Today we’d like to introduce you to Kim Chaudoir.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Well, I’ve always been a huge animal lover. In my free time, I was volunteering at a local no-kill shelter in Chicago called Furry Friends Foundation and had heard some volunteers talking about their “dog walking jobs”. At the time, not having lived in Chicago long, I had no idea this was a legit business. It was like a little light bulb lit up in my mind. I did a little research, got laid off at the boring corporate job I was at and just decided to wing it. Lucky for me, the far north side of the city was seemingly underserviced at the time and my business grew fairly quickly. That was back in 2006.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Like with everything in life, you get out of it what you put into it. I can honestly say that I feel extremely fortunate but yes, there were some bumps in the road. Finding the right help and dealing with chaotic scheduling is definitely challenging at times but I feel that now I’m right where I want to be. I have an awesome crew that truly cares about the business and our clients as much as I do. Being in people’s homes daily, we build unique rapports with our clients and their families which is awesome. It’s really all about working together as a tightly knit team to accommodate the varying and often changing needs of our clients and their pets.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
At North Side Pets, we primarily do dog walking but we provide a lot of cat check-ins while clients are out of town too. We service from Foster Avenue west to California Avenue and north into Evanston. It really helps out pet owners who have a long workday or commute, those who are physically impaired or unable walk their pets, and people who would rather not board their pets when they leave town. Often, it’s much less stress on the pets (and their guardians) just to leave them at home and let us come tend to them as often as needed. Some of my staff members also provide overnight stays in the client’s home for those who want someone to stay and keep their pets company. We’ve also attended to birds, small mammals, fish, frogs, turtles and reptiles for clients away on vacation.
I think what sets us apart from other pet care services is that we are small enough to keep very personal relationships with our clients, yet large enough to provide coverage via a prearranged back-up person when their regular pet care provider is unavailable for some reason. I also seek only long-term help. Over the past decade, most people I’ve hired have stayed or been working with my service for several years.
What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I was that kid at the birthday party on the floor playing with the dog or cat and also having just about every pet in the book at some point. We lived in a rural area so I was always out playing with anything from bugs to toads to crayfish and whatever else I could find. I “rescued” worms off the road after it rained so they wouldn’t get run over. In my teenage years, I became a wildlife rehabber licensed under our local wildlife sanctuary in Green Bay, WI. I raised orphaned songbirds, bunnies, squirrels, raccoons and a goose until they were ready for release into the wild. I was my mother’s worst nightmare bringing anything and everything home to take care of. During college, as I studied animal biology and environmental science, I worked summers for the Department of Natural resources as a forestry technician with the gypsy moth biological controls study. I loved working in nature but was eager to getting back to being around animals on the job. I did so by applying at a small local pet boarding facility and a couple years later, making my way to Chicago for a new adventure. I took a job as an animal care manager at a very large pet boarding facility in the burbs but that wasn’t my style. I like to provide quality one-on-one care for clients and pets and so this is a much better fit for me.
Pricing:
- Weekday Dog Walks/Pet Visits before 5p $15 -30 min
- Weekend/Eve Dog Walks/Pet Visits $20 – 30 min
- *Add $3 per Additional Pet
- Major Holidays $10 surcharge
Contact Info:
- Website: www.northsidepets.net
- Phone: 773-313-6152
- Email: kimchaudoir@northsidepets.net
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/North-Side-Pets-149463601773404/?pnref=lhc
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/north-side-pets-chicago
Image Credit:
Sarah E. Harper
Joel Hess
Kevin Krause
Jon Brijah
Valerie Zimmer
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