Our Pittsburgh East Team

In 2005, my wife Barb and I were both working for BNY Mellon Financial in the foreign currency area. We had 2 dogs at home whom we would never trust to stay in a kennel. We would travel frequently and always leave them with Barb's parents. However Barb's parents were getting old and it was becoming a hardship for them. At the same time we had been looking for a business that would provide some diversification in our jobs. While we were looking at numerous businesses we stumbled across Camp Bow Wow. At the time there were only 11 locations open but we were intrigued by the concept of all-day-play daycare for the dogs, the private cabins at night at the ability to watch our dogs online when we traveled. The online cameras were especially valuable as we no longer had to take the word of the kennel on how the dogs were treated during their stay. I flew out to Colorado immediately and discovered that the facilities were even better than we imagined. We saw how professional, caring and fun the Camp Bow Wow locations were and knew we had to be a part of it. Finally, a place we would actually want to take our dogs in Pittsburgh! We immediately signed up for 2 location licenses. We opened our first location in Green Tree, 6 months later in Nov 2005 which was the 12th Camp Bow Wow.

Our Greentree location was an immediate success. At the time we needed to explain to the public what dog daycare and all-day-play boarding was about as no one was offering these services at the time but Pittsburghers quickly warmed to the concept. Pittsburghers love their dogs! We won the Best New Pup award from Camp Bow Wow the following year four our success.

In Nov 2008 we opened our second location in Ross Township. At this time there were about 75 Camps around the country. Despite the terrible economic downturn people still showed up to let us take care of their most prized companions. In 2009 Barb left BNY Mellon to join me in the business and it truly became a family business. We had our growing pains in learning to work together but it has definitely made us a stronger family.

In May 2012 we were fortunate enough to be able to open our third Camp Bow Wow in Highland Park. We were the first franchisee in the Camp Bow Wow system to open 3 locations. We were about the 100th Camp to open at that point. Highland Park has been even better than we expected; it consistently has one of the top number of days per day in the Camp Bow Wow system! We won the Best of the Burgh for pet care services 7 years in a row. I think our safety, quality and fun atmosphere speaks for itself when Pittsburgh supports us as they have.

As we celebrate our 10 year anniversary of Camp Bow Wow in Pittsburgh, We also celebrate the opening of our fourth franchise in Monroeville. Every Camp Bow Wow we have built has been better than the last, and this one is no different. We offer full service grooming, dog training, high definition webcams, luxury suites, special teacup play yards and all the other wonderful features Camp Bow Wow is know for here in Pittsburgh. We are excited to be able to take care of even more of our furry friends in the Pittsburgh market!

Giving back to the community has always been an important interest for us. We worked with Humane Animal Rescue (formerly Western PA Humane society) to win a $50,000 shelter makeover grant to rehab their shelter. In 2007 we started throwing an annual Monte-Carlo night fundraiser to benefit the Humane Animal Rescue and Bow Wow Buddies Foundation. Over the past 10 years we have raised more than $100,000 for this great cause!

Skills and Experience

Background: I have a Bachelors degree in Business from The University of Pittsburgh, taken courses at Dale Carnegie and Skill Path and I have worked in the dog industry for over 13 years now.
Additional Skills/Qualifications: Certified in pet first aid & CPR, trained in dog behavior and play yard management. Have done dog hydrotherapy, and cared for special needs dogs. Also graduated as a Certified Dog Trainer.

Fun Facts

What I love most about my job: EVERYTHING! I love being about to help create a safe place where a dog can be a dog and have fun and the parents can feel at ease that their dog is being well taken care of and getting lots of love. I treat every dog that walks through our doors as my own so it makes my dreams of having a ton of dogs a reality.
My pets: I currently have 4 dogs at home: Tierra (Siberian Husky), Charlie (Lab X), Trudy (Siberian husky), and Duke (mutt). I also have a Bunny named Peppy.

What isn't there to say about Noelle? She is a hard-working employee who is 100% dedicated to the dogs! Noelle has been working with dogs for 5 plus years, particularly in Day Care and Boarding facilities, so she knows her stuff! This woman makes sure every shift that everything is completed and completed well, but her biggest contribution would be the love and care she gives day in and day out. Thank you so much for everything you do, Noelle.

Skills and Experience

Background: I graduated from Golden Paws in August of 2013. I worked independently before joining the Camp Bow Wow Family in February of 2015. In order to get her doggy fix outside of the groom room, I spend one day a week as a Camp Counselor. This assists in building a relationship with the dogs and open communication with their humans by observing what the dogs’ needs are to ensure they are healthy and comfortable. I specialize in breed specific cuts (Ex: Poodles) and also able to perform hand stripping. Independently, I perform grooming on Cats and small animals.

Additional Skills/Qualifications: I am dog CPR & first aid certified.

Fun Facts

What I love most about my job: I love my job as a groomer because of the trust and bond I build with the dog while working with them one-on-one. Grooming can be a stressful experience and I want to make that dog feel as comfortable. Building that trust can be done by just talking to them, giving them love, and respecting their personal space. When a dog comes in and seems to be uncomfortable, it is beyond satisfying to see them happy and strut around when I am done grooming them because they have their confidence back and feel relieved.

My pets:

I have a wide assortment of animals at my house. Dozer is a 4.5 year old German Shepherd. Brady is an 8 year Border Collie/Chow mix. I also have a Calico cat named Kitty and she is 2 years old. To add to the mix, I have a 75 gallon fish tank full of African Cichlids.