ballwalkpark's 4th anniversary!

This week marks ballwalkpark's 4th anniversary! On January 20th, 2010, I left my office desk for the last time and proudly displayed my ballwalkpark flier in the window as my "goodbye". On January 23rd, I woke up on a Monday morning, put on my yoga pants and rain boots and went out to pick up my first pack. Time flies when you're playing with puppies! 

(right) ballwalkpark's first pack - Teddy (in the way back), Bailey, Chinook, Buster and Fletcher. (bottom left) Baby Fletcher at 4mo old on his first sleepover with Bailey and I. (middle left) My last day at an office job - ballwalkpark flier in the window. (top left) My beloved lime green hunter boots - the original ballwalkpark signature. 

Four years feels different than three for some reason. Maybe it is because the last time I did something consecutively for four years, and learned so much during that time, was when I went to college and got a degree. I feel like I have earned my doggie degree! I am by no means a master on the subject, we are talking a B.A. here, not a PhD, but wow have I learned a lot. And the best part is, I never stop wanting to learn about dogs. 

I want to thank all of my clients who have taken a chance on me and allowed me to learn from them and their pups. Each client, human and dog, teaches me something new about dogs, people, business and myself. I have been so fortunate to build a ballwalkpark family with such supportive and inspiring people. There have been many kinks to work out along the way, and it couldn't have been done without your patience, guidance and trust. 

A huge ginormous thanks to Nancy, Chris and Kendal for their help over the years. From the beginning of ballwalkpark I always swore I would never hire an employee because I didn't believe it would be possible to find someone who cared as much about the dogs, clients and business as I do. These guys couldn't have further proved me wrong. Not only have they been amazing employees, sincerely cared for and loved the dogs, they have patiently and gently taught me  how to be a boss, which I think will always be a work in progress ;) 

Words can't describe the happiness your pups have brought to my life over the last four years. Dog walking is a pretty isolated job, and your pups are some of my best friends. They give me a reason to laugh and smile every single day and a reason to love going to work. 

Clients, friends, family, dog walkers, facebook fans, thank you all for your support and for sharing this passion with me. I am one lucky girl. 

ballwalkpark's 3rd birthday!!!

Three years ago today was my first day of ballwalkpark! I want to give a HUGE THANK YOU to everyone who has believed in, supported, and shared your pups with ballwalkpark. I love this business, I have the most amazing employee, Nancy, the most amazing clients and of course, the most amazing dogs. I can't believe how fortunate I am to have all of these people and dogs in my life. Thank you to all of you who have grown with me over the years and patiently taught me how to run this business better. I have learned so much from my clients and their dogs, and am lucky enough to call many of them great friends and some have even become family.

Several times a week, I can't believe that this is really my job. I used to be the person that would beg to come over and meet a friend's new puppy, now people I don't even know call me and pay me to come play with their dogs!

Even after the worst days, I can't help but laugh. When I tell my fiance about my day and tell him I got pushed down in a mud puddle, tripped, bit and had to clean up puke out of the front seat and diarrhea out of the back of the truck, I can't help but laugh. After a hot shower and a good dinner, I have totally forgotten about the day and am ready to see the pups again in the morning. It feels so good to wake up and want to go to work every day!

The absolute best thing that I have experienced in this business is gaining the trust of my clients. There is no greater compliment than when I ask my clients if I can take their dog somewhere or do something and the response is "whatever you want, I trust you". Even more than that, being trusted to take a pup to the dog park. I know that Nancy and I love these dogs and truly do treat them the same (if not sometimes better!) than our own dogs, but for our clients to know and believe that means so much to us. Watching these pups grow up, learn new tricks, and develop a bond with the pack is such a rewarding way to spend the day.

When I started dog walking three years ago, there were about 20% of the dog walking businesses that there are now. Back then, dog walkers had a reputation of being weird, fanny pack wearing, socially awkward with a manly voice (which was never really true to begin with, but the stereotype was definitely there). I have consciously reminded myself to brush my hair, occasionally lint roll the dog hair, put on clean clothes even if they are going to get immediately dirty again. In many ways I have resisted letting myself be the stereotypical dog walker (and will continue to!) but I admit that I have really adopted certain parts of the dog walker lifestyle. Here is what 3 years of ballwalkpark has done to me:

• I always speak for myself and the dogs, even when I am alone, (i.e. can you hold the door for us?). People must think I have an imaginary friend.
• Every coat pocket has treats and poop bags, if the pocket hasn't been chewed out yet
• I can pick up a poop, kick a ball, and tell a dog to stop humping, simultaneously, all while on auto-pilot
• I know every single back street route between Queen Anne and Magnuson park
• I make the weird dog walker sounds at the park. I don't know why or how this happened, but it has. Anything to get those dogs to follow me!
• I am able to identify each of my dogs by their bark and their poop
• My natural reaction upon walking in a dog owner's house is to drop on the floor and play with the dog
• I should own stock in Lululemon and laundry detergent
• I have over 30,000 dog pictures. My computer has crashed numerous times. My external hardrives are full.

Three years feels good. I feel confident while still challenged. I am so grateful for all of you who have helped me get to this point, your support has meant the world to me. I don't know exactly what the next three years will look like, but I have some ideas I am pretty excited about. Stay tuned!

Rowdy sibling walk

Bailey and Otis are basically brother and sister, they have spent more time together than apart in the last 3 years. They stay at each other's houses, spend holidays together and go on vacation together. They had me cracking up on our walk this morning. [gallery ids="1256,1257,1258,1254,1253,1251,1250,1252"]

New Years Resolution: Battle of Achilles

Well today was interesting in terms of my back of the truck goal. As we were about to leave the park I took Achilles out by himself, on leash, to try and coax him into the truck with a piece of chicken. I had set the treat pocket thing on the tailgate on the other side of me. He would get half way up and then back down again. When he was backing down, he swiped the treat pocket. Normally I would just grab it back, but this is the 160lb Great Dane who swallows tennis balls whole. I really didn't want him to swallow the entire (full) treat pocket.

Resourceful thinking kicked in and I grabbed a cookie a client had given me earlier in the day from my dashboard. I broke up the cookie and put it on the ground and luckily Achilles chose the cookie and coughed up the treat pocket. 

After this small victory, Achilles was a little too excited to jump in the backseat and ended up catching his leg on something and falling back out which totally freaked him out. From there on it was like trying to tame a bucking bronco. Needless to say, today was not Achilles' day for the back of the truck.

On the other hand, Cooper was a rockstar and rode to and from the park in the back of the truck! He was not totally convinced about this idea, but he was a really good sport. I gave him treats every time we stopped and he didn't even charge when I opened the gate to let Miles in. Good boy, Coop!

New Years Resolution Part 2: Cooper

If this isn't the highlight of your day, I can't imagine what is. A HUGE thank you to Nancy's wonderful husband, John Holm, for his video editing skills and excellent song choice. The video I sent him was about 10% as cool as what he made it. [youtube=http://youtu.be/_6MoZaN8T9Q]

So, as illustrated by this video, Cooper hopped right into the truck under the influence of the magic cheese/prosciutto combo. The following times were a bit tougher to convince him about, then he decided it was a good idea to convince me to get in the back while he drive, but overall I would say it was a success!

We will definitely be revisiting this exercise as he could totally plow me down as soon as he decides he doesn't want to be in the back anymore. The goal is to convince him that the back is the place to be. Stay tuned!

Cozy Caves for Christmas - 50% off today!

If you have a dog that likes to burrow, a Cozy Cave is a must on your pup's Christmas list. Luckily for you, they are 50% off today on Doctor Foster and Smith website! Click here to get this amazing deal! No, I don't get anything for promoting this, I just like to share my excitement because I need to get Bambi one for the boat too! The cozy cave is like a pita pocket for dogs. It keeps them warm and cozy during the winter months and ideally keeps them out of your bed, unless you want them there :)

Bam and Harley like to share a cozy cave, but assuming you only have one dog, I'd suggest a small for a frenchie sized dog, a large for a Vizsla sized dog, and an XL for a doberman sized dog. I don't know why they don't have a medium...

Go ahead and cross one thing off your holiday shopping list!

Giving thanks

Happy Thanksgiving from ballwalkpark! ballwalkpark has so much to be thankful for this year! Bailey and I are grateful for the truly amazing friends we have made over the past year, that we are fortunate to have as our clients as well. We are thankful for the tremendous amount of support ballwalkpark has received from everyone, support which has voted us Best Dog Walker of King 5's Best of Western Washington this year!

I am thankful that every day I get to smile and laugh and spend my day with such wonderful dogs. I am thankful that instead of dreading the office on Sunday night, I am excited to see my dogs I've missed over the weekend. Most of all, I am thankful that I am able to give Bailey the reality of the urban dog's dream come true, and that we are able to provide that for other pups as well!

I hope that you have a wonderful thanksgiving, and pups, I hope you get thrown a scrap or two under the table ;)