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Meet DogBoy

A campus epiphany inspired Bart Emken to change the course of his life and career. Known as "DogBoy" since his decision to make dogs the focus of his future, Bart is the founder and owner of DogBoy's Dog Ranch, a unique boarding kennel, doggie day care and training facility just north of Austin.

A nearly native Austinite (he lived in San Diego until moving to Austin in middle school) Bart, 35, originally planned a career in advertising and earned his degree in communications at the University of Texas. A brief stint in the advertising world did not suit, so he headed back to school to explore other options.

It was on the UT campus one day that Bart happened to see a blind man walking with a guide dog. Bart watched as the dog carefully led the man down the street, and then stopped him at a flight of stairs, keeping him from falling. Seeing the dog working to compensate for the man's lack of sight filled Bart with awe and respect. At that moment he realized that his future was going to revolve around dogs.

Love of dogs was not new for Bart. His first memories include the family dog, an Afghan Hound named Nikki. But now that dogs were a career choice, Bart immersed himself into learning all he could. He began work at a local kennel, making mental notes of how he would eventually do things differently. He worked under local trainers, learning positive training techniques and realizing that there was a better way to train dogs than most people knew. He began teaching dog training classes at the Austin Humane Society. And perhaps most importantly, he furthered his learning under the direction of two world-renowned dog training and pack animal behavior specialists, John Rogerson and Ian Dunbar, both from England.

In 1995, Bart was ready to fulfill his dream of building his own kennel. He and his wife, Courtney, moved to Pflugerville, bought 15 scenic acres, and started small with 10 outdoor runs. The first thing that was different about DogBoy's, even then, was that the dogs got to interact with each other. As a pack animal behaviorist, Bart has a talent for observing dog behavior and understanding which dogs will play well with others. At DogBoy's, he and his team evaluate all dogs, and then place them in play groups by size and compatibility. The "fun factor" at DogBoy's inspires intense devotion among its clients, human and canine.

After two years, with a client base of 200 dogs, DogBoy's Dog Ranch grew to 24 indoor/outdoor runs. By 1999 DogBoy's had grown to more than 2,000 dogs, and the second major DogBoy's difference made its debut. Bart and Courtney made the decision to accept only spayed and neutered dogs as a matter of principle and to further the DogBoy's mission of a better life for all dogs and their owners.

In 2003, DogBoy's counts more than 5,000 dogs among it s clients. With 12 years of experience training and observing dogs in "domesticated packs," Bart is sought after as a trainer and consultant on all things dog-related. DogBoy and Courtney live happily on the Ranch property, along with their two children and five dogs.