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Sheri LaFontaine 
owner and matchmaker

 

My Story: The Birth of a Fluffy Niche

As a child, I was fascinated by all the breeds of dogs. It was amazing how each one had characteristics that fit a need for humans. Dogs were smart and funny and needed.

When I was 11, growing up in Canada, I would pretend that people were calling me to tell me what they were looking for in a dog. I would then search out the breed that best suited them in my Dog Fancy magazines and tell them that I would ship one out immediately. Little did I know, 40 years later, I would be doing something very similar. 

My Dad passed away in January 2020 and that's when I left an apartment in Sylvania and purchased my home in Lambertville, MI, allowing for my disabled mother to move in with me. 

2020 brought the loss of many other precious people in our family and on top of that, our favorite dog passed away. She was a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel named Abbey. We had rescued her from a puppy mill situation near Detroit.

We soon started looking for another dog like Abbey. Her temperament and coloring were without a doubt our "dream dog". The hunt was a very difficult one. There were so many scams and puppy mills offering beautiful puppies online, I didn't know who to trust. 

Our local shelters were full of "bully" breeds and didn't have small lap dogs at all. When I did run across them, there were already 200 applications submitted for adoption.

So, that's when my research started. I contacted over 1000 breeders and went to visit some facilities close to me. I saw some very lovely places and some very disturbing places. 

In my travels and research, I finally found my next forever companion, a Cavie named Winston. But I didn't stop there.  I wanted to help others.

In a Facebook group, I saw that a senior lady from Pennsylvania was looking for a Ruby Male Cavalier. I quickly found one for her, took it in for a full vet check at Temperance Animal Hospital, and then delivered it to her in Pittsburgh. 

And so it began. I had found my niche, a wonderful fluffy niche. Why had no one thought of this? Well, many people had. A doggie matchmaker was often used in New York and California but was unheard of in this area. When I signed up with the BBB, they didn't have a business compartment for me, but with all the puppy scams out there, they were happy to have someone to send people to.

I have since found myself flying to TX just to bring back a Champion Cocker Spaniel or making the trip to Chicago with a Cava-chon to meet a family from Minneapolis. There is no distance too great when it brings that kind of happiness. But some of my favorite matches have been right here in my local area. Seeing them at White Park, Lambertville Hardware, or at the local groomer gives me such a delight.  Knowing it was a match made in....Bedford Township.