Meet the Pack

Hi! I'm Connie. By trade I'm a designer — but these days I happily do both: design and dogs. And it all starts with Gatts, a 7-year-old Labrador Retriever/Siberian Husky mix. When I first got him as a puppy, I had just been diagnosed with fibromyalgia, CFS, and POTS. I was almost bedridden most days and could barely make it down the street, let alone keep up with a big, high-energy, shedding dog. By all logic, it made no sense.

But they say you don't choose your pet — your pet chooses you, because they're exactly what you need. That's exactly what happened with us. Gatts rehabilitated me. He got me walking again, one street at a time, until walking dogs became my life.

We've been inseparable ever since — through parenthood, nannyhood, and everything in between. He's like a big brother to my now 4-year-old son. He might look big, black, and intimidating to some — but that's just his serious "on the job" face. Underneath it, he's a total teddy bear: protective, sensitive, very goofy, and overly friendly to a fault — gifted at putting even the most nervous dogs at ease.

His favourite thing in the world is a good pack walk, where he gets to socialize with absolutely everyone — every person, every dog, no exceptions. He's not perfect, though — his one vice is an ongoing, very serious hunt for squirrels and chipmunks.

We wanted to share that gift — and his work ethic — with every dog we meet. That's how Gat Gat Dog Walk started.