by Tara Trenary photos by Steven Hertzog
It’s not difficult to figure out that Lawrencians really love their pets. Take a walk down Mass Street or a jog out by Clinton Lake, and see how many dogs you spot happily trotting along with their owners. East and West side alike, these college town folks know a thing or two about having pets. In the United States, 65 percent of households own a pet, according to the 2015-2016 National Pet Owners Survey, conducted by the American Pet Products Association. Americans spent more than $60 billion on their pets last year alone. It’s no wonder there are so many businesses dedicated to this billion-dollar industry. Whether you have to board your pet overnight while you go on a business trip, need a person to bathe her once a month or walk him once a day, or just want a place to drop your friend so he can get in some quality romp time, Lawrence has the perfect fit for you.
Anthony Barnett didn’t always know he wanted to work with animals. With a degree in business from Baker University in hand, Anthony only knew that he wanted to start a small business, and that doggie daycare was a growth industry. So in 2004, he bought Home Sweet Home Dog Resort with an eye toward developing a small business, and a passionate career working with dogs was launched. “I’ve always connected with people and with animals, but the passion really followed the choice,” he says. When he first bought the Resort, Anthony depended on his staff’s knowledge and know-how when it came to the dogs. He spent
hours upon hours researching and taking in every bit of information he could to better the business. What started as a drive to make the business the best it could be turned into a passion for the dogs themselves. But it was a personal bout with anxiety and a passion for helping abused dogs that led Anthony to found the Symbiotic Behavioral Treatment Center, a nonprofit dedicated to treating PTSD and stress and anxiety disorders using the human/canine bond. “Pit Bulls have connected me with people in a way I never knew they could,” he says. Combining his work with animal cruelty survivors and veterans, while incorporating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) through the Treatment Center is one way Anthony’s passions began to manifest themselves. “I started seeing parallels between the dogs I was working with and the people I was volunteering with,” he explains. “What I really get from working with dogs and with veterans is I feel like those are two groups that make a commitment to me without asking anything in return.” Since buying Home Sweet Home, Anthony’s passion for dog training and care, and also this interaction between dogs and humans, has compounded. Along with founding the Symbiotic Behavioral Treatment Center, he completed the Triple Crown Dog Training Academy Distance Education Program; has served on the Lawrence Humane Society Board of Directors; advises the Board of Directors for Kansas City Pet Project; is founder of Game Dog Guardian (a nonprofit whose mission is outreach with the human/ canine bond, working with human and canine trauma survivors, and therapy dog outreach); works with the Topeka VA Hospital with his two therapy dogs; conducts dog-safety education classes in
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