Legacy of Love

FROM THE DAY Heather Roberts was born, she was surrounded by the beauty of nature and the love of animals. She had the distinctive experience of spending her days on her family’s generational farm, where some of her pets included her first puppy and goat at age 5, and a horse when she was 18.

From living and working on the farm, Roberts has an inherent sense of how to interact with a variety of different animals. She has used those skills and experiences to create Sit. Stay., a local doggy day care and boarding business. She runs it on her family’s property in Newtown (less than a quarter mile from Upper Makefield Township), together with her parents.

“I started my animal behavior career when I was a baby,” Roberts says. “From working with animals, I learned to read them, how they operate and how dogs use their body language to communicate. Those innate skills set me up for success in the business, and having my parents’ knowledge creates an even stronger foundation.”

In 1950, her grandparents bought a bare plot of land at 550 Washington Crossing Rd., where they built a home and barns, along with greenhouses for a nursery business. Eventually, Roberts’ dad, Barry, took over the nursery, and her mom, Diana, had a landscaping company. However, 20 years ago, the farm’s use transitioned out of the greenhouse business into a new direction.

UNLEASHING A BUSINESS

When Roberts was 23, she was a nanny for local resident Abby Simkus, whose family decided to get a dog. With no doggy day care or a kennel in the immediate area, Simkus suggested Roberts should open this type of business due to her animal knowledge and experience working on a farm. Roberts decided to pursue this idea on the family’s farm with her parents.

“I started it as a side business with a few phenomenal clients who I still have today,” Roberts says. “For many of them, I’m on their third dog.”

Roberts says her client base grew mostly through word of mouth and with the help of social media. Over the years, Sit. Stay. has expanded with multiple outdoor play yards, buildings for the dogs and additional employees. Her sister provides grooming services, and Upper Makefield Township police officer and former K9 handler Harry Vitello provides dog training.

At Sit. Stay., dogs are grouped by size, age, temperament, personality and energy level. Roberts says day care is beneficial for a lot of reasons.

“For a lot of our families, day care is a great alternative to just a walk when they’re at work, and it’s beneficial if you plan to travel to get your dog used to an environment where they’re going to be staying overnight,” Roberts says. “From an exercise perspective, nothing tires a dog out like another dog.”

MULTIPLE BONDS

“My husband and I love working with the dogs, and they all have such different personalities,” says Diana. “We are up at 5 a.m. with the overnight dogs to let them out, and then start the day at 7 a.m. for day care. Throughout the day, we feed them, play with them, clean up after them and always make sure they are happy and comfortable. The dogs are all really fantastic.”

A majority of the day care’s clients are from Upper Makefield Township and Newtown. Roberts says that working with someone’s dog creates a bond with the client.

“What I love about dogs is that they are genuinely giving creatures, and they want to bond with you,” Roberts says. “This business has given my family and me such a unique role in the community because people are trusting us with their dogs and we form such close friendships with so many of our clients.”

Upper Makefield resident and client Alec Arons brings his wire hair fox terrier, Harry, to day care. “What I love about this facility is the love that Harry gets and the attention he gets,” Arons says. “The Roberts family are fantastic people, and I would not trust Harry with just anybody; they take good care of him.”

GIVING BACK

With her large client base from Upper Makefield Township and roots nearby, Roberts has become heavily involved in the community with volunteer work. A year ago, she started the nonprofit Keystone Community Coalition with her friend Devon Scaccetti. The coalition raises money through events to give back to a variety of local organizations.

“The reception has been incredible in Upper Makefield Township, where we host most of our events,” Roberts says. “As much as we can do to benefit the community and give back, we’ll keep going. People want to make a difference, and we want to create a place for people to feel that connection.”

Roberts says the township is special because of its history, landscape and people. She also highlights how the police and fire departments are remarkable because they are so heavily involved in the community. And for her, residents have been supportive of her small business.

“They love their dogs, and they want to have a relationship with the people who are caring for their dogs, and that’s wonderful,” Roberts says. “We have a great group of families we sit for.”

A FAMILY PRESENCE

One aspect that makes Sit. Stay. stand out is the business’s family connections. There will always be a family member on-site, which offers a personal touch. Besides Roberts and her parents, her grandmother (who lived to 96) watched the small puppies until she passed away, and Roberts’ 10-year-old son loves helping with the dogs in his free time.

While many farms have been bought out by developments or other businesses, the Roberts family’s hope is to continue this legacy.

Roberts’ parents plan to pass the farm down to the next generation. “My parents started the farm,” says Barry. “I’ve always been here and never left. We’re one of the last and longest-running generational farms in Newtown and the area as a whole, so that means a lot to me.”

Roberts expects Sit. Stay. to continue to flourish and grow. “It’s great having a family unit [of people] who support each other, so I feel blessed to come up with an idea where we can all work together,” she says. “The fact that we have the farm and keep the farm as a family business really is a gift.”

BY DARI KOTZKER