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Hamilton Heights Dog Daycare Gets $100,000 Grant from Chase

By Gustavo Solis | September 16, 2015 1:35pm
 Brian Taylor, center, accepts the $100,000 grant from two Chase Bank representatives and one of his employees at the Harlem Doggie Day Spa on Saint Nicholas Avenue.
Brian Taylor, center, accepts the $100,000 grant from two Chase Bank representatives and one of his employees at the Harlem Doggie Day Spa on Saint Nicholas Avenue.
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DNAinfo/Gustavo Solis

HAMILTON HEIGHTS — Pooches at Harlem Doggie Day Spa just got 100,000 reasons to wag their tails.

The neighborhood destination for pet grooming, daycare and boarding received a $100,000 grant from Chase Bank Wednesday. They were one of 20 businesses selected from a pool of 30,000 applicant to earn the grant.

“These dogs are my life,” said Taylor, who sleeps in the room next door to the dogs.  “I treat them as my own even though I don’t have my own.”

Taylor, who worked as a banker at the Chase on 145th Street, opened the doggie day spa at 734 Saint Nicholas Ave. about six years ago.

“My family was like, ‘Brian, you left banking to work with animals?’ They didn’t get it,” he said. “I told them if you find something you love, the money and everything else will come.”

With the new money Taylor hopes to expand the business’ vocational training program and open a new location Uptown or in the Bronx.

Currently Doggie Day Spa has a partnership with an online school, Animal Behavior College. They serve as mentors for students taking the online course by allowing them to get hands on training in Hamilton Heights.

Taylor would like to open a grooming school. Currently there is only one accredited by the state’s Department of Education through their Proprietary School Supervision program, he said.

“You will be able to learn a skill set that you can apply to working for someone else or working for yourself,” he said.

Private groomers with a strong client list can earn more than $40,000 a year, he added.

A handful of customers stopped by Doggie Daycare Wednesday morning to see them receive the giant $100,000 check from Chase.

“I moved here from Chelsea and it was a big transition for us,” said Jorja Rivero. “It was a big deal for him because he knew the other place left and right.”

Her dog, a Boston Terrier named Leroy, now walks a little faster as soon as he figures out they are going to Doggie Daycare, she said. This summer he spent nearly a month on Saint Nicholas Avenue, Rivero said.

“This has become her second home,” she said.