Well now that it is time to begin a new week, I would like to reflect briefly on last weeks events. It was such a great week working with “my” dogs. I guess that was the silver lining that I was looking for after my bad luck the previous week.

One of my clients, Sheila, has a wonderful, if not irascible, middle aged Irish Water Spaniel named Mr. McGillicudy (Gilly for short). Because Gilly was attacked as a young puppy, he now finds it difficult to be in the company of dark coloured dogs or dogs with masks. I am also trying to work with him regarding the mailman. Wouldn’t you know it, he was actually submissive to another dog and when put in a down-stay, he stopped trying to get at the mailman. Our time together is beginning to pay off.

I also walk Spock, a Boston Terrier, who has, from day one, been a notorious lunger. He seems to think that he is much bigger than his tiny stature. He is great with dogs, but people? That’s a little bit of a challenge. Since I had my son with me who was eager to help daddy walk the dogs, I figured I would practise getting Spock to relax with strangers. Stacey, Spock’s human companion wanted me to be extra vigilant with kids. Wouldn’t you know it, within 5 minutes Spock was climbing on Ayden to get in a few kisses. Ayden was really great at following my directions and everyone was happy.

It’s times like these when I am overrun with happiness over my choice to become a professional dog walker. The undeniably hot weather has broken somewhat, all my dogs are getting along, I’m getting lots of outdoor exercise. What could be better?

….all you can do is pick yourself up, dust yourself off and get back in the game. 2 days ago, as I was driving home from one of my client’s homes in Oshawa, my right rear tire shredded while I was on the 401 and driving about 110km/h. While I kept my whits about me and calmly pulled over to the side of the road, I was still a little anxious because I had Magellan, my Rhodesian Ridgeback, in the back of the truck. He jumped up from a dead sleep realizing there was something wrong and you could tell he was very anxious. But he was very good walking on the highway to the next exit (as I had to leave my phone at home to be charged). All-in-all, there wasn’t too much damage to the truck except for some mouldings that flew off and stuff like that. Eh! The dogs don’t care what my truck looks like. Why should I? I must say thank you to Active Green + Ross for their continued care of my truck.

    Now while my truck has been down, I have been having some fun driving the panel van that I rented from Discount Truck Rentals. The dogs love the extra room and so do I. It is a little more difficult to parallel park, but then again, you command a little more respect from all other vehicles.

    I wanted to take a second to commend Sarah (my very first client)  for taking the tough stance with her two companions. Zoe, a Chihuahua and Keira, a Chihuahua and Yorkie mix  who now have to discontinue using newspapers on the floor for a bathroom. I think that is a great idea. The clear benefit is a cleaner fresher smelling home but more importantly the dogs have a place to stay that is not a mess. You get to flush your toilette right? Well, your companions should have the same benefit of a poop free abode. Just in case you were wondering, Pitter Patter will also scoop your yard/run if you would like some help with that. Please see our services page.

    Have a great day! And don’t forget to have your companion sit before crossing the road!!

Well, the time has finally arrived! Pitter Patter Companion Care and Services is online!! And while PPCCS has officially been up and running for 7 months now, the website is live and I feel that we are really on the map, now that we have our very own plot of internet space. There are so many people to thank for their support and assistance to this point. First I would like to thank Substance Media for helping me every step of the way. I am learning about business on a steep learning curve and they have been there to let me know that I need to look outside myself and what I think is a great idea, to remember that I am trying to market to many different types of people. The Boyz have taken time out of their busy schedules to meet with me and keep me routed in the tried and true business acumen. There are too many friends to mention who have shown their support in one way or another. I have to also thank my family. My mother and father, who are also not great business people, have found a way to show me support when, as their child, they just want me to be safe. My sister Kalli  and her fiancé Sean who have from day one pumped me up to believe that I could really do this. I must also acknowledge my time at Bell ExpressVu  which taught me all that I know about customer service and personalities. But most importantly, I want recognize, acknowledge and thank my customers to this point. These are the people who took a chance on a burgeoning company and put their companions’ well being in my hands. I will introduce you all in blogs to come.We are going to take this Companion Care Industry and build it in Canada one step at a time. I hope that you will all join me for the ride. Send me a note whenever you feel the fancy if you have an idea or just want to make a comment. Please come back to visit and read my blog to see how my days are going and to see what issues are affecting this and other companies across the GTA.