“You basically get to fall in love every day,” Doggone Adventures co-owner Deanna Ambeault said as she described her newly acquired licensed dog walking business.
Her passion for dog walking stems from her love of dogs and for this business owner, seeing how the dogs interact and learning more and more about their personalities makes her appreciate every day of work.
“The dogs are always happy and they’re having fun,” Ambeault said. “They’re so wonderful and so incredible and we’ve gotten to know them so well.”
The Doggone Adventures owner opened the Sparwood company with her husband at the end of March.
“I’d walk dogs all day if I could,” she said of the business.
Currently, Ambeault and her husband average two trips per day with a group of seven or less dogs.
Her furry clients include a black lab named Raven, whose owners, due to unforeseen circumstances were unable to exercise the lab on a regular basis.
Since signing up for Doggone Adventures, the 10-year-old adventurous dog has lost between seven and eight pounds.
A water lover, Raven constantly runs into creeks, rivers and even puddles.
“I shouldn’t let them play as much as they do,” Ambeault joked.
But play is a big part of her job as she takes the dogs on daily 1-2 hour walks through the Elk Valley’s beautiful backcountry.
Ambeault moved to the Elk Valley from Saskatchewan seven years ago, after falling in love with the area during family vacations.
“There’s nowhere else I’d rather be,” she said as she walked up a Mount Fernie Provincial Park path. “It’s so incredible. There’s nowhere else that I could imagine life or a business.”
Ambeault and her husband Scott recently welcomed a little girl into the world and she now accompanies Ambeault on her daily walks.
With her baby strapped to her chest and a group of happy, panting dogs trailing behind her, Ambeault said the business idea came to her about six years ago. But because of the lack of job security, she has not been able to live out her dream until now.
“We wanted to be able to provide a really good, quality service,” she said.
Despite the majority of her profits going back into the business right now, which includes purchasing insurance and a cap for her truck in order to safely transport the dogs, the Doggone Adventures co-owner said she is hopeful for the future.
“We’d love to do more,” she said of the dog walking business. “I’m super lucky to be able to take people’s dogs out.”
Doggone adventures offers group walks for up to seven dogs. For those dogs that are not well socialized, they also offer private walks.
For more information on their services, visit their website at www.doggoneadventuresbc.ca or call them at 250-430-7947.