Locally owned and loving little rascals since 2001
OUR GOLDEN STANDARD
Committed to caring
Vicki’s original Rascal, Henry the golden retriever (2004-2015), is the foundation for how we treat other Little Rascals. He is our Golden Standard for professionalism, accountability, and commitment to be the best — Vicki treats every dog as if they were her own Henry. When you’re at the Ranch, you’re part of the family.
Safety First
Rascal Ranch is built for safety and designed for fun. We treat our Rascals with care and compassion, and place their welfare above all else.
Built on a Dream
Vicki always dreamed of a dog utopia. The dogs at Rascal Ranch are handpicked to spend the day in an outdoor, natural play environment.
Passionate About Pups
We count ourselves lucky to have such a cool job — loving your Rascal! We’re in it for the endless games of fetch and happy tail wags.
MEET VICKI
A passion for pups
Vicki’s Little Rascals was born out of a passion to grow a meaningful small business for four-legged family members.
A Belmont native, Ralston Middle School Ram, Notre Dame High School Tiger and Chico State Wildcat, Vicki built her business to serve the community she grew up in. She’s always loved dogs, helping others, and of course, the Peninsula.
From 2001 to 2015, Vicki offered dog walking and dog sitting services to help owners give their Rascals the exercise and care they needed. After 14 years of working with dogs, hiking off leash, and spending hours in dog parks, Vicki expanded her business by building an exclusive private play land — Rascal Ranch. From forest land to a dog’s dream come true, Vicki transformed Rascal Ranch’s five acres into a doggy daycare utopia. Watch the video >
Her years of experience crafted the Ranch’s safe and engaging environment that drives trust and socialization. From custom fencing to meticulous lawn maintenance and innovative play structures, every aspect of Rascal Ranch was built for safety and designed for fun.
Now in business for two decades, Vicki’s doggy utopia proudly offers the Greater San Mateo area the most unique doggy daycare experience on the Peninsula!
20
Years of experience
1,452
Rascals loved since 2001
7
Rascal Wranglers
OUR TEAM
Meet the Rascal Wranglers
All of our Rascal Wranglers are certified in Pet CPR/First Aid and complete extensive dog behavior/handling training as well as certifications through Pet Sitters International, the world’s leading educational organization for pet professionals. They also must pass a comprehensive background check through Acutraq before working with us. We take professionalism and trustworthiness seriously — we wouldn’t expect any less if it was our Rascal.
Melinda
From the goofballs to the wiggle butts, the barnacles to the holdouts that need to warm up to you, Melinda loves all types of Rascals! A Southern California native, Melinda is Vicki’s veteran right-hand at the Ranch. She also brings the party. Those birthday photos and social media posts that we all love? Yep, that’s Melinda. The person who helps Vicki make her creative ideas come to reality…Melinda. Not to be overlooked, Melinda also travels with a toolkit and can solve almost anything. Nothing can stop Vicki and Melinda– *after they watch a Youtube tutorial first.
Daniel
A Bay Area native, Daniel has worked with dogs for nine years. First at Petfood Express as a Sales Manager, and now as a beloved Wrangler! Daniel just learned how to drive in a T-post with Vicki on a recent Saturday project to build the lil’ Rascals an extended play park. Daniel LOVES hockey and you can find him on the ice 3x a week playing with his team, the Flying Carpets! His favorite part of the day? Picking up all the Rascals— he loves how excited they are to see him and hop in the Ranch Express!
Katie
Katie is a San Jose local that turned her childhood love of dogs into a fun and rewarding career. She loves to watch excited Rascals play at the Ranch (and listen to their snores on the way home). Katie’s passion for pups fuels her commitment to ensure our Rascals’ comfort, safety, and happiness. Her experience working with four-legged fur-riends has also helped her fine-tune her photography skills — she’s full of tips, tricks, and key sounds to make even the most stubborn Rascal look at the camera. While she loves all dogs equally, Frenchies and Weiner dogs definitely make her squeal!
Heather
Heather is a SoCal native and is currently pursuing a masters in nursing to accompany her UC Santa Cruz degree in neuroscience and EMT license. Heather and Beau work in tandem as our onsite shift leads. Heather is perfect to wear all the hats in her role - whether it be Wrangler, trial day dog evaluator, coach— or if you ever need an Advil. Heather loves spending her day in the great outdoors — she loves forests, and has a green thumb of her own (she has 40 house plants!). As a true dog lover, Heather loves the sweet few minutes of one-on-one time during pickups, and finds great satisfaction in ensuring happy tails and wiggly butts.
Alyssa
Vicki’s Master of Scheduling and Logistical Tetris— and right hand. Alyssa joined as Vicki’s manager in early 2022 and we don’t how we ever managed without her! Alyssa’s path led directly to her current role with us- Alyssa worked at the Humane Society of Silicon Valley as an Adoption Supervisor for 4 years, as an office manager of a veterinarian office and last but not least, had her own dog walking business for a period of time. Alyssa doesn’t just she loves animals- she lives it. Her current housemates include her human husband Joe, 3 pups, 1 cat, one 120 pound tortoise named “Tortilla”, chickens, guinea pigs and pet rats. It’s a zoo— and it’s perfect!
Beau
Beau is a Bay Area native that loves the great outdoors and hanging with great dogs! Beau is not just a Wrangler, but a Shift Lead and helps train new hires. She is a part of the team that assesses new Rascal’s readiness to join the pack, she steps in whenever and wherever the Rascals or team need. Beau and Heather are our superglue! Nothing beats watching the joy of Rascals run around the Ranch while enjoying the sunshine. When she's not at the Ranch, she enjoys hiking or beach time with her Sheepadoodle Mo.
Angela
Angela grew up in Marin County. She loves her littlest Rascal pick ups because she can cuddle them on the way to the Rascal van! Angela worked as a dog grooming assistant before joining VLR and loved giving the pups the best shampoo massages. When she is not working, Angela spends her free time with her fiance, playing video games and exploring the Peninsula.
Interested in joining our team? Apply to become a Rascal Wrangler! >
OUR VALUES
We care — plain & simple
Safety
The care and welfare of our Rascals will always be our #1 priority.
Unique & Fun
We strive to offer a different experience that creates smiles all around.
Flexible
Life happens — we get it! We are willing to adapt quickly to help you.
Team-oriented
Our staff is kind, supportive, dependable, and eager to help in any way possible.
Compassionate
We treat your Rascal like our own — it’s our Golden Standard.
Trustworthy
Count on us to show up and do the job right — every time.
Goal-setters
We seek to constantly learn and improve our service. Training is always ongoing.
Professional
We treat your home, privacy, and pet with the utmost respect — just like we would want.
Ted the Labradoodle
Rascal since 2020
“After contacting Vicki, she called back very promptly and we had a long conversation. She asked me lots of questions about my dog and was very forthcoming about how she ran the Ranch. I was immediately comfortable and scheduled a time with her to go through the sign up process. I have already increased Ted’s Ranch visits from three days to four days a week. My dog is so excited when he gets picked up. It makes me so happy (and relieved) to see how much he benefits from his time away from home. When I send him to Vicki's Little Rascals, I feel like I'm sending him to spend the day with an extended family.”
— Ted’s mom
Cooper the Red Lab
Rascal since 2015
“Vicki and her team are the most dedicated, professional and hardworking dog lovers you'll ever meet. During my several years as a client, not a day has gone by that I didn't feel that my dog was treated like one of their very own pets. My dog comes home tired and happy from the ranch every single time. Vicki and team have done an outstanding and unmatched job at creating a beautiful, stimulating, fun and unique outdoor ranch for the dogs to enjoy. I offer the highest recommendation for Vicki's Little Rascals, and cannot thank them enough for caring for and loving all the dogs wholeheartedly.”
— Cooper’s mom