Looking Back

Well, it’s been just over a year since I launched Wag This Way in Stony Plain and Spruce Grove, and what a ride it’s been! Let’s walk through a bit of it…

As some of you know, I’ve been a graphic designer for about 26 years and was finally starting to make my way quite well in the field, in a position I loved and with a company I loved working for, when a rash of layoffs hit. I was laid off at the beginning of December 2023, and to say that it was devastating would be an understatement. But, what does one do in a situation like this? Pick themselves up, realize their worth, and move on.

Wag This Way was born in south Edmonton in 2016, but in a very part-time capacity, with clients here and there, but not enough to build a future upon. Pushing it to a more full-time capacity was always a hope of mine, as animals have always been my first love and passion. When the layoff happened, I took that opportunity to see what Wag This Way could do in Parkland County, where I live now. December was the month to get my ducks in a row, build a website, and take care of the back-end operational tasks. I had my first meet and greet towards the end of January, and made a whopping $165 that month, minus tips. There was LOTS of work to do!

In January, Hera, Thor and Shadow became my first clients, who would also turn into regular bookings in my calendar. The rest of the winter months saw the regular addition of Hazel and Polly.

Spring really picked up with the additions of Millie, Remy, Harvey and Louis, Rocky, Kane, Nora, and Mango and Malcolm. I also started working with my awesome business coach, Michelle, at this time, and I’m extremely grateful for her, her inspiration and encouragement!

The summer months got a little nuts with more additions, plus most of the above who had since turned into regular, weekly scheduled clients. Eddie, Rosie and the other 13 pets of the Kearney crew joined the regulars, as did Royal who is Remy’s younger brother, Bree, Finn and Huck, Peanut and Biscuit, Nitro, and Pete. July is also the month that I did my first overnights with the Kearney crew. At this time, Lily was still with Mark and I, but being that she was 16, was very restless at night, and had some spine issues, she needed me at home more often. So, while overnights were something on my radar for the future, I needed to be pretty selective about it at this point. Eddie though was a sweet soul who was quite sick and needed medication 4x a day. He and I built a strong bond based on respect and trust, which is really important when you’re inserting your entire hand into the mouth of a 160 lb dog to administer meds. So, this was the only family that I did overnights for at this point.

Autumn saw the addition of Bartlett, Shelby, Harlow and Ferguson, Yeva, Felix and Reuben, Calcifer, Lantern and Kira, Oni and Tazzie, Tāne, Sophie, Kate who is Pete’s younger sister, Arrow, and Indie. In August, we lost Lily, my beloved little 16-year-old Shih Tzu, and my best little friend in the world. This Mama was lost without her, and I became extremely grateful for our remaining dog, Hazel, and also for my work, which is so rewarding. At this point, I had quite a few clients who were elderly, or who were sick and required medication, so knowing that I was helping them, in turn, helped me.

Going into the winter months, we hosted our first in-house overnight with Nora. Despite the size difference, Nora and our girl, Hazel get along really well, but I found out quickly that leaving a virtually strange dog with Hazel, unsupervised, was a terrible idea. While they were completely separated in our home, Hazel barked her little heart out. So, while Nora still comes over for sleepovers from time to time, I make sure that they aren’t left together unsupervised. Winter also saw the addition of True, Oliver, and Alice who is Rosie’s younger sister. December was the first month that I did my first long stretch of overnights as well.

All told, 2024 was the most stressful, trying year of work that I’ve ever been through, and there were many ups and downs. My business coach, Michelle once told me something: as a business owner, you can have your best day and your worst day all on the same day. Boy was she right! There were many sleepless nights filled with wondering if I was doing the right thing, googling in the wee morning hours for any helpful resources that I could get my hands on, and a lot of self-doubt, tears, and frustration. It was also a year of loss of pets, both personally and clients who passed away, which I knew would happen, but didn't consider the emotional toll that would have. And yet, 2024 was hands down THE most rewarding work that I’ve ever done, and it happened with the encouragement of a fantastic support network. I learned the administrative side of running a business, which was (and still is) totally overwhelming and way more work than I ever realized. But besides that, my clients are all the absolute goodest boys and girls (and yes, they’re told often)! There has been so much laughter, goofy moments, and so many snuggles! Each one of them has their own way of communicating, and sometimes it takes some creative listening, but I can tell that they’re all very grateful for the time that I give them. I’ve gained many great friendships this year, both in human and animal form, and for them, I’m forever grateful.

Live, laugh, woof!

PS, I’m also extremely proud to say that from January 2024 to January 2025, Wag This Way saw financial growth of a whopping 1800%, which is muy loco.