This new Butchertown business is aiming to pamper Louisville's four-legged residents

What started off as just a gig to pay the bills has become an entrepreneurial passion for one of the owners of a new dog day care in Butchertown.

Camp FurKids dog day care is set to open in mid-October at 1501 Mellwood Ave., replacing another dog day care, The Paw Zone, which closed earlier this year.

Co-owner Jason Starnes worked at the former day care for about four years. The job originally started as a means to a paycheck, but as Starnes was entrusted with increasing responsibility as a night manager, he began to see a future with a business of his own.

“I got to learn a whole bunch, the ins and outs and dealing with the customers and taking care of staff,” he said. “So afterwards, it left me feeling pretty confident that I could do it too.”

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When he left The Paw Zone in 2020, Starnes continued dog sitting, something he’d done for over a decade for his own enjoyment. While he stayed busy, it wasn’t enough to make ends meet by itself. He needed more capacity.

“I always wanted the dog sitting to be more fruitful, but it’s hard to do that with one person,” he said. “You can only stay in one house at a time. You can only walk so many dogs in a day.”

Starnes decided to join forces with co-owner and cousin Jill Decker, who for years has checked her own dogs into day cares in Louisville and other cities she’s lived in.

“I had a good idea of what worked and what didn’t work,” she said.

The two decided to pursue a business of their own in late 2020.

It’s taken the better part of two years to find their location on Mellwood Avenue, having explored options to build a new facility or rent at multiple other sites. With The Paw Zone location vacated, the pair knew it could work for their needs and bought the 6,200-square-foot building in July 2022 for $520,000.

“Having worked here, I already came in geared-up knowing things we wanted to do for the building,” Starnes said. “I knew that it was going to be set up for day care, it just needed some sprucing up.”

They’ve painted the interior fencing and walls, replaced the roof and added new lighting and large fans in the main climate-controlled room where the dogs will spend their time.

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They’re also planning to epoxy seal the concrete floors and as of late September were working to hire a staff of about six people, preferably with experience, at a starting wage of $15-$20.

“Must love dogs,” Starnes said. “Must be able to mop and scoop.”

Because of road noise along Mellwood Avenue, the owners said they’ll offer curbside drop-off and pick-up in the rear of the building for a quieter experience.

While there are more than a dozen dog day cares in Louisville, the co-owners said there are plenty of pups to go around, and they believe their proximity to the city’s core and interstates ― combined with their 80-dog capacity, climate-controlled facility ― will help set Camp FurKids apart.

Camp FurKids will offer services from 6:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday when it opens, though plans for 2023 include overnight boarding and grooming.

Half day visits of five hours or less range from $16-$18 per visit depending on frequency, while full day spots range from $26-$30 per visit.

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Decker and Starnes said they want their campers to be socialized and entertained during their stay in a safe and clean space.

“They’re so much better to work with as customers than people,” Decker said, laughing.

Four-legged guests will also enjoy freshly painted murals both outside and inside.

An indoor mural in the main day care space features three dogs of different breeds and sizes, including two of Starnes’ dog sitting clients and Decker’s Labrador Bower, a day care veteran who used to go to The Paw Zone before he died.

“He would appreciate watching over this,” she said of Bower.

Starnes remembers Bower fondly, recalling how after he passed the other day care dogs brought him much comfort.

“They don’t judge,” he said. “It’s hard to have a bad day with dogs around.”

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Business reporter Matthew Glowicki can be reached at mglowicki@courier-journal.com, 502-582-4000 or on Twitter @mattglo.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville pet care grows with Camp FurKids day care in Butchertown