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Hayden's Story

 

Trying to restart this blog, time is hard to come by these days. A quick review to bring everyone up to speed.

 

Since our last post we've:

~Hired 2 more part time team members bringing the total to 6 (including Meg and I)

~Have expanded our client list to over 300 clients.

~Have created a Facebook page as well as Brady and Nina's own Twitter page! Tune in to get all of their daily updates on the road with Mom and Dad! Brady is training for the Windsor Dog Walk and is tweeting his day to day process!

~Have installed our Pet Care lottery and trivia game on the website an included new pics and videos on both the webpage and facebook fan page.

~We've rezoned our service area, and changed a few of our rates - some upward, some downward

~We closed out 2009 with 264 overnight sessions, a new HSH record!

~We've accrued a significant number of aggressive clients and have worked safely and successfully with each one!

~We now have ACH debit payment options and will be up and running with our "shopping cart" for invoiced services soon!

 

Hopefully I will get to blogging' more often and keep that list shorter!

 

Today is about Hayden our new foster. He is a 1.5 yr old yellow lab and is just awesome! He was bought from a puppy store when he was just 8 weeks old and has had a rough go of it ever since...not to mention the "go" he had of it before and during his life in a puppy store. He is every bit puppy in both his rambunctious nature and his cuteness! He is the sweetest little guy and wants nothing more than affection. This drives him to trouble sometimes, as he will nose around and steal things off the table or couch just to garner your attention, but its all in good fun and hard not to laugh. We've known him since he was a puppy as we know the family that originally had him. For private reasons, the family could not keep them and gave him to another family with 5 children and acres with which to run. This seemed like a great plan but the husband soon decided that he could not be bothered by Hayden and was abusing him before too long. As soon as we found this out we drove over and convinced them to surrender him. The husband of course claimed that Hayden was biting at the children and being aggressive, actions which had drawn threats by the husband that he was going to shoot him. These all turned out to be lies but who cares, Hayden is out of there...and the abuse was not a lie. When we got his crate set up, it was all dented in and the gate did not close properly. Reports came out after we rescued him that the husband had kicked and tossed the crate while Hayden was in there as well as thrown chairs at the crate in drunken anger. There had to be a reason why Hayden was petrified to go into it. He's been with us for just over a week now and has shown NONE of the traits that were described to us by the family. Even his counter surfing as ceased to be displayed. He has moments where he gets a hyper and a little mischievous, but a 1.5yr yellow puppy should do nothing else.

 

With some positive reinforcement, and a new "cave" design for his crate, he is back to using it as a safe place and even trots in there on his own at the end of the night. Its very satisfying to see that he trusts the crate so much after what had happened to him in there. He is eating well and loves loves loves playing with Brady and Nina. Its a good thing that there are 2 of them to share the burden as old lazy bones would have their paws full otherwise. We would love to keep him if our living situation were a little different. A bigger home would help as well as having the time to work with and train him. He needs basic obedience but neither of us has the time required to work with him due to the nature of our 'on the run' business. Brady and Nina are in the groove and are so dependable that they often travel with me during the week. It would be unfair to adopt Hayden only to need a dog walker of his own!

 

It looks like he is either going to a wonderful rescue organization in NY or back to the original family who always loved him but had independent issues in the past that made it difficult for them to keep him. Either way, we are enjoying our time with him and love watching him play to his hearts content, as a puppy should. And when he gets out of line, well, Brady and Nina show him the way of the pack. Its the best training anyone could ask for!

 

Hayden is safe and sound for now and by anything we have to do about it, will be for the rest of his life, but keep him in your thoughts as he waits for the perfect forever home to bring him into their life.

 

Chris ~

Posted by HSH Pet Care at 3/6/2010 9:39 PM | Add Comment

State passes legislation satisfying some of HSH's concerns in the industry

Well great news from the State of Connecticut this morning! Legislation is being passed that will more clearly define the employer/independent contractor relationship and will help to eliminate this unethical practice of labeling employees as "sub contractors" to get out from underneath the tax and worker benefit responsibility. Its been crippling to small business who have attempted to take the traditional employee/employer route and in fact has been crippling the very companies that engage in this practice to begin with! They surely are not prepared to protect an employee in an emergency and A. become exposed and/or B. disenchant their workers into leaving for the competition or starting their own business and competing directly! For the sake of a few lowsy bucks a month. Below is the law in this matter, currently defined. This excerpt was taken from the Employment Security Division of CT.

 

 

 

STATE OF CONNECTICUT


EMPLOYMENT SECURITY DIVISION


UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION TAX DIVISION


 


SELF-ASSESSMENT OF THE EMPLOYER-EMPLOYEE RELATIONSHIP FOR CT UNEMPLOYMENT TAXES


 


The determination of independent contractor status versus employee status is often a complex decision.  Connecticut unemployment law states that employment is any service performed under an express or implied contract of hire that creates the relationship of employer and employee.  Workers who are employees under the common law definition of master and servant (the standard applied by the Internal Revenue Service) are therefore covered for state unemployment purposes.  In Connecticut however, irrespective of whether the common law relationship of master and servant exists, the law holds that service will be considered employment subject to the act unless the service recipient can establish compliance with Connecticut General Statutes Section 31-222(a)(1)(B)(ii), commonly referred to as the AABC@ test which is outlined below.


 


To be considered an independent contractor, an individual must meet all three of the following tests.


 


A.    The worker must be free from direction and control in the performance of the service, both under the contract of hire and in fact.  (Essentially, this is the common law definition.)

AND


B.    The worker=s services must be performed:


 


EITHER


 


(1) Outside the usual course of the employer=s business

OR


(2) Outside all of the employer=s places of business.


 


AND


 


C.    The worker must be customarily engaged in an independently established trade, occupation, profession or business of the same nature as the service being provided.


 


 


 


Why does this qualify as blog material? Well simply because with HSH Pet Care, you are getting not only the best pet care available in CT but a co. that considers its reputation in business practices as well. We want everyone to know who and what they are getting and that doing the right thing is important to us as it is our clients. We have always maintained an employee/employer relationship and have been fighting to have these "sub contractor" loopholes in the tax & compensation legislation identified. This is a great win for the cause!


 

Posted by HSH Pet Care at 12/16/2009 11:03 PM | Add Comment

July 4 @ Lane's Cove!!

If you've gotten this far then you've already seen the website improvements so I won't direct you to check them out. These, however are the most recent steps in improving our overall service. We're excited for the lotto drawings that are coming soon for our existing clients! New ways to save money are always a good thing!

Meg and I are preparing to take our first trip/mini trip away since starting the company this July 4 weekend. The hardest part of serving in any recreational industry is committing to your clients on holidays, weekends, nights, and earlllllyyyy mornings~ Thankfully our staff is more than qualified to pick up our slack if you will and we feel most confident in leaving the HSH operation in their hands. Sooo, Lane's Cove, Mass. - here we come!

Lanes Cove is a wonderful, quaint little lobsterman/fishing community in Gloucester, MA. ~ better known as the town behind the unfortunate story of The Andrea Gale and her battle with "The Perfect Storm" (with lead roles played by a dreamy George Clooney and Mark Wahlberg). Every July 4th, this humble little town unhumbles itself and throws the 2 day long, July 4 celebration that rivals the original march for independence. Parades, unadulterated beligerance, 2 1/2 story bonfires, cliff diving, motorboat racing, clams, mussels, fish, and lobster! Lobster Bisque, Lobster sandwich's, Lobster cakes, Lobster fricase, Lobster burgers, Lobster kabobs, Lobster salad ~ you can bake it, broil it, fry it, grill it, sautee it. There's all different kinds of different kinds of Lobster and we will see it this weekend. I feel like Bubba from the BubbaGump Shrimp Corp.!  Only thing is...I don't eat meat. Doh! What am I missing! I love food and know food, and can cook up a spread like you see on TV, so I know this stuff is de-lic-ious. I will just have to enjoy the smell as I peck away at my garden salad... Furthermore, Brady and Nina will kick off the inaugural pitty-bull relay swim and dock-jump championships! They are ranked #3 coming into the competition so they've got a little bit of work to do, but they've been training fearlessly during our daily field trips to the Farmington gorge, Tariffville point, and Gold's Doggy Gym. I think they're ready! They are in the best shape of their careers right now and ready to take the Golden Bone Trophy!

We hope that all of you have a happy and safe July 4 weekend and we'll be back to your furry companions bright and early Monday morning!

Chris ~

Posted by HSH Pet Care at 6/30/2009 10:08 AM | Add Comment

Windsor Dog Walk a Spectacular Success!

A good time at the 4H Club Dog Walk Fundraiser on Sunday. All the big and little piglets were there, pure, mixed, puppy, and old alike. It was a great turnout and something we enjoy doing as it is quickly becoming a staple Windsor event. We were a little disenchanted with our predetermined tent position however. This may sound like sour grapes, but we take part in the event because it is Windsor's greatest pet related event and we are striving to become a Windsor staple as well. Bart's, Day Hill Kennels, Whistle Stop, and Zoccos. Its not about "territory" per say, we believe our service speaks for itself, but just on a local level, I would have hoped that the hometown crew could have gotten a little more respect.. It was nice however to have so many of our clients show up and to have Bear, Sparky, Bear, Cody, Zian, Boomer, Tink, Mable, Ralph, Donna Karen, Lola, Bea, Henry, Bongo, and Charlie come up to our booth and greet us with such excitement (They know us too well - we always have cookies). That was something that no amount of tent positioning could have trumped. Thanks to all of them and all the mom and dads who drove! bumNpeanut had fun as well, running for five minutes and lounging in the sun for 45. The epitomy of a dog's life, that is for damn sure. Thank you also to Megan Hussey, our favorite trainer for doing her thing at our table. She's a great trainer and a great resource as well. I hope we can help her as much as she has helped us.

All in all, it was a great event, it gets better each year and that is not only good for the event itself, but good for that person who will need a service dog and raising money to pay for that 2 yrs of training is what its all about. The Walk for Chance is one of the most important event the pet world can get behind. Service dogs of any kind are the best reason to believe that dog is man's best friend for a reason.

Next up~ The 'Just For Fun Dog Show' @ the Town Green on June 18th where we'll be returning as judges once again!

Chris ~

Posted by HSH Pet Care at 6/2/2009 9:00 AM | View Comments (2) | Add Comment

HSH News

Much is happening over here at HSH headquarters so for anyone checking in, I feel its important to bring you all up to speed.

 

We've officially been approved for accreditation by the Better Business Bureau! That makes us the second petsitting company in all of CT to have that distinction, and the first north of New Haven. We have also been accredited through Angie's List, and recommended by vets in both Windsor and West Hartford.

We have solidified our staff as both Amy and Jess becoming significant players in the recent success of the company.

We have invested in blackberry's for everyone, so now our clients will not only be updated on site, but will be able to reach their caregivers in any medium they need.

We have the Windsor Feud next Saturday the 28th

We are working hard at our fundraiser which is currently slated for June!...the inaugural HSH horseshoe tournament to raise funds for animal related non-profits. There will be many avenues to take for more information on this event in the coming weeks.

We will be tightening up on some of our policies as things have just gotten to busy to be as relaxed about them as we traditionally have. Most if not all of these will be related to payment in advance, service requests with at least 48hrs notice, time and half on Sundays and holidays, and the integration of our staff and current clients for weekend work. Again these are policies that have already been put in place, but we need to enforce them a bit more.

We will be reorganizing the company under and LLC this week, which won't change anything externally, for you our clients obviously, as our insurances etc. will be the same they have but as we grow, it obviously will help with things internally.

Lastly, HSH Pet Care is proud to be working with all the wonderful people in the Windsor Dog Park Committee to get CT's first settled town its new dog park! The site has been approved, the train is full speed ahead, and we're all aboard! Jump on and help make the effort a success! 

 

There is still more happening, but all of our other items are ''in the works'' so to speak and will be announced as they come to fruition. Stay tuned!

 

 

 

Chris ~

Posted by HSH Pet Care at 2/22/2009 1:44 PM | Add Comment

Client Profile: Buddie & Emmie

Another Client Profile

 

Buddie and Emmie are two black labs who live in West Hartford. We've stayed with them quite a bit since November and they are two of the most laid back, fun dogs we've had the fortune to work for. They are EXTREMELY active and by that I mean they are lucky enough to have a mommy who has the time to get them out for daily runs and field trips, so when we come over, they expect nothing less! They also have a great fenced in back yard and have hosted many a dog parties throughout the spring and summer. They love their walks, runs, swim time and whatever else they can do in the name of fun! Funny though, it usually takes them a day or two to get over the No-Mom-Blues, they are very, very close with her.

Emmie is definitely in charge, and they play very similar roles in the way that Brady and our love bug Trunks used to. See, Brady was no doubt the alpha male but it was Trunks who, as a pack member lower in the hierarchy, was the one to scout trouble and stay on alert 24-7. This became his role as a lower pack member in order to earn his keep. (Sounds a little to communicative for dogs, but I have no reservations whatsoever, after studying these ideas and then having experienced it myself, that it is true). If it was a significant threat, then the others would spring into action and join him. This is the case with Buddie and Emmie as well. Buddie is the one who barks and investigates at the door, but it is Emmie who will most likely take over the situation if it is a legitimate threat. Buddie is in fact...a big baby.

So everybody in the neighborhood knows Buddie and Emmie and if they see us walking, they surely say hi. Emmie is a little apprehensive with other dogs, especially females, so if you and YOUR pack see us, just approach slowly!

We hope to see them as much as possible and look forward to seeing them on our field trips which will be starting up soon!

Posted by HSH Pet Care at 2/22/2009 1:09 PM | Add Comment

Welcome Ladies and Gentleman to the Craziest Show on Earth!

I feel like a traveling salesman...But with the number of animals that we work with on a daily basis and the events that transpire when dealing with characters, knuckleheads, lazybones, princesses, and spazz attacks, pills, pugs, and puppies, I'd liken my past few days to that more of a traveling circus!

 

I had said to myself, something strange is happening because there had been an great influx of business as we approached the weekend of Feruary 14th. I couldn't understand why. Had winter break started? Was it just a coincidence? Then much to my surprise, do I realize that all the lovebirds are going away for Valentines Day! (Don't worry. I realized this around the 7th or 8th so I can't get in too much trouble for not knowing such an important day was upon us. FYI, it was plenty of time to get Meg flowers, a card, some chocolate, and a SHAM-WOW!. -- Hey, when your married, romance is buried staunchly in the heart of reality. We live in a zoo, we have a need for paper towels ala bulk...or...a SHAM-WOW!) 

 

But I digress.

 

The point I was getting at was that we had a blast of overnights, weekend visits, and regular daily sessions that had our heads spinning a bit.

 

This is how it all started...

 

 Jonesy & Nieve called for an overnight session on Th, F, Sat but both Rover and Buddie and Emmie had requested overnights starting Friday, so while Meg went to Rover's for Friday, I went to Jonesy & Nieve's for Thursday, then after negotiating an alternative for them in light of our unavailability on Friday, went to Buddie and Emmie's, then back to Jonesy and Nieve's for Saturday night. Now Meg is starting at Annie and Jai Jai's on Monday for the next week plus, so I will be changing over to Rover's for Sunday night so that she can have a night home with the Pigs before she heads out. When I finish with Rover's care on Tuesday, I will head home for a brief siesta, then off to our new Dobi-Duo, Roxy & Franklin D. for Friday night, a day back home for Saturday, then back to Buddy and Emmie's on Sunday for the entire following week. As Meg winds down with Annie and Jai Jai on the 23rd, she will switch out with me at Buddy and Emmie's so that I can begin an overnight session with Sandy and Bear in Simsbury through the 1st of March! Crazy times but we'll take such good fortune!

 

So some of you may have seen me recently with a newly installed beard (I'm sorry if I frightened you) - but you see that it is a result of a two-fold circumstance. One, I haven't had much time for self grooming...and two, it was damn cold out there for awhile! I speak for all of our daily piggleby's when I say, I hope that groundhog was drunk when he thought he saw his shadow. C'mon Spring!

 

So this is a weekend in the life of a couple of pet sitters. It was funny, because as we approached the crest of this busy weekend, we had an interview with a friend who's very interested in working for us. We want her to enjoy it, but have to, of course, stress the rigors that may beinvolved, and to see her eyes widen as we took her through a not-so-hypothetical scenario of what demands do sometimes arise, was a reaction worthy of a chuckle.. Its not all couch-potato stuff - those times come few and far between and you revel in them when they do come along. Meg and I put a combined 65,000 miles on the vehicles last year (we just calculated for tax season...that's no estimate)! That is exclaimed out of surprise - not complaint of course!  But alas, it matters none when you know that you get to work with all of these wonderful animals on a daily basis, and when you realize that they look forward to seeing you as much as you do them, and when you know you would gladly drive 100,000 miles a year for it all.

 

I'll check in soon with some pet profiles and a sad, beautiful story about one of our newest clients, Smokey Joe.

 

 

Chris ~

Posted by HSH Pet Care at 2/15/2009 11:46 AM | View Comments (1) | Add Comment

What's Happening

Things are happening! Pay close attention to the website over the next few weeks/months as spring and all of the ideas and opportunities that have been in hibernation come with her! What do I mean by that? Well for starters, the fight for a Dog Park in Windsor has resulted in victory! Thank you to the Windsor Dog Park Committee for all of their hard work in negotiating with the town and getting approval for a section of land to be used at Northwest Park! But this is just the beginning. Now the real fight starts, the fight for $$ ! And with things playing out like they have with the economy in general, its going to be a tought fight indeed. This being said, we can use all the help we can, and that doesn't just mean giving $$ (though I want you all to feel free if you should be so inclined) and that includes joining up with the various committees thathave been put together to get this project off the ground. Legal considerations, Public awareness, Fundraising, and Construction, are just a few. Stay tuned on our website as well as the Dog Park's website --  www.windsordogpark.org -- for more information (meetings, decisions, requests) via the calendar and this blog.. There can never be enough people involved with the project, so feel free to join up as soon as you'd like!

 

As for HSH and our projects, we will be heavily involved with the Windsor dog park in any facet we can and that starts with a fundraiser of our own, to be held early summer! Details will be released very soon, stay close by!

 

We will also be participating in Windsor's most popular new tradition, The Windsor Feud! Our clients have already received emails on this but for those who are not on our CC list...We will be competing against other local businesses in that classic game of public opinion...Survey Says! Tune in on February 28th, @ 5:00 on channel 5 (Local Windsor) for all the fun...yes, costumes and all!

 

We are also planning some field trips for the break of Spring, as well as some fun events for all of our clients to participate in, and as soon as these details are firmed up we will pass them along to you! Its going to be a wildly fun season, we hope you all, clients, new clients, and potential clients will be a part of all of it!

Posted by HSH Pet Care at 2/8/2009 12:59 PM | Add Comment

Bella!

A day off today (Sunday) and we're spending it with the pigs. Brady, Nina, Lennon, Turtles, and yes, the newest member of our family...Bella! Our recently adopted 2 yr old shorthair cat has been getting to know the rest of us over the past week and she's really come out of her shell these past few days! She is still quite leary of Brady, having never known a dog before, but she's gotten a little more brave yesterday and today. He doesn't make it easy for newcomers though, as his penchant for intense investigation can often be misread by the new party. At  65 lbs, approaching any smaller creature with anything other than tiptoes, can be rather threatening. He wants to investigate her, she thinks he wants to eat her, she goes on defense, he's too boorish to realize he's scaring her, she swipes, he thinks she's playing, he wants to play, she says "I ain't playing", he says "duhhh, which way did she go, which way did she go..." and we do this little dance for awhile. Just today, however, they were both sitting a few feet away from each other, agreeing to give each other space, so, we're definitely on track for completely successful integration!

 

Nina could care less, as is her M.O. - as long as Bella doesn't sit in the front seat when we travel, there will be no issue.

 

Lennon...Lennon a little upset to say the least. The queen of the castle, sharing cat time!? Absurd! She acts like she's so offended, so distraught but she's really just a big baby. She would never attack the newbie and the newbie loves other cats so we are not even concerned about them hashing things out in that way, but until she figured out that Bella is NOT just passing by, Lennon would conveniently pass through to another room with a few low pitched grumbles in voice of her displeasure.  She's doing much better now. They've even been caught on our bed together...on opposite corners mind you and staring at each other intensely, but a big step nevertheless.

 

Bella is nothing but a perfect sweetheart. A lap cat, a cuddler, a nuzzler, and even a singer...yes, she can be heard early in the morning, walking through the house, singing away in a much more evolved dialect than just simple meowing. It sounds like she's talking! We love her and know that she is going to fit right in with the rest of us and bring a completely different aspect to this kaleidescope of personality we already have!

 

Welcome to the family, Bella!

 

Posted by HSH Pet Care at 2/8/2009 12:36 PM | Add Comment

Winter Walkingland

What a day! Cold, frozen, wet, busy...but Meg and I got it done, and got to do it all together! Perhaps not a big deal to most out there, but with her clients needing her here and my clients needing me there, for owning a business together, we rarely have the opportunity to work on projects with one another! Throw in the overnight stays that make up a large portion of business and a day like today is much appreciated.

Meg was able to see Mac and Eire for the first time in awhile and Ncosi too! Eire was so excited in fact, that she felt it necessary to try and ride shotgun with Meg! It took some convincing, but she eventually realized that she could still keep Meg in her sights from the back seat.....I was able to visit the infamous Balthazar who I've not seen in a long time and I think he liked having a little Macho Machismo with him today. We bumped chests, crushed beer cans on our heads, and watched 6 hours of repetitive Superbowl analysis on ESPN before Meg and the cats demanded we pay them some attention. We were able to tag team the labs, who though walk very well as a pack, still helped manage all of them just a bit easier. Java did well with double the attention and Miss Kiki Belange played us against each other in her requests to go outside! We might never find her again out there! Barley and Pepper were all fueled up when we got to them for the last walk of the day, but Dad, who was home sick, really needed us to help burn it off. I think that's everyone, with one exception....Yoda.

 

Yoda is a new client. He hired us for puppy visits this week as his mommy was away and daddy worked double shifts. Yoda is a Boston Terrier Pup, complete with walleyes and a lightsaber. He has much to learn about the force, but his Jedi instincts and razor sharp teeth will get him through any battle vs the empire until he learns how to harness his powers. This guy is the coolest dude to fight for the republic in awhile...Since....Long, long ago, in a galaxy far, far away.... We're glad that we were requested for 3 visits a day as we quickly realized we can never have enough Yoda! Check the client page soon for updates and pics of our little friend!

 

 

 

 

Chris ~

Posted by HSH Pet Care at 1/28/2009 7:01 PM | Add Comment
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