Bollies Oodle Farm Stay is a family business, in structure and in heart.
Run by mother Kellie and her daughter Tayla on the outskirts of town off Yulungah Road, the Farm is an idyllic destination for your furry friends. Over the past few years, they’ve developed a personalised and genuine dog boarding alternative. Kellie stresses that to them, your dog is “not just another number.”
The idea for the farm was born out of heartbreak when Kellie lost her husband and Tayla, her father. Kellie, needing to make her own way in life, committed to her passion for dog training, specialising in breeding and training Groodles. However, Kellie found that her clients and their pets were not having positive experiences with the boarding kennel options available to them. Their dogs came back uncared for and were regressing in their training. This was the beginning of Bollie’s Oodle Farm Stay.
The business offers a range of services. Accommodation for dogs were purpose-built facilities and 20 acres of beautiful, scenic land provides a great experience. Kellie and Tayla also live on the same property as the farm stay, meaning the dogs are really welcomed into the family with round-the-clock care. The facilities can hold up to 30 dogs, but they generally care for around 15 at a time.
In addition to accommodation, they provide: training, scenic dog walks, post-op and rehab care, and professional or in-house grooming.
The mother-daughter duo are grateful for the help of the Baw Baw Shire Council as well. They’d heard “horror stories” about starting a business, but council support services were “absolutely fantastic” in their support.
But running the farm is not without its challenges, with Tayla admitting that different challenges are “always pop[ping] up.”
However, Kellie reaffirms, “everything goes into the dogs or the kennels,” and I don’t think she’d have it any other way.
Kellie is the dog specialist, she loves giving the dogs a sense of purpose and says that being around them gives her calmness. Tayla jokes that her mum doesn’t holiday as she doesn’t like to be away from her dogs for too long. Tayla, whose background is in hairdressing, has the admin and marketing covered.
Working together means they can prioritise family time as well. Kellie gets to spend lots of time with her young grandchildren and says she is “very lucky” to be so close to her family.
The farm attracts many dogs from Melbourne. Tayla estimates that 90% of their clients travel from the city; as the owners jetset off on holidays, their dogs are experiencing their own regional getaway.
And the pair don’t plan on stopping anytime, they’re planning an expansion and are diving into a holistic approach that helps with bringing about calmness.
While the days are long, often starting at 5 am, the work is rewarding. The passion Kellie and Tayla share for caring and training dogs is clear. This is a business built on care, nurture, dedication and dog handling expertise.
More information is available on their website: https://www.bolliesoodlefarmstay.com.au/home.
