Dating, Doggy Style
Lauren KawamIssue date: 8/20/09 Section: News
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Mike D'Elena, the creator and manager of FindMyDogADate.com, has been holding these monthly meet-ups for the past four months. Valley residents and their dogs can come, share stories, socialize and let their dogs play for hours on end.
The website allows users to register and search for a suitable play-date partner for their dogs, according to breed, temperament, weight and age.
At the July meeting, D'Elena, who also owns and runs Reckless T-shirts, a local t-shirt printing business, says he saw at least 60 dogs at the meet up, with about 45 of their owners.
D'Elena also says that, eventually, he'd like to make the site more than just a directory for people to search for doggy dates.
"If we can make the site a one-stop-shop for Phoenix dog owners, whether it is services or doggy dates, and get the money from advertising and give that to a charity, that's ideal," he says.
College Times: How did FindMyDogADate.com come about?
D'Elena: I have a pit bull and I had a roommate who had another one. In January, he got ill, ended up moving back to California, and the dogs were like best friends. She had always had friends around, but by this time my college friends with dogs had moved away. Finally, I went to Craigslist, put posts up in local places and stuff. And nothing really ever came from it. And what did was the really sketchy people on Craigslist. I just thought to myself, there's got to be a better way. I thought maybe something like FindMyDogADate.com would already exist, and it did, but nothing locally. So, I figured, I've started a business before, why don't I just start something here.
What kind of numbers are you seeing as far as membership?
Right now, I have about 400 members, mostly young adults, like 21 to 35. And then it stops, and then goes to like 50 to 60. We've only been doing it for about three or four months. The goal is by the end of the year, to have between 1,000 and 1,500.
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