Meet Charter Member Delightful Dog

As part of our 5th Anniversary of The Dog Gurus membership, we wanted to highlight a couple of our charter members. Charter members are facilities who joined The Dog Gurus as soon as we launched and have been with us ever since. We are thankful for their support and hope they have loved being a member as much as we love having them! For this member highlight we interviewed Melony Phillips, Owner of Delightful Dog in Marietta, GA.

TDG: Provide a brief overview of your company (when you started it, services offered, what is your facility like)

In 2013, the progressive concept of Delightful Dog Professional Play Care was born. Two years later, we found our dream location and we were finally able to bring our vision to fruition. We have over 27,000 sq. ft of indoor space and about 2000 sq. ft outdoors. We currently use approximately 18000 sq. ft but we knew, based on trends in the pet care industry and Atlanta traffic, we wanted a space we could grow into as our business expanded.

We are a force free holistic facility that offers a full range of services. These services include daycare (group and personalized one on one), nursery, boarding, grooming, training, retail, dog walking, and pet sitting. Several key factors help keep our pet guests as stress free as possible such as our floor plan designed specially to limit the pets’ visual field to keep them from getting overstimulated or overwhelmed, aromatherapy, Through a Dog’s Ear music (now iCalmPet), as well as other calming aids.
There are two other daycare facilities within a half mile of us, but we differentiate ourselves from our competition by having smaller sized groups, breaking up our groups not only by size but by temperament, age, and play style. We also have a high staff to pet ratio, ongoing staff education and training in canine body language, pet CPR and First Aid.

   

TDG: Why did you get started in the pet industry?

As a child, I grew up in the country and was always around animals. Over the years, I had multiple professions, but my one constant was always having pets as companions. Eventually, I became a certified dog trainer. I was working as a trainer when I met my current business partner. We both wanted to fill a niche by creating a force free, holistic facility that not only met all the needs of dogs (not just physically but mentally & emotionally as well) but one that offered exceptional standards of care.

TDG: What do you find most rewarding about working in the pet industry?

There is nothing more rewarding than seeing a dog blossom and realize his/her potential. Seeing the change in personality, from a once shy/fearful pet or one that one that was aversively trained in the past to one that is understood, is truly special. It takes patience and positive reinforcement from a professional that has the correct training and skill set to understand and honor what the dog is trying to communicate, and then in turn help the owners understand and build a strong connection.

This, in turn, builds a unique and trusting bond not only with the dogs but also with the owners. They have peace of mind while their pet is in our care because they know we will always do what is in their pet’s best interest.

      

TDG: What does being a member of The Dog Gurus mean to you?

The Dog Gurus offer an incredible resource to further staff training/education. It helps our team get a better understanding of canine body language, and quickly and accurately assess dog play styles. For clients willing to do the research, it shows our commitment to ongoing training, safety and enrichment activities we provide. It also differentiates us from our competitors. As owners, it gives us the ability to connect with likeminded individuals that share common goals and best practices.

TDG: What is the thing you are most proud of for your company?

We are most proud of our nursery program and the positive effect it has on our community. It is tailored for puppies from 8-16 weeks of age. Puppies spend the day with us much like children in kindergarten. Our program helps puppies build the best possible foundation. Our nursery curriculum includes: socialization with other puppies, adult dogs, and all kinds of humans (variety of ages, shapes, ethnicities, people with disabilities, people in uniforms/costumes, etc.), bond based training, sensory enrichment activities, stress free crate training, basic potty training, and nurturing the development of coping skills in a safe environment.

TDG: What does your staff do together for fun?

We do annual holiday parties such as bowling, laser tag, gaming, eating out at a restaurant, etc. We do ongoing holiday meals for our team, monthly birthday celebrations, occasional lunches, gift cards, lottery tickets, fully stocked tea & coffee bar, savory & sweet snack assortment. This month we are starting paid quarterly group outings to help build team unity.

TDG: Do you have a client or dog who changed the way you run your business?

Over Christmas break, we had a dog board with us that didn’t act like herself. She had stayed with us three times in the past year. She wasn’t as interested in playing, more sedate than we remembered, picking at her meals, etc. We called her parents and came to find out that they had noticed a similar change since she received her vaccines about two weeks prior. We told them we would take her home with us to keep a closer eye on her (they did not think that was necessary) but we insisted. The following day she could hardly stand and was very lethargic, so we rushed her to the emergency vet (figuring we would eat the cost if we were overreacting) and we came to find out she had leukemia. Having a very high staff to pet ratio, strict safety protocols in place and following our gut furthered our commitment to continue providing personalized and extremely high standard of care.

    

TDG: If you could meet anyone in the industry, who would it be and why?

I would love to spend some time with Hillary Alexander, of Hillary’s Hound House. As a fellow (female) trainer and entrepreneur I am awed and inspired by her success. Her concept of puppy training and daycare, I think, will help further grow our puppy program exponentially. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised it’s the next “it” concept for daycare…

TDG: Anything else you would like to add?

We look forward to growing our brand and to continue to serve our community. We are humbled by all the positive feedback and support we have from our clients and community.