We recently connected with Katie Wade and have shared our conversation below.
Katie , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today One of the toughest things about entrepreneurship is that there is almost always unexpected problems that come up – problems that you often can’t read about in advance, can’t prepare for, etc. Have you had such and experience and if so, can you tell us the story of one of those unexpected problems you’ve encountered?
One of the most unexpected problems we have faced as a pet care company is airborne viruses! When we think about working with dogs we often have thoughts of tail wagging fun and sloppy kisses. In reality there is so much more to working with dogs than just playing with them or walking them. In our daycare we see anywhere from 40-50 dogs a day, all of which are placed in a pack of about 20-25 dogs. Much like COVID-19, canine influenza and the bordetella virus are highly contagious, and often the transmission occurs without symptoms. By the time a single dog shows symptoms of an illness it is often already far into the spread and can take down a whole pack. Our company requires all dogs to have current vaccines that help to keep various virus’ at bay but as we have discovered, vaccines do not always protect us against all strains of a virus. Recently, we have had to close the doors of one of my facilities for over a week while we waited out an aggressive strain of the Canine Influenza Virus. This is problematic for obvious business reasons but also tends to dampen the relationship we have with some of our clients. I have been utterly surprised by the response from some of our clients in regards to dogs getting sick from other dogs in our facility. We have taken precautions to lessen the chances of something like that happening again, but the anxiety of knowing we can only do so much has weighed heavy on me as a business owner.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I have always wanted to work with animals. As a child I was obsessed with dogs and would spend most of my time hiking and playing in the woods with my own dog, Roxy. As I aged and life’s turbulence took control, I always leaned on the emotional support of my dogs. After I graduated college I actually became a nanny! The thought of working for a large company or government agency with the promise of utilizing my degree brought more stress than I had anticipated. I am a naturally empathetic person and found helping to raise a baby was something that brought me so much fulfillment. For over six years I cared for the same little girl until I had finally decided to start my own business. BarkPark Philly LLC was created after the realization that caring, empathetic, and thoughtful care was not the norm for pet care in our city. I used the knowledge and patience I had obtained from working one-on-one with a child for so many years to stand out in a really big way. We started as a small dog daycare in a 2,000 sqft space in only offering dog walking, in-home sitting, and dog daycare. We now have two fully operational dog daycares, and a grooming salon. We have expanded our services to dog daycare, dog training, dog/cat boarding, grooming, cat care, and house sitting.
I am so proud of how much we have accomplished in just five years of operation. We have over 25 employees and offer benefits like health insurance and an IRA match! Our clients look forward to detailed notes in regards to their dog’s behavior with us and how they can help keep their dog feeling confident and relaxed at home via enrichment activities and training. It feels good to know that we can offer a superior service to our neighbors and make such an impact on the dogs we see each and every day. If only I could go back and hug my sweet best fur-friend Roxy just one more time, as she truly taught me so many lessons.
Has your business ever had a near-death moment? Would you mind sharing the story?
The shutdown associated with the Corona Virus Pandemic was a really big pivot point for us. We went from a full pack and scrambling to get all the tasks in a day taken care of to just about nothing. Luckily for us we were considered a life sustaining company as we boarded dogs overnight. For the first few weeks we worked hard to keep paying our essential staff even though we only had about 4-5 dogs a night with us, with the hopes that things would change in just a few more weeks. We eventually touched base with our local government agencies and got the go ahead to continue daycare with added restrictions and requirements but I was really unsure of what was ahead for BarkPark Philly. Since then we have been able to implement new practices to keep our company and our employees safe should we have another sudden emergency or pandemic.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
I believe my company has built its reputation based on word-of-mouth. Our clients become fans of our instagram and facebook pages, they enjoy the content we send to them after each appointment, and they truly know we are there to answer questions about their dog should they have them. We have worked hard to become more of a thought leader in the Philly pet care industry and I believe that is why people feel safe relying on us. Our clients will often recommend friends to our daycare to meet and play with their own dogs and form relationships outside of their presence. BarkPark Philly focuses on treating pet owners like parents rather than property owners and that seems to go quite a way!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.BarkParkPhilly.com
- Instagram: @BarkParkPhilly
- Facebook: facebook.com/barkparkphilly