Welcome to the Best Little Dog House in Georgia!

Thank you for the opportunity to serve you and your pup!  We want you to get to know and trust us as we know your pup is family to you, and we consider all of our guests part of the Best Little Dog House Family.

We Are a Family

We are owned by Dr. Kathy Baker (veterinarian) and DJ Baker who have lived in Smyrna for over 20 years.  Dr. Baker owns and practices veterinary medicine at Lucy’s Veterinary Care which is a mobile veterinary practice that services Smyrna.  The Bakers also own Lucy’s Pet Grooming which is a mobile pet grooming business that services Smyrna.  The Bakers became owners of the Best Little Dog House in Georgia in February 2022.  The Bakers care deeply about our pups, our customers, and our team. We are a family!

Guiding Principles

  • Health & Safety

    Safety for our pups and team is our absolute top priority. It drives how we structure the facility, how we operate play groups, and where we focus attention. We have the smallest attendant-to-dog ratio in our playgroups of anyone in the area. A professional trainer trains the team regularly on safety protocol. If medication is required, your pup will receive a medication sheet at their suite with medication, dosing, and frequency information that is initialed by the team member for each dose and the medication sheet is cross-checked daily by another team member. Dr. Baker and our General Manager Jessica worked together at Lucy’s Veterinary Care for multiple years and have a strong emphasis on dog health. Dr. Baker is at Best Little Dog House regularly for preventative care for guests. We use professional grade cleaning tools and products and clean each guest suite at an absolute minimum of once per day to reduce the spread of germs.

  • Personalized Care

    We know your pup’s name and personality and they are treated as an individual. We tailor play groups based on your pup’s best play buddies and separate pups who may not get along quite as well. We assign a private guest suite based on the particular needs of your pup, and you may also request a variety of guest suites based on your preferences. Each pup who requires medication receives their own customized medical sheet based on their specific needs. Additionally, each pup has their own profile in our system that notes a variety of specifics about their behaviors, best suites for them, and more. Finally, you can customize your pup’s stay with additional requested services such as extra cuddle time, extra walk, and more.

  • Convenience

    We know that you are busy so we try to make drop-off and pickup as time efficient as possible. We also make it easy to request a reservation through our app, via email, or in person.

Our Team

We Care About Your Pup

We know your pup by name and very quickly learn all about them - what they do and don’t like, how they typically act, which pups they do and don’t like, and beyond.  Your pups quickly become part of our family. 

Experienced Leadership

Dr. Kathy Baker has been a veterinarian for over 20 years including the Medical Director at a multi-doctor practice for several years before starting Lucy’s Veterinary Care.  She’s been a dog owner and lover for her entire life and currently has two rescues - Tundra, a ‘Texas Heeler’ - Australian Cattle Dog / Australian Shepherd mix, and Forest, a Border Collie. She won the Gentle Doctor Award which was voted by her veterinary colleagues as the Doctor they would most want to see their own pet.


DJ Baker has over 5 years of pet industry experience with responsibilities such as Practice Manager for Lucy’s Veterinary Care, Owner of Lucy’s Pet Grooming, and Co-owner of Best Little Dog House in Georgia.  His prior experience was as a Senior Director at Floor & Decor corporate and previously with The Coca-Cola Company, InterContinental Hotels Group, Slalom consulting, and Accenture.


Our Lodging & Daycare Manager Naomi has multiple years of pet industry experience, is Pet CPR certified, and is in the process of being certified as a professional dog trainer.

Well Trained

Our team is trained regularly on a variety of topics including safety, health, dog hygiene, and dog behavior.  All team members have completed professional training on Dog Behavior, Play Group Management, and Customer Service Basics. We often bring in professional specialists including industry experts, professional dog trainers, and our veterinarian Dr. Kathy Baker for health topics.