when a storm would come; there was no
reaching her. Then I started to think about
opening a doggie bakery, so I could take
her with me to work. That way, she would
never have to be alone.”
When Jane discovered Boca Grande, she
knew it was just the place to set up such a
shop. The owner of Woof Gang Bakery told
Jane that selling the business was a strong
possibility, and she jumped at the chance.
Jane took over on January 1, 2013, and has
not looked back since.
“I never did get my six-month break
after moving here,” she laughed. “I
had one month off to unpack
and get ready to take over
the store, and have not
stopped since!”
Jane’s fi rst year
of ownership of
the store was
challenging in many
ways, but primarily
because it was part
of the Woof Gang
Bakery franchise.
That meant she
didn’t have full run
of the store, as the
franchise owners
had a set idea as to
how it should be run,
where Jane could buy
her products, and what she
could buy.
As soon as Jane could extricate
herself from under the franchise, she did.
“I changed the name on the spot to
Island Dog Boutique, and continued to do
it my way … and we are still here!” she said.
Jane immediately set to work learning
more about a topic that she had personal
experience with – pet nutrition. Each
week she would see dogs come into the
shop with everything from skin disease to
intestinal issues, even cancer. When Penny’s
stomach issues became chronic, Jane
ran the gambit regarding solutions her
veterinarian proposed. Nothing seemed
to help, and after spending thousands of
dollars, Jane watched Penny keep getting
sicker.
November/December • 2020 • GASPARILLA MAGAZINE A
so when it fi nally sold I thought I would take
six months to a year off to fi gure out what I
wanted to do with next phase of my life,
once I got to Florida. Little did I know what
lay ahead.”
Jane had grown up in rural Pennsylvania
and loved animals, although she wasn’t
allowed to have any.
“Our neighbors had a horse farm, and
I used to go hang on the fence and look
at from afar,” Jane recalled. “They also
had collies, and that is where my love of
dogs started. I love collies to this day, and
I actually had one that we rescued
from our neighbor while I was
married. I had to leave her
behind when I divorced
my husband, and I still
miss her to this day.
I had just gotten
my dog Penny, a
Boston terrier/
poodle/boxer
mix two months
before my dad
passed away, and
she really helped
me in my grieving
process.”
Penny had issues
of her own. She was
a rescue who had
been tied up and left
to die in the Pennsylvania
cold winters and hot
summers. Jane said she was in
bad shape from being burned, frostbitten
and starved.
“We also discovered this year that she
had been shot as well, and the buckshot is
starting to come out of her little frail body
12 years later,” Jane said. “Since she had
been an outdoor dog her entire life, she
had no idea how to be inside a home, or
how to sleep on someone’s bed with them
and snuggle. That took a long time getting
her used to that. She had a lot of emotional
issues, not to mention severe thunderstorm
issues. I thought she would get used to
the daily storms in Florida, but it never
happened. No drug or gimmick or gadget
worked. She went so far away, mentally,
Jane & Penny
November/December • 2020 • GASPARILLA MAGAZINE 73