What do Dungeons and Dragons, unfulfilling desk jobs, and Great Danes have in common? They led Tessa Harrison to her present-day role as co-founder and owner of Adventure Pups Cooperative and mom to a rapidly growing 5-month old Great Dane named Sherb.
Tessa first became friends with her co-founders – Angie Dunn and Anne McCabe – at a Dungeons & Dragons game. As they got to know each other, they realized that D&D was far from their only shared interest. Among the many things they had in common, two laid the foundation for Adventure Pups, a love of dogs and frustration with the way employees were treated at most companies – both within and outside of the pet industry.
That initial bond led to lots of research & brainstorming about what a company could look like – and eventually to the founding of a dog walking & training business where everyone has the opportunity to become a co-owner and to have a voice, a full-time salary, and health benefits.
“We really wanted to create a company where people would get to know who their dog walker was, and everyone who works there wants to stay,” says Tessa.
Today, the trio has 50+ clients, providing walks, hikes & training to pups in Somerville, Cambridge, Medford, and Arlington, MA with an emphasis on positive reinforcement.
Tessa, a self-proclaimed cookie pusher, explains how it works.
“Instead of just focusing on getting from point A to point B, we’re working on building up recall and good leash manners, so we always have a lot of treats on us. That way we can really reinforce the behaviors that we like.”
While Tessa is responsible for the admin work at Adventure Pups, she’d much rather be out with a group of pups in the Fells, zooming around Pancake Island. That’s where PetPocketbook comes in.
“I can’t imagine a world without PetPocketbook. It would be a bleak Adventure Pups! Having all of our information in one place is just incredibly helpful. It also makes billing so simple with the three of us just checking off our appointments. Before PetPocketbook, it was definitely a lot more work on my end!”
Perhaps you could say PetPocketbook is a piece of wizardry? We’re just glad we can keep Tessa and her partners out on the trails!
