Common ground with…Croinne Antonetti – Madison Commons

A Wisconsin native, Corinne Antonetti is the owner of Paws and Claws, a dog walking and pet sitting company based in Madison. The animals Corinne and her team care for range from dogs and cats to snakes and even hissing cockroaches.

Before Corinne started working in animal care, she worked in the Marine Corps for four years. She then moved to Tennessee to begin her bachelor’s degree in biology. Corinne returned to Wisconsin five years ago to be close to her family and then purchased Paws and Claws from her sister, Nicole Rice, who started the business a decade earlier in 2009. Nicole decided to focus on running a dog boarding business and felt it would be a success. It’s best to separate that from the Paws and Claws pet sitting and dog walking side.

In addition to running Paws and Claws, Corinne has balanced motherhood with completing her biology degree at UW-Madison.

What do you think is the biggest challenge facing our community?

In the animal/pet community there are two facets that I think would pose major problems. On the pet side, just overpopulation. And unfortunately, huge increases in the cost of living have led to more people giving up their pets, so there is a need for foster parents in the community. There is a need for adoption. There are so many pets out there, and unfortunately there don’t seem to be enough people who can afford them right now. When it comes to people, I can’t speak for them as I’m not a vet myself, but I do network with quite a few. And I also volunteer for rescues and network with some people who also work in rescues. There’s just a lot of burnout and compassion fatigue among people who care for pets in these capacities and see pets in very difficult times, see the neglect and abuse of animals.

What do you wish people in our community would understand better?

Kindness is absolutely necessary for people in these spaces and of course for pets. I just think there’s just not enough kindness and there are so many ways to get involved and help pets in our community that aren’t necessarily financial. You can donate your time, you can donate your money, you can donate your stuff. But you can also share messages on social media. You can just try to create awareness. You can also become a foster parent, just like a weekend person. You don’t necessarily have to be available 24/7 to help, you can help temporarily.

What is one change you would make if you could that would make life better for people in our community?

Simply put an end to the exploitation, abuse and neglect of pets. I wish everyone could afford pets and have time for pets. In short: make sure people are friendly.

What in our community gives you hope?

So in Madison and Wisconsin as a whole, we absolutely love our pets as a family. And you see that a lot in this community. It is a very dog ​​and cat friendly area. And unfortunately some other places aren’t that accepting, but here in Madison I feel like we really love our pets and I think that gives me hope.

This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.

If you are in the Madison area and need dog walking or pet sitting services, visit pawsandclawswi.com for more information about Paws and Claws.