST! FIND SOMEWHERE ELSE TO GO!
I am not one to waste time writing a review unless something is so spectacular or so horrific that you are compelled to let others know. And when it comes to our pets, nothing could be more important then who cares for them.
I went in for a noon appointment and it was almost 15 minutes before anyone even bothered to come out to the desk to check me in, even though three people saw me there standing and despite asking twice to speak to someone. The facility smelled and looked worn down — not the bright, pretty pictures on their website. I felt unsure, but decided to go ahead with the my puppies very first haircut anyway as they really needed it.
They promised me to have them ready by 5 pm. They weren’t done until almost 7 pm forcing me to completely rearrange my schedule. I asked for a medium length trim and showed them a picture of them as puppies. Instead they buzzed all their hair off, making them look utterly ridiculous. I didn’t even recognize them when they came out of the back room.
Suffice to I will never return and I highly recommend finding another groomer. I can’t express how disappointed and upset I am.

We love Coco and Toto! We have used them for waking, boarding, daycare and of course GROOMING. They are simply the best groomers in town! As busy and popular as they are, they are really good about last minute accommodations.

We had our dog groomed and were EXTREMELY DISAPPOINTED!!! I had called before the appointment and gave very specific instructions about how to groom my 8′ month old Cavapoodle .
They completely ignored my instructions about how much hair to leave on the puppy and instead gave him a scalping buzz cut leaving him unrecognizable and looking like a marsupial — a lemur– specifically .
The receptionist was not accommodating and even argued with me about the specific instructions i left earlier in the day. aBSOLUTELY unprofessional and sadly– ignorant.
I would discourage anyone from using their grooming services. And the receptionists are incompetent .
Sorry to be so severe but they were abysmal .
DON’T HAVE YOUR DOG GROOMED HERE!!!

My dog, Betsy, has been visiting C&T one day a week for the past three years. Betsy is a rescue, so she’s hyper-​sensitive. When she first arrived at her forever home she was jumpy and had some major social issues with people and other dogs. She was unable to stay in another doggie daycare environment, where she was frightened and aggressive. The folks at C&T were warm, welcoming, friendly and especially patient. She’s warmed up to her C&T friends and she enjoys her weekly visits.
Pet boarding is all about your pet’s individual experience with the caregivers and I give C&T the highest marks!

I took my dog there a few times, it was OK until they overcharged me for my dog’s haircut and I complained so they agreed to bring down the price. Funny enough, the next time I called to book boarding for my dog, they first asked me for my dog’s name and then claimed they didn’t have room and were extremely rude — even though I called a couple of weeks ahead. I think they did have room but purposely lied because of the issue I had with them. They do not treat their customers equally and I have not gone back since.

I have dog walking daily for my 6 month puppy and was not sure if it was helpful for my shih tzu and worth the cost. Yesterday when my puppy and I were having dinner outdoors and he spotted his dog walker from afar and was so thrilled to see him I knew Coco and Toto and my dog walker are excellent. I had not seen my puppy get that excited to see anyone (besides myself) and it validating my decision to incur the extra expense. Scheduling has been incredibly easy and they are very reliable. They have also accomodated last minute requests. I’m now going to start sending my puppy to doggy daycare and see how that goes.

I have been taking my labrador retriever to Coco and Toto for over a year, and cannot say enough great things about them. I use both their dog walking service and boarding services quite often; I trusted them so much that I had a dog sitter stay in our home with Bailey over an extended vacation, and came home to a happy pup.
Dog Walking Services-​every time Bailey gets a walk, Carlos leaves a note recapping the walk, how Bailey did, etc. Bailey is 11 years old, and Carlos makes notes of anything that seems «off» during the walk so that I can be on the lookout. I truly feel like Carlos cares for Bailey in the same way we do, and even gave him a little Christmas gift.
Dog Boarding Services-​We live near Coco and Toto and every time we take Bailey on a walk he pulls in the direction of it. Scheduling is always fast and easy, and all of the staff is great to work with. While I can’t be there to witness what happens while Bailey is under their care, his excitement to walk in the door says it all. His happiness makes leaving him in someone else’s care so much easier!
I highly recommend Coco and Toto!

Do not go here!
1. Most doggy day cares in the city provide open windows for people to look into and observe. At Coco and Toto, the windows are covered and painted. This is sketchy and not healthy for the dogs.
2. The owners cram WAY too many dogs into the small room at once. Today I counted 30 dogs in one room.
3. I watched dogs bite and hump other dogs as the one human in the room watched without taking any action.
4. There was urine in the room and no one went to clean it up.
No dog should be left in these conditions.

I can’t tell you how much it pains me to write this review…
Coco & Toto is SO CLOSE to my apartment and my puppy has so much energy so I REALLY wanted this to be our day-​care facility!
1. The first time I came for a temperament test they told me I could go outside and watch him through the little holes in the window while they put him inside to meet the other dogs. The snow had caused the windows to fog up so I could not see anything from the outside. I came back inside after a few minutes of trying to see in and they told me my dog passed the test and handed him back. I told them that I couldn’t see through the windows and I didn’t feel comfortable leaving him somewhere I couldn’t see… I thought they would surely understand this. They said that I couldn’t go back into the room because it would cause the dogs to bark. I asked if I could just stand behind the desk to watch from afar and the employee said no– I needed to stand in front of the desk.
She put Teddy back in for a few minutes while I strained my neck and tried to watch from the store. I couldn’t see a thing. I had a bad feeling when she gave back my dog after another two minutes because it felt strange that they wouldn’t let me see where my dog was going. Additionally, I was concerned that they finished the «temperament test» in 5 minutes.
2. I told our dog trainer (Ayelet from Shelby Semal Dog Training) about the experience and how I really wanted this place to work. She volunteered to come back with me to check out the facility.
We got there for the second time and Ayelet immediately asked why the employees were carrying spray bottles (we could see this through the window but I didn’t think twice about it). They told us they spray the dogs when they get rowdy. Our trainer made us leave immediately. I didn’t think the water spray punishment was a big deal but she said that apart from going against our positive training techniques, if my dog gets sprayed every time he is playing rough with another dog, he might start to associate the bad thing with playing with dogs and it could create an aversion to playing with dogs (which he really loves)
She was really surprised they admitted to spraying the dogs with water since most facilities claim they only use positive reinforcement.
3. I came back a third time because I convinced myself that the water spraying wasn’t a terrible punishment and this place is SO CLOSE to my apartment. It was 6ish (doggy daycare closes at 7pm) and they had all the shades pulled down over the windows. I explained that the first time I brought him I couldn’t see through the window and asked if they could lift up the shades so I could see him play. They said they could not. I didn’t understand this because people were still picking up their dogs from doggy daycare while I was there and after I left. Especially after I explained what happened the first time (and the woman said she remembered it), I thought they would ease my nerves and lift the blinds for a minute or two.
4. I called the next day and asked to speak with the owner/​manager. I left a message that I was really sad because I wanted Coco & Toto to work but had 3 strange experiences and wanted to discuss. Out of courtesy, I wanted to make sure the owner knew what was happening so they didn’t continue to miss out on potential clients in the neighborhood. That was three weeks ago and I never got a returned call.
I’ve been taking my pup to Puppy Loft (30 blocks out of my way) and he loves it. Haven’t had any issues so far.

I personally recommend Coco and Toto to anyone looking for an animal care facility in Hells Kitchen. The staff is amazing and I have known many of them personally for several years and they are exceptionally high quality people.
Their prices are significantly better than their competition for basically every product and service they offer. Going anywhere else would just be silly!

These People Know Nothing About Dog Behavior Or Safety
We walked into Coco and Toto to have our dog sign up for day care. Our dog is extremely gentle and well behaved. He is currently in training to be a therapy dog, and has worked each week privately with a certified AKC trainer for over five months.
After Coco and Toto let in our neighbor’s aggressive dog – who has lunged at my wife and several other people multiple times – into their dog daycare, we figured that getting our extremely well-​behaved dog would not be a problem. But, apparently, our dog is too well behaved to attend there.
The «test» to see if he was ready for dog daycare was to place him in a cage that was too small for his size and allow thirty or more yappy dogs to surround him and bark. When our dog did not show interest in the mob of dogs, they told us that he was too nervous.
These people have no understanding of dog psychology. Would you like to be in a small cage where you can barely stand up and be screamed at by thirty people? No, no you would not. Our dog could not get out of there fast enough. You’d think someone there would have read something (anything) on how to introduce dogs to each other. (Or, if that’s too strenuous, perhaps watched an episode or two of «The Dog Whisperer»…)
Their complete ignorance of dog behavior would be reason enough to run away from this place. But if not, I have to agree with the previous comment that the staff is rude and condescending as well.
It’s okay, however. The universe will re-​balance the scales when our neighbor’s aggressive dog inevitably kills another dog on their premises. Have fun with that.
Take a look at some of the filtered reviews before you take your dog here. After our experience, we looked up some of the other reviews, and they mention such awful things as dogs coming back from boarding ten pounds lighter and with strange scratches. That’s just he beginning…

My Frenchie had the best time boarding at Coco and Toto. It is a cage-​free atmosphere, so at night she cuddles with the other pups. There is an overnight caregiver, so I am never worried about her evenings. Private walks are inexpensive and the staff shows my pup so much love. Booking is easy and they offer many services. My pup has so much fun boarding at Coco and Toto, she usually spends several days sleeping after coming home! Such a great place to board your precious pup!

My apartment records suggest that our walker cut corners and didn’t do the full hour walks — some of the in/​out time difference was 40 – 43 minutes or so, which means our dog was getting closer to 30 minute walks, after taking into account elevator travel time and setup time. Given both my wife and I working long hours and our dog being high energy, it was very disappointing and upsetting to trust a service that took advantage of us. Management failed to rectify the problem when it was brought to their attention. He asked for proof of the apartment records, because he’ll «need to evaluate and fire the dog walker upon confirmation,» because he «craves truth» or something along that effect. I wasn’t willing to have my actions lead to someone’s employment action (second chances?). Their doggy daycare area is one big room where big and and small dogs are all together.
Dog owners beware. The amount of stress and inconvenience caused by their lack of care was too much. If I could give 0 stars, I would.

Awful experience. My dog came out after a little over a weeks stay with pink eye, diarrhea, a badly scratched up face and about 10 pounds lighter than when we dropped her off. We were handed a bag of completely rotten food… her leftovers! If they had fed this to her it’s no wonder she has been so sick! I literally felt like I was coming to a dog shelter to rescue some poor pup. The place came with some good recommendations and the staff seemed nice but there are clearly too many dogs in what looks like a small space. After almost $ 400 in vets bills and a lot of TLC she is finally starting to return to her former self. If you love your dog, go elsewhere.

Horrible customer service.
My friend used Coco & Toto for dog sitting for three nights when she was away and the dog sitter left her dog for over 24 hours alone, possibly up to 48 hours so that the dog was left to defecate and urinate on the floor of her apartment. The way she found out that the dog was alone (the dog sitter was lying to her) was because police were called because the dog was barking non-​stop. I am the emergency contact she has listed with her landlord so I got the call to go over to the apartment to deal with the dog and the police (there is a police report, videotapes from the building, etc). Coco & Toto were COMPLETELY useless in dealing with the situation, they didn’t want to see the video, they would not release the name of the dog sitter and would not say if the dog sitter was getting fired. Apparently only after the dog sitter did something to other client was she fired.
My friend asked for some compensation — after all, she had to toss a rug in her apartment and her dog now has major abandonment anxiety. Coco & Toto only told her they would take the dog sitting off her bill, no compensated dog walks, etc. WOW! So she just didn’t have to pay for the dog sitting that didn’t happen? This company is horrible.

LOOK HOW MANY FILTERED REVIEWS THERE ARE. And among those that are not filtered:
– notice how many of the 4 & 5 star reviews are by people who have posted very few other reviews. Or: check their other reviews & notice how much longer & more detailed their reviews for other places are.
– notice how similar so many of them are. Same vague praise, same structure, ending with «RECOMMEND!», vague claims about the dog liking the place, claims of having moved away, claims of comparisons to other similar business nearby.
– one of the more «convincing» ones was WRITTEN BY AN EMPLOYEE.
Stinks to high heaven.
I’m baffled by all these claims of the in-​store staff being so friendly and professional. They have always given me the impression my existence is annoying to them. One particular front desk woman seems to go out of her way to do everything and anything in the world rather than help customers. For example, on more than one occasion, I and others have just stood there waiting around watching her leisurely straighten out shelf merchandise, talk on the phone*, putter around on the computer etc. rather than help the people who are physically there waiting. They seem to have a very «uggggghhh everything is such a boooother» surly teen kind of attitude. Not confidence-​inspiring.
* and yet — I also completely disagree with the reviewer who said the place is always available by phone. In my experience, I would say they pick up the phone about one out of ten times. It’s really frustrating.