Our first-ever Pet Week was a huge hit

Just about everyone can relate to the love we have for our pets. What started out as a way to recognize International Dog Day (August 26^th) quickly turned into a PURRfect week spent honoring all our animal friends and family as we emBARKed our first-annual Ernest Pet Week, August 26-30.

In honor of the creatures that bring us so much joy, we ran daily polls where E-Teamers shared fun facts about their pets, like how they landed on the perfect name (we’re looking at you, Lord Waffles). We also shared furry-friend trivia all week long. Did you know that a group of adult cats is called a Clowder? Or that dogs have three eyelids per eye? We even put some Ernest themed pet merch up in our swag store, so the whole family can show their Ernest pride.

Featured pet stories

We invited E-Teamers to submit their pet stories to be featured on our Ernest Insider intranet, and had so much fun getting to know our team’s little buddies. We even discovered some non-traditional pets in our midst, like Sacramento-based Elena Cobrian’s pet squirrel, named (wait for it) Squirrel, who plays like a cat and loves strawberries.

Two pet tales really inspired this whole celebration. First, meet 21-year-old Yellow Nape Amazon, Oscar. Las Vegas-based E-Teamer Sarah Budz has been his bird-mom since he was just four months old. Sarah “had no idea what she was getting into” when she adopted the baby parrot, but couldn’t imagine life without him. Oscar loves cuddles on the couch and talking up a storm whenever he hears the vacuum cleaner. This outside-the-box pairing sounds like a match made in heaven.

We were also moved by our founder Mr. Wilson’s even less traditional pet story. Growing up during the Depression, Mr. Wilson and his brother longed for a dog to keep them company. But having just lost their father, the family couldn’t afford another mouth to feed. So, their mother came up with a very special, and useful, alternative. She gave Mr. Wilson a dog-shaped nutcracker for his birthday. While it may not have been as cuddly as a puppy, it’s stayed with him for more than 90 years and brought him much joy—and also fed his penchant for walnuts.

The E-Team connection

Some pet stories stood out to us for their Ernest connection. Like Detroit E-Teamer Selena Korhnen’s dog Sasha, who ran out in front of her car, “soaking from the rain and very skinny,” when she was on her way to see a client—who kindly welcomed the rescue pup with treats before Selena took her home.

Phoenix-based Nelson Thomas also found his newest family member, a Norwegian Forest cat named Winslow, while on the job. Nelson was headed to Northern Arizona when he spotted a tiny kitten stranded in the middle of a busy freeway. After the kitty made a mad dash across traffic to get to him, she curled up and slept on his shoulder for the rest of the ride home.

Thanks to everyone who participated in Ernest Pet Week—and of course, a big shout out to all of our furry, feathered, scaled and other animal friends, who are also part of the Ernest family. We’d love to hear your pet stories, too. Share them with your Ernest Client Relations Manager. And to celebrate how much you love your BFF, why not buy them some fun merch? We’ve got a new store with pet fashions and accessories that would make pawfectly great gifts for the holidays!