The Georgia Pet Watchers Story
Our story begins with the story of Robin Taylor, a former corporate executive and avid animal lover. She birthed what started out as Gwinnett Pet Watchers, now Georgia Pet Watchers:
“I’ve been an animal lover all of my life and so far I’ve managed to live with dogs, cats, gerbils, hamsters, ferrets, birds, fish, a rabbit, a squirrel, and a turtle,” says Robin. Her very first job was as a trainer at Bad Dogs in Atlanta, GA. There she trained dogs in general obedience/tricks, for protection, commercials and the occasional local celebrity like Hank Aaron. She loved working there, but she says, “my family eventually convinced me that I needed to go to school and find a ‘real’ job, so I got an Engineering degree and went into sales.”
For the next 20 years, Robin climbed the corporate ladder and achieved much success in her career. However, “I realized that all a six figure salary brings is more taxes and being away from home all of the time,” Robin says. Her career called for a lot of travel, which lead to another layer of stress when trying to find a good pet sitter without much luck, or trying to bring her pets along with her.
“When that part of my life ended, it was time to find something new to do. It was one of those moments where something just strikes you out of the blue. All of my life I’ve loved animals and I’d continued to help train and manage nutrition for friends, family, and even my own pets. I could use my business experience and professionalism to fill a need that I’d seen for the longest time. I could work with animals like I’d always wanted to.” It was in this moment that Gwinnett Pet Watchers was born.
Says Robin, “now I’ve realized that it’s more than just being on time and communicating well, it’s about building relationships and in some cases becoming a part of a family. I’ve been there to see the new ones come into the world and I’ve been there to help say goodbye to old friends. I don’t have five dogs and three cats anymore; I have whole families. I have the best job there is!”