The sound of occasional barking from the interior of Melissa Cormier’s business means there’s most likely a full house at Mel’s Waggin’ Tail Inn Inc. (www.melswaggintailinn.com) in Scoudouc, NB. And that’s a good thing!

Back in 2010, this avid dog lover decided to become a canine caregiver and opened her dog daycare and boarding home on July 3rd. This decision seemed like a natural progression for Melissa as back in 2003 she’d rescued a problem dog from the SPCA and had to train and work with him extensively to nurture him back to being a loving and caring animal. After reading numerous dog training and dog psychology books while researching for methods to overcome her own pet’s temperament problems and working with local dog trainers, Melissa became well experienced in understanding a dog’s body language and how to control a pack. After conducting further exploration into the rules and regulations of owning a dog daycare, Melissa put her ideas for a business down on paper of the type of ideal place where she’d be willing to leave her precious pooches Meko, Zoey, Sway, Lightning, Tahoe, Sandy and finally Falkko, if she were going away on vacation or needed to provide them with safe daycare.

But offering kennel boarding isn’t the only service available for your furry friend at Mel’s Waggin’ Tail Inn. There are special ‘S’Paw’ days – predetermined days when your dog can receive a full grooming complete with bath, and a ‘Paw’dicure’ (nail trimming) can be arranged as well. Then there is the Obedience/Fitness class entitled LEASH YOUR FITNESS which not only offers your dog a specialized obedience training, but helps the owner get in shape as well by having the two-legged caregiver do cardio exercises, push-ups, sit-up, squats and lunges etc. while Fido learns to roll over and sit still.

“When I first started formulating a business plan for my business, I knew there was a slim chance that regular financial institutions wouldn’t take a chance on me because I was so young” says Melissa. “Someone suggested that I approach the CBDC Westmorland Albert and see if they could help me out not only with the much needed financing, but with training in successful business practices. The staff was tremendously helpful with things such as training in accounting, marketing practices, and offering just plain good advice when I got stuck trying to wade through red tape with permits etc. They also helped me with the Youth Loan Program which I truly needed to get up and running. I recently went back to the CBDC and applied for a general Business Loan last fall as I wanted to expand my facility and thankfully I was approved. Overall, I’ve been more than pleased with all the help I’ve received from the folks at the CBDC.” 

In just three short years of being in business, Mel’s Waggin’ Tail Inn has gone from an 11 room boarding facility to a 23 room doggie haven in order to accommodate the growing number of canine visitors. Their daycare program provides socialization skills with other four-legged friends and supervised play area with camera monitoring provides peace of mind for the dog’s owners as they can log into the website and see how Mitzy is doing at any given time of the day. The dogs get plenty of exercise along with this social training at daycare, so at the end of the day when their owner comes to pick up Max, their dog is a very happy yet tired pooch.

And, as Melissa is fond of saying, a tired pooch equates to a good and happy furry four-legged companion!
© Marlene Oulton