10/22/2025
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(ππ βππ€ πΌ ππππππ πππππππ π‘ππ)
It was through walking dogs that I turned my life around, from an addict, living in a squalid one-room studio apartment, crawling with cockroaches, to where I am today -- in a much better place. As my business flourished, I was running myself ragged, walking dogs, off-and-on, all day. Just keeping my caloric intake up was almost impossible, and the body I worked so hard for was withering away to nothing.
Something had to give, and I knew the answer was grouping them up, but convincing the clients with reactive dogs who did not play well with others wasn't easy, never mind the act of walking these dogs in a pack itself. At that point, I was calling myself "Hamilton Dog Walker" on social media. A great name from a search optimization standpoint, but nothing more. But finally, I had convinced a few clients to allow me to group their dogs up.
I still remember the day that the name you see today was bestowed upon me. The best nicknames are never made up yourself. I was walking three dogs, all at my heel, and this young lady said, "Nice pack master skills". It was a lightbulb, "ah-ha" moment, and after finishing up that day, I scurried home, and excitedly started drafting up my new logo. A few sleepless nights later, I had rebranded, with a name I absolutely loved. But now, I had to live up to this name. Matter of fact, because of it, I was desperate to get ALL these dogs walking in one group, and prove that I am indeed worthy of such a name.
Mastery, in anything, is something that takes at least 5 years of daily practice to achieve. So it was something I had to grow into. As a visual learner, and someone who learns by, as Seth Godin puts it, "poking the box", it took time, and experimentation. Seth Godin said: "All great programmers learn the same way. They poke the box. They code something and see what the computer does. They change it and see what the computer does. They repeat the process again and again until they figure out how the box works".
Before long, I had accomplished my goal. What was once a nine-hour day, was now cut down to somewhere between two and four hours. I would pick up each dog, and by the time I was getting the last one, I would circle back around and start dropping off the first, second, third, etc. One big fell swoop. It was still a lot of leg work, all at once, but life was good.
Around this time, a client's house was for sale, with a basement apartment, and she put a good word in with the new buyers. I was accepted, which was great, until the new tenants upstairs moved in, and I learned why basement apartments were so cheap. Around a year into my tenancy, and not sleeping well for the duration, I was at my witβs end. Then, a big, old house came up for lease, just a few doors down. That's when another, much bigger light bulb lit up so bright it was all I could see.
You see... Walking dogs was great, but the weather was wearing on me. Trudging around in the rain all day, coming home with trench foot. Being forced to take dogs out in extreme heat, carrying gallons of water on my back. What was once this fun, backpacking-like adventure became a feeling of βFMLβ, far too often, first thing in the morning. Thankfully, the rental house market was terrible at the time for landlords, and my application was accepted. I had also convinced the majority of my dog walking clients to convert to daycare. But at the same rate as before, so I was in the red for about a year or two, and getting support from family and certain clients while I raised rates by $5 each year.
With the house, I had to learn so much more about dogs, because I had only really mastered them on the leash. But with time, practice, and experimentation, my knowledge and techniques to maintain order inside, off-leash, was finally on par. That's about when I started sharing my techniques, at first on here, and with clients, and soon, offering training sessions. Of course, a lot of what I do was learned from others. But because I was taking care of all these dogs with different training methodologies, I was exposed, and gained insight into many different trainerβs techniques. Many of which, I found, to be gimmicks, aimed at making a fast splash with little longevity.
But most of what I do today, after ten years of being immersed in a pack, day in, and day out, has strayed quite far from anything I learned from others. By studying dog behaviour, and βpoking the boxβ, I've come up with my own insights, and techniques. Ones that have been drilled down, and simplified, over and over, cutting the fat, to where I now, say with the utmost confidence, that I really am the PACKMASTER.
Here, we don't teach dogs parlour tricks β thatβs not my bag. We bring up dogs that are literally better behaved than most kids you see nowadays. Everywhere I go with my pack, people comment on how wonderful they are. How calm. How affectionate, How obedient... But more importantly, how happy they are to obey, and know their place in this world: behind us, even beside us β just not in front of us.
Tears are now streaming down my face, reminiscing about the long journey here. The hardship... The desperation... I'm thinking about all the people along the way who believed in me, and didnβt, all who helped me get to where I am today β with their support, or despite it. For me, the naysayers add fuel to the fire. I would not be here without them all. I opened my heart, and door to these dogs, and their Humans practically let me in their extended family... Even written me into a will and last testament as a caregiver.
For a time, when I passed the 10-year mark, I started to feel antsy, as I often do once I master something (I need another challenge). So I started a side-hustle buying, fixing and selling vintage cameras, and for a while, I was pondering getting out of the dog business. But I was pulled back in, when I lost a few clients, mourned the loss, and became desperate, but more importantly, hungry.
Thatβs why, when it comes to filling the void that the others have left, Iβm not seeking to raise my rates on current clients β that would be too easy. Besides, I like where my rates are. Instead, Iβm focussing all my energy on valuing those clients more, giving them even more of myself, and getting them all back in a place where they recommend me, wholeheartedly, and without any reservations.
Desperation isnβt just the mother of invention, itβs also βthe raw material of drastic changeβ.
Photo: My first dog walking clients, Krieger & Blitz.
