Central Bark Continues Franchise Expansion with Dog Day Care Center to Open in Poughkeepsie, NY

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Central Bark, a premier whole dog care franchise and industry pioneer, recently announced it is continuing its aggressive national expansion with its soon to open first location in the Town of Poughkeepsie, New York. Leading Central Bark’s expansion into the Hudson Valley is the husband-and-wife team of Denise and Ron Donofrio.

After their 30-year career in corporate banking and real estate, the couple was looking for a chance to work together and follow their dream of working with dogs. They have always had dogs in their lives and wanted to combine that passion with a business that was both a community and personal fit.

“As I was considering my transition out of banking after three decades, I knew I still wanted to work directly with my community, but in a different way,” said Denise Donofrio. “As lifelong dog lovers, we knew we wanted to find a business where we could embrace that deep connection, but it had to be the right fit. We certainly looked at options and even considered doing it ourselves, but we had an immediate connection with Central Bark and the people behind the brand. Their culture and commitment to dog safety above anything else immediately resonated. As an established brand with 20 years of experience, Central Bark has the systems, procedures and training to allow us to open quicker, with confidence, and with the backing of a great team behind us.”

Once open in the Town of Poughkeepsie, the new whole dog and day care facility will bring approximately 15 job opportunities to the community including paid internships with Vassar, Marist, Dutchess and New Paltz college students.

Central Bark Poughkeepsie will feature a safety first, green, and aesthetically designed state of the art facility. Services will include Enrichment Dog Day Care, which combines Central Bark’s industry-leading dog day care expertise with the latest in canine behavior science. Enrichment Dog Day Care provides a healthy and balanced blend of exercise, social group play, learning, rest, and love. To round out its approach to whole dog care, Central Bark Poughkeepsie offers boarding, training, grooming, a boutique retail market, community dog and pet parent events, and additional services.

“As we were exploring franchising, we kept gravitating towards Central Bark because of three main reasons,” said Ron Donofrio. “One, Central Bark puts dog safety above everything else. Two, they provide families and their pets, with the ability to address whole dog and day care needs under one roof – from day care to grooming, training, boarding, pet supplies, and more. Lastly,  it’s the people. Their culture is something you feel right away when you walk into a Central Bark. The dogs are happy, the parents are happy, our staff is happy, and we wouldn’t have anything less for our Hudson Valley Poughkeepsie community.”

Central Bark Poughkeepsie will feature approximately 6,500 square feet of indoor space plus over 2,000 square-feet of outdoor play areas. Activities include small flexible playgroups, group skills work, rest periods, and personalized one-on-one enrichment sessions. Enrichment add-ons give pups the extra attention they love and the freedom to use their senses, safely exploring with their instincts as they engage with interactive toys, puzzles, and games.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Denise and Ron to our growing Central Bark franchise family,” said Tim Weiderhoft, Ed.D., CFE, chief development officer for Central Bark. “With every new owner like Denise and Ron that we award a franchise to, we’re changing the dog care landscape. We spent the last 20 years perfecting our model so that we can now be strategic in our expansion with the right operators in the right markets. Given Denise and Ron’s incredible backgrounds and commitment to the Central Bark brand, we know they’re going to achieve great success.”