We treat every animal that walks through our doors as though it was our own.

My name is Frank and I currently live in Bayonne, NJ with my wife Jennifer and our dogs Dusty and Zayn.  We are both avid dog lovers, having grown up with dogs for most of our lives.  Together we adopted a Boston Terrier named Jake in 2010.  Despite our best efforts, he passed away just a few months later from a brain tumor.  Heart broken, we decided to let another dog into our lives. That dog was Dusty.  Dusty has been quite the handful from the start but he is one of a kind and is so proud to have a dog daycare named after him.  One of the reasons I opened Dusty's Dog House was to also help at least one homeless animal have a safe place to stay until their forever home is found.  Our very first foster dog was Zayn and needless to say we became foster failures.  Zayn is now Dusty's little brother despite being larger than him.

On Sunday, November 27th 2021, Dusty crossed the rainbow bridge.  Throughout the years many of you had come to know Dusty, whether it was seeing him playing with your pups in the playroom or having him bark at you behind the counter.  Most of you don't know his whole story though.  Back in 2011 my wife and I had just recently put down our previous dog Jake.  We only had him a few months but he sadly passed from a brain tumor.  We found Dusty on PetFinder and decided to go see him.  Dusty had been a stray in the Bronx and ended up in a rescue shelter.  They brought him out, we walked around the block with him and agreed we couldn't let him go back in that loud place.  Only a month later from adopting him did we find out he had a cancerous mast cell tumor.  This would be only the first of many ailments for Dusty through the years.  We had it surgically removed and he made a full recovery despite a middle of the night re-stitching after he ripped them out.  It wasn't too long after this that Dusty started settling in and showing his true colors.  It became quickly evident he was very protective and was hesitant around people.  Needless to say this made life with him difficult but not unmanageable.  A few years later, having brought Dusty to other daycares and boarding facilities, with him as my motivation I decided to open my own place.  Of course I would name it after him.  Despite not being good with people, Dusty absolutely adored other dogs.  He loved playing in the playroom and had his own signature run with his front paws spread wide.  His favorite move was going for the other dog's legs.  As the years went by he had various injuries and ailments.  I have a plethora of pictures with Dusty wearing cones.  They ranged from being bit by other dogs, to having his spleen removed, two more mast cell tumors and subcutaneous emphysema.  If you're wondering about that last one, our doc had never even seen it before but his skin had air trapped underneath and for a week or so he felt like he had bubble wrap under his fur.  Two years ago this month Dusty was diagnosed with prostate cancer.  For most dogs this meant the end in 3 to 4 months.  As with everything else though, Dusty fought through.  During these two years he received chemo, which he tolerated very well.  His kidneys started to go as well but he received fluids every few days to keep them flushed.  Then back in the summer he couldn't walk.  He had a herniated disc.  We put him on steroids and miraculously he started walking again.  This dog beat everything that was thrown at him and none of them took him out.  The only thing he couldn't beat was Father Time.  Sadly it comes for all of us.  I'll never love another dog like I loved him.  He was a fighter and meant the world to me.  Rest in peace little buddy.

-Frank