When co-owners Kellie Bagwell and Dick Sedlak of Dick’s Doghouse started planning out their list of requirements for their new doggy daycare facility in Minocqua, Wisconsin, they knew it would take some time and research to find suppliers and equipment that met their expectations.
Dick’s Doghouse is a doggy daycare facility offering daycare, boarding, agility and behavior training and more. The facility opened in October 2017 and so far, business has been extremely successful.
More and more doggy daycares have been popping up, but Bagwell explains that there aren’t many options for those around the Minocqua, Woodruff and Rhinelander areas – a perfect business opportunity for her and her fiancé, Sedlak.
Co-owners Bagwell and Sedlak discovered a perfect building for their new business. With a little TLC, the location would become a space for dogs to play, learn and grow.
“Years ago, the building used to be the old town garage,” explains Bagwell. “It’s a cement and brick block building. Since it was an old garage, there are two big overhead doors, which is really nice because the two outdoor areas can open up when needed to the main indoor play area and boarding space.”
The doggy daycare renovation project needed a bit of work, including the addition of an indoor swimming pool and hot tub for the dogs to play in and recover and new flooring throughout the facility.
“The original floors were all cement, but cement can be porous,” says Bagwell. “We really didn’t want urine from dog accidents soaking in, and we also needed to find a floor that the dogs wouldn’t slip on with the pool being nearby the play area.”
Considerations, Requirements and Research
Before Bagwell and Sedlak kicked off their renovation project for the new doggy daycare, they did a significant amount of research.
“We toured a lot of facilities before we started this project, some in Florida, Chicago and lower Wisconsin,” said Bagwell.
Quite a few of the facilities had cement floors and a strong odor.
“The other facility owners told us how hard it was to get the urine smell out of the cement floors and recommended non-porous flooring,” she added.
In addition to cement, the other type of flooring Bagwell and Sedlak noticed was tile.
“Tile was more on the slippery side, but on top of that, tile needs to be grouted, and grout is porous,” explained Bagwell. “We didn’t want to have to be treating grout constantly to keep it clean.”
Though tile was reasonably priced, it wasn’t worth the additional hassle and work. Sedlak and Bagwell knew they needed an alternative option and, while researching for a separate, personal home project, stumbled upon Action Floors’ selection of Action Herculan synthetic flooring.
Success with Synthetic
Action Herculan IG synthetic floors addressed all the owners’ concerns and requirements: durable, slip resistant, scratch and stain proof and non-porous.
The Action Herculan IG synthetic floor is used throughout the facility, from the front reception area to the play area and right up alongside the pool and hot tub.
“The floor is performing really well. We love it,” says Bagwell. “The dogs do really well with the floor and it isn’t scratching or staining with their nails or due to accidents.”
Since the floor is completely seamless, dirt, grime and the dogs’ nails don’t get caught. This is important for the long-term performance and durability of the floor, and also cleanliness of the facility overall.
Bagwell also adds that the speckled, multi-colored floor is not only easy to clean, but also maintains a professional-looking appearance.
“We’ve done several doggie daycares,” says Action Floors’ Project Manager Cory Corullo. “Owners of these facilities like it mostly for the cleanability, but it also looks a lot nicer than concrete does. They want to cater to the owners of the pets who come in and see a really nice place, so they know their dog will be well taken care of.”
Happy Paws, Dogs and Customers
Since their grand opening in October, hundreds of furry paws have run, galloped, trotted and enjoyed the daycare facility. Even with the pups’ toenails and horseplay, the floor has completely maintained its original appearance and the owners have nothing but positive things to say.
“Action Floors was so easy to work with. Anytime I emailed them, they’d get right back to me,” Bagwell shares. “Cory even helped me quite a bit with picking the colors. He was very patient.”
Action Herculan IG synthetic flooring is engineered for commercial and industrial applications. While it works extremely well for facilities like Dick’s Doghouse, it also lends itself well to other facilities such as retail spaces, schools, hospitals and laboratories that require clean, germ-free and wear-resistant flooring. The seamless and nonporous epoxy floor system provides flexibility with a variety of colors and sheen to complement any facility.
To learn more about Action Herculan IG systems, check out our website or learn how one school discovered the benefits of synthetic flooring throughout the building. Shoot us a message today to start the conversation and see how you can take advantage of synthetic flooring’s benefits like our friends at Dick’s Doghouse.
