BY JESSICA PARKS
Dyker Heights’ beloved
“dog whisperer” is closing
the doors to his daycare and
boarding service at the end of
the month — citing a lack of
sustainable business amid the
coronavirus pandemic.
“It has been getting progressively
more diffi cult to sustain
the business during the
pandemic. With traveling at a
minimum, business is a small
fraction of what it used to be,”
said Matt Signorile, the owner
of Chasing Tails on 66th Street
near Fort Hamilton Parkway
in a Jan. 4 Facebook post.
With families forced to hunker
down at home, the dog’s
boarding business has taken
a serious hit as many dog owners
are no longer traveling for
a vacation or to work — so they
don’t need their pets watched.
“I would need 50+ dogs
boarding a night again to have
any chance at staying open,” Signorile
wrote in the post, which
announced a Jan. 31 closure.
“Unfortunately, this just is
not a possibility currently and
there is no change in sight.”
During quarantine. he kept
the daycare open to support
his clients who were essential
workers but when he reopened
fully, Signorile says he saw a
severe decline in the number
of canines coming in for daycare
and boarding.
Neighbors expressed remorse
COURIER L 6 IFE, JANUARY 15-21, 2021
over the impending closure
of the beloved doggy daycare
— many claiming Chasing
Tails was the only place they
felt comfortable leaving their
furry companion.
“I’ve never met anyone
who loves dogs more than me
— than Matt. I wouldn’t trust
leaving my Sergio with anyone
else but him,” said Linda
Antonio, a longtime customer.
“To follow his Facebook page
and see pictures he posts and
the joy those dogs exhibit
while in his care says it all.”
ALL DOGGIE DAYCARES GO TO HEAVEN: Dyker Heights pet owners are mourning the loss of Chasing Tails, a
daycare and boarding service for local pups that will close at the end of the month. Chasing Tails
More than just a daycare,
customers said Signorile had
an unmatched way with animals
and was an invaluable resource
with pets that were experiencing
behavioral issues.
“He is like the dog whisperer
in so many ways,” Antonio
said. “Dogs who have behavioral
issues become saints
with him.”
Signorile credits the success
of his business to his dedicated
staff of past and present,
all of whom he said have given
100 percent of their efforts
since the day they fi rst came
on board, despite never being
able to pay them the wages he
would have wanted.
“This place isn’t as good
as it is without the people that
have been here,” he said.
To ease Signorile’s transition,
neighbors are pouring
their support into a
GoFundMe fundraiser — organized
by longtime customer
Margarita Polyak — which
has raised over $7,000 since it
was launched on Jan. 5.
“Matt has given so much to
the community and all of his
clients, so I think it’s time that
we give back to him,” Polyak
wrote on the donation site.
Signorile said the funds
raised unfortunately will not
help keep the daycare’s doors
open as he needs to have pets
regularly boarded there to
buoy his business through the
pandemic. But the so-called
“dog whisperer” expressed an
overwhelming sense of gratitude
for the support in his future
endeavors.
“My clients are apparently
looking out for me personally
which is just the best feeling,”
Signorile told Brooklyn Paper,
adding that he would be open
to reopening “if the right situation
came.”
DOG-GONE!
Dyker residents bid farewell
to beloved “dog whisperer”
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