Pet related businesses no doubt should be run from the heart. Unless patience and love are your middle names, I wouldn’t recommend you start a pet related business. Many times I’ve met people working in big box pet stores with no knowledge of or love for pets. It’s just a 9-5, filling an economic need.

On the other hand, I’ve had opportunities to meet a special kind of people who had regular jobs doing what they didn’t have the heart for, which they quit to pursue their heart’s desire to work with what they loved best - pets!

Wet Nose’s Getaway

Gina Hill, a former flight attendant, realized she was not head over heels in love with working in the clouds. Being a flight attendant with a well-padded salary, flying places you have never been before - what girl would not want that? Meh! Said Gina and bade goodbye to the lucrative job and spent a couple of years soul searching. Something changed when her dog produced puppies, leaving Gina delighted. She engaged herself into the care of the critters and found her calling!

Gina then found a couple of pet related jobs, applied herself whole heartedly and gained a lot of knowledge and experience. Soon when she found herself as knowledgeable as her boss and better, she got herself certified for pet first aid. She realized it was time to start a venture of her own. Wet Nose’s Getaway (a pet sitting company in Mississauga) was born!

Gina offers pet sitting in her home as well as in clients’ homes when they go away on vacation. Gina (along with her partner) also visits clients’ homes to relieve their pets of bathroom needs and boredom when their humans are at work. With competitive rates and a genuine caring heart, I have no doubt Gina is well loved among her clients, human and canine.

https://en.pawshake.ca/petsitters/mississauga/wet-noses-getaway-28228
Ph: (647) 390-5909

Team K9

As a 9 year old boy in Trinidad, Glen Ramcharan was not allowed to have a puppy unless he worked for it. Work he did, and was rewarded with puppy Jerry, a pit-bull terrier. From that moment on, this island boy threw his heart and soul into exploring and analyzing the nature of dog behaviour and was fascinated with each discovery.

Life happened and before he knew it he had immigrated to Canada and worked his way through life as a truck driver and a factory worker. It was when he got injured at the factory that he took time off work, got a Jack Russel and reconnected his spirit with his past. Within a year he got a German Shepherd and the best things in life then started happening. The heart of the man went to the dogs and he took a trip around the world meeting several dog trainers and getting perspectives before he shaped his focus.

Today Glen Ramcharan of Team K9 is one of the most sought after dog trainers in GTA. He believes training should be fun for dogs and their people. A good trainer stimulates a dog’s mind to train the body. Training should be applied to teach a dog to be a companion and not a slave. Glen hasn’t met an aggressive dog to date that he could not tame. He offers puppy training, obedience, scent tracking and personal protection training classes on Matheson Rd in Mississauga and also offers in home training, evaluation and consultation.

For those pet owners around Mississauga who want to embrace the option of feeding their dogs raw, Team K9 believes in feeding dogs the best, at a price that will make your pocket happy. Team K9 Raw allows placing orders online, and pick up or delivery times can be arranged to suit your convenience. Pet owners have a choice of rotating between different animal proteins and blending in raw friendly treats like raw meaty bones or dehydrated organ meats.

All raw meals are frozen fresh and are produced in government inspected factories. Complete meals are the most popular choice. Complete meals are ground meat (chicken/ beef/ lamb/ turkey/ duck/ salmon) + organ meat with crushed bones in cubed blocks. The cubes are designed to make feeding raw easier and a no mess job. All you need to do is just thaw the cube and feed the dog.

http://www.team-k9.com/
Ph: (647) 408-5835

Second Tub Grooming Salon

Bored with her job with mutual funds, Marie Arevalo decided to do something fun. Marie has always had large dogs at home and bathing them was a nightmare! They would slosh shampoo all over the bathroom and run dripping out onto carpets. They certainly could do with a “second tub” somewhere outside the house. So the concept of Marie’s second act was formulated. Marie took grooming lessons like she always wanted to, went door to door conducting surveys to sniff out the need of the community, and had a couple of friends investing with her to make Second Tub Grooming Salon happen.

With three groomers working full time and four part time, Marie keeps her little pet boutique in ship shape. The salon offers “you wash stations” for pet owners where they can utilize space and accessories to bathe their dogs so that their homes stay clean. The groomers also extend full service bath and full grooming services with attention to the fullest detail such as teeth brushing and a cologne spritz.

Marie also believes in giving back to the community. Dogs from St John’s Ambulance bathe for free. She also assists fundraisers for Labrador Rescue organizations by offering up free nail clipping, etc.

http://www.secondtub.com/
Ph: (905) 891-3647

Paws and Tails Adoptions

I had the fortuitous chance to meet this very adorable sweet lady, Shirley Cook, who for the last 20 years has been the savior God-mother of hundreds of kitty cats! Over the years Shirley has gathered over 35 volunteers and 10 foster homes to help cats and kittens that have been abandoned, hungry and homeless. Shirley’s rescue organization called Paws and Tails Adoptions now ranks as the 5th highest for adoptions in Canada.

Paws and Tails also rescues other animals in dire need, but cats are their main source of volume. The team also undertakes projects like Barn Programs and Sterilize and Release (where they trap feral cats, spay/neuter, vaccinate and release them back into their habitats). Every kitten or cat rescued is sterilized, vaccinated, given medical treatment and nursed back to health where necessary, before they go on to adoptions.

Paws and Tails is a strictly “No Kill” animal rescue run under Not for Profit Laws. The Rescue is always grateful for donations in cash or kind. If you are reading this, you might consider hosting a fundraiser, even perhaps something on a small scale, like a yard sale, to help out and do your bit. You’ll receive tax receipts for all donations over $20.

www.pawsandtailsadoptions.com
(905) 450-9693

Adorable Pets doggy Daycare

Growing up, it was inconceivable for Elena Hernaci to not have animals around. Her mom being from a farming background and dad owning a German Shepherd, she was surrounded by critters of all kinds most of the time even though she travelled extensively from country to country.

As an adult, Elena was working an office job as an international translator when one day she accidentally had to pet sit an unruly Dalmatian for a friend. The said canine was a happy go lucky one, ill-behaved and pulled hard on the leash while on walks. Elena decided to teach the young dog to behave the way she expected and walk nicely on a leash too. Since that incident, a lot of friends and relatives have brought their dogs to her asking for them to be walked, pet sat or trained.

Elena has now opened up her home to small dogs for day care during the day. She conducts a five week program to help dogs and their people align themselves with a mutually agreeable behavioral approach. The three main aspects of this five week program are communication between the dog and its humans, socialization with people and other dogs, and tackling individual tribulations that are unique to each individual dog and its family. Elena requires dogs to graduate from her five week program before they can be allowed into her doggy day care.

Life at the day care for dogs is very structured and time is spent adequately between stimulating minds and bodies with games and interaction, plenty of socialization and also some rest.

http://www.adorablepetsdoggydaycare.ca/
Ph: (905) 990-1599 ext:3