The bell rings as the door opens at Flea Bag’s Barkery and Bow-tique, and Ally, a 5-year-old Jack Russell Terrier, springs up from her bed, toy in mouth and tail wagging to greet the customers.
The employees at the chic pet boutique at The District joke that their fellow , four-legged employee is “the boss,” but the canine’s owner Vicki LePore is the true owner of the store.
“She’s the dog (on the logo). She’s the flea bag,” LePore says. “She’s the namesake.”
LePore, a Las Vegas native, got Ally as a 6-week-old puppy and the two have been best friends ever since. Ally is a staple at the store, where LePore sells items people use to spoil their animals.
LePore takes Ally everywhere, so work was second nature. “People are getting really good about letting people bring their dogs to work,” LePore says.
Ally barks, and LePore looks in that direction. “It’s not all about you,” she says. “But she thinks it is.”
Most of Ally’s life has been spent in the store, in one location or another. The first location, at St. Rose Parkway and Eastern Avenue, opened four years ago. LePore moved her business to The District last year.
“I think it’s very healthy from people to have their dogs around,” she says. “Have you ever seen someone who doesn’t have a dog? They are a different kind of person.”
LePore makes fresh baked goods for dogs, and Ally is the recipient of her fair share. LePore keeps the dog active at home to work off the calories gained at the store. The extra work is worth it, LePore says, because of the comfort she gets from having Ally around.
“You feel more comfortable and safe with a dog,” she says. “She definitely brings a certain amount of enjoyment (to the store). She’s different than any other dog I’ve every had.”
- TIFFANNIE BOND
Photo Credit: Howard A. Bell, Jr.
July 2005 issue of 215 South, Author : TIFFANNIE BOND
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