Eye on Small Business: Active Dog

Many of us have a great deal for which to thank our canine friends, and none more so than Eric Bleile. Now a Weston resident, Bleile worked in the derivatives trading industry in Chicago and later for a hedge fund in Stamford. But after the 2008 financial crisis, the dissolution of the hedge fund and a shift in the derivatives trading industry from floor trading to electronic/quant trading, his made a fortuitous pivot, thanks to his dog, Tobias.

While enrolled in graduate business school at the University of Connecticut at night, he would take Tobias on hikes during the day. And it was during those hikes that he noticed several other hikers with large groups of dogs, which in turn sparked an idea, namely to create his own daytime dog-hiking business.

His first big break, Bleile told the Westfair Business Journal, was when he met a hiker who had three children and was going back to work.

“She asked me to hike her dogs, Miles and Wellie, five days a week. After that, I started handing out business cards and meeting more people on hikes. I hired my first two staff members 18 months into starting the business.”

That was in 2011. Active Dog now has more than 650 acres of private land to hike, as well as a farm, 38 employees and 15 independent contractors who help out at the farm and dog walks. The land comprises 190 acres in Bethlehem and Watertown, Connecticut, (known as The Farm) and two parcels in New York state near Pawling – 95 acres in Holmes and 357 acres in Poughquag. Across the three sites, staffers hike around 1,600 dogs per week. (Bleile also runs a small operation in Denver, Colorado, where employees hike around eight dogs per day.)

Active Dog caters to all breeds and sizes, tilted towards medium to large breeds, with lots of Retrievers, Shepherds and Doodles. But Bleile said the company also hikes dogs as small as Shih Tzus. When the pack hikes are not a fit, clients are offered private dog hikes or walks, regardless of size or breed.

Pricing depends on the number of dogs per household and number of hikes/walk per day. Bleile  pointed out that charges were competitive with the market. He also said that the company was  profitable, “with more or less every extra dime we produce as revenue poured back into the business.”

Active Dog is now partnering with Get Joy, a Norwalk-based dog wellness and nutrition company, “to spread the word and help increase dogs’ lives with better food, exercise and socialization.” And early this year, Active Dog plans to break ground for a new boarding facility at The Farm. The building will allow Active Dog to board more dogs over the holidays, with spacious rooms for the canine guests. “We hope that with our expansive outdoor areas there, this will make our 190-acre farm the greatest boarding facility in the Northeast,” Bleile said.

Of course, looking after dogs is not without its more colorful moments, a few of which Bleile was happy to share. He mentioned with affection a Black Labrador mix, Anikin, who on one occasion ran off on his pack for about 10 minutes, only to return and drop a raccoon head at Bleile’s feet. But his most tender memories perhaps are of Cooper, his “one in a million Golden Retriever,” who happily walked city streets in Stamford or Manhattan off leash and to heel, never tired of hikes and contentedly sat through endless new client meetings but never quite got used to elevators.

All part of the ups and downs of caring for canines, you might say.

Eric Bleile and his three dogs are featured in episode three of “Aging on Paws”, a four-part docuseries uncovering the 10 keys to dog longevity. The episodes are airing on the Get Joy website, https://getjoyfood.com.