Pets rides just a woof (or meow) away

Once in a while, the roulette game called life aligns itself and someone like Perry Falconer hits the jackpot.

Three years ago the affable 37-year-old combined his passion for vehicles and motorsport, his love of animals and his business acumen to establish a service company called PetRide Halifax.

“The idea started after an incident with our beloved pet, Ozzy,” Perry told me outside the Metro Animal Emergency Clinic in Burnside Industrial Park.

“As a frisky puppy, he jumped from my arms and landed on asphalt, breaking both front legs.”

Fortunately for Ozzy, Perry was off work for a time and transported Ozzy to a series of veterinarians and animal specialists for treatment and follow-up care. The experience made Perry wonder, “What do people with hectic schedules or without access to a car do when their pet is injured or gets sick?”

This question was the founding cornerstone of PetRide Halifax.

Can’t pick Puppy up at the groomers? Need to drop Kitty off at daycare? Your pet at the vet and needs a drive to a specialist?

If the answer to any of these questions is ‘yes’ then Perry Falconer, working with his fiancé, Sherrie Hennigar, are at the ready 24 /7, three hundred and sixty five days a year with their pair of Ford Fiesta hatchbacks.

PetRide offers four services: PetRides to transport pets to medical, grooming or even day-car appointments. PetVisits involve visiting temporarily ‘home alone’ animals to feed, exercise or just say hello. Then there’s PetExpress courier service to deliver pet supplies to the pet’s home and even AfterCare, transport of the remains of deceased pets.

They are commercially insured, including pet life and accident coverage. In addition they are Pet First-Aid Certified through St John Ambulance and carry both pet and human first aid kits in their Ford Fiestas.

PetRide’s usual first gig of the day is to take animals that have overnighted at the Metro Animal Clinic to their owner or a veterinarian or, as in our case, to the Halifax Veterinary Hospital on Quinpool Road.

Our charge, a cat in a cage, needed overnight hands-on treatment so Perry had driven her there the night before for observation.

Perry drives his covered-in-paw-prints Ford Fiesta about 1,500 kilometres a week. It is guarded by his prized papillons, Ozzy and his sidekick, Razz, who check me suspiciously at first but soon are treating me like a favourite uncle.

The 500-year-old breed, among the smartest of the toy dogs, are a pet of choice of truckers due to their keen ability to hear and sense when trouble might be brewing.

During PetRide’s first year they had 200 jobs, the second year it jumped to 800 and this year 1,700 jobs so far and counting.

Pet owners want to trust the person that moves their animal around and Perry’s motorsport background coupled with his unruffled approach with the animals has resulted in word-of-mouth recommendations that has grown his business.

We deliver ‘kitty’ and then Perry heads for our second stop to pick up Basha and Cooper, a pair of friendly Weimaraners Perry drives to doggie day care every morning.

They obediently galumph over to the Fiesta and hop into beside little Ozzy and Razz. Canine fellowship right there in the back seat as we head for the doggie daycare.

It doesn’t take long to notice how calm Perry’s driving is. Smooth starts, controlled stops and planned routes to make the most of right hand turns and limited congestion.

Obviously, his background in motorsport with both the Bluenose Auto Sport Club and the Atlantic Sports Car Club is being put to good use in keeping his clients happy and comfortable and his expenses down.

On the way back Ozzie sleeps in the back seat while Razz works on me for a head rub and belly scratch. Perry proudly tells me of all the animals he has moved around, he has only been bitten once and only had a half dozen or so smelly ‘accidents’ to clean up.

And what about that big trip to Toronto to transport two dogs home to their owner?

It’s a workday and I watch the drivers of courier vans, taxis and delivery trucks going about their business. An ambulance goes by, lights flashing, siren wailing. I notice a police car has a hopped-up pick-up truck pulled over.

So much of our daily life involves getting people and things around for some reason or other.

And in the Halifax area, pet owners are lucky to have Perry Falconer and Sherrie Hennigar’s PetRide Halifax to help with the logistics of pet ownership.

Meow!