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 About Mudd PuppiesLike many people, dogs were an ever present part of my life growing up. Something about them always seemed to make our house a home. But after house breaking, our training was pretty much done. It wasn't until I was in college that I got my first dog. Talbot was a stray I had seen wandering around campus. He had figured out that he would get fed if he stayed by the entrance of the cafeteria, and he got fed... a lot. After about 2 weeks, I told my then girlfriend, Dukkie, that I was going to bring him home if I saw him when my classes were over for the next day. On my way home I didn't see him. I took the long way home and couldn't find him anywhere. So, disappointed, I made my way back to my apartment. When I walked in the door, Dukkie came running out of the bathroom soaking wet. "Guess what I did?" she asked. "You brought that dog home, didn't you?" I replied. Not being one to jump into anything lightly, I went to the local library and got every book they had on dogs. The library at the time was probably only 500 square feet, and the books on dogs only numbered about half a dozen. But I brought them home and read them in very short order. I was hooked. The whole subject fascinated me. The evolution, social structure, breed standards, behavior, everything. Shortly after that I moved back to the east coast. There I had access to larger libraries and a plethora of bookstores. I started grabbing everything I could get a hold of. By the time Talbot was a year old my older brother got his first dog. Like me, he started reading everything he could find. I was loaning him books, he was loaning me books, we were exchanging books as gifts. We also started going to dog shows just for the sheer joy of watching. About this time, Talbot went to obedience class and I started thinking "that's what I want to do." (By the way, he graduated 2nd in his class.) Talbot was with me for almost 15 years. During that time I kept reading anything I could get my hands on. I also continued training Talbot to keep him mentally stimulated. I had become a graphic artist by this time, but I never lost the desire to work with dogs on some level. I constantly mentioned to Dukkie (now my wife) that if I had it to do over again I'd do something with dogs. In 2007 I decided the time was right to strike out and give this obsession of mine a try. So I quit my job and spent the next six months putting together my business plan. I got a loan and opened Mudd Puppies Self Serve Dog Wash, LLC in April of 2008. While Dukkie and I were in Wisconsin several years ago, we adopted Puck, a Lhasa Apso/Dandie Dinmont mix (as best we can tell). After Talbot passed away I adopted Duncan from the American Brittany Rescue and until I opened the store I did volunteer work for them, helping with the website and transports. I am currently enrolled in classes to become a behaviorist and obedience trainer and I am hoping to add obedience classes and a few other services in the not too distant future. |