PUPDATE! MEET THE TEAM: Danya Proud, Head of BARK-eting!
There’s no doubt that Danya Proud is a dog-lover. In fact, it would be more accurate to refer to her as a Crazy Dog Lady. Hence why she fits in so well with the PUPS Pet Club team!
In June 2021, Danya came into PUPS Pet Club in full force! After years of leading brand, marketing and communication teams for several Fortune 500 companies, she was eager to pair her past experiences with her love for dogs as the new Marketing Director for PUPS.
Like our Founder, Danya also tragically lost her beloved pup Horty in April, 2021. Realizing the only way to fill the enormous gap his loss left was to get another pup, she stumbled upon Starfish Animal Rescue while searching for adoptable dogs on PetFinder.
She loved that this rescue saves pups from high-kill shelters in rural Kentucky. She quickly fell in love with adoptable, “Sweet Baby B” AKA Baxter, a Schnauzer, Fox Wire-Terrier, Dachshund mix. She adopted him just a couple of weeks prior to joining PUPS. Baxter is a little guy with a huge, spunky personality! Danya and the entire team at PUPS was immediately obsessed with him. But if you know Danya, you know that one dog isn’t quite enough! So just six weeks later, she scrolled the website again and found Lala, another Dachshund-mix with a sweet and sensitive side. Danya, Baxter and our Head of Training, Liz, took a trip out to Aurora and of course, Lala came home that evening and joined the “Proud Pack!” Danya also has a Russian Blue kitty called Ricky Man.
Danya sees her own pets as family and is determined to give them the best life possible. But she wants that for every dog at Starfish Animal Rescue too! That’s why she decided to give back to the shelter in the most selfless way that one can – fostering! With the new year came a bold new resolution for Danya. She vowed to foster one dog a month in 2022. Well, it’s mid-September now and Danya just found a home for her 16th foster pup, LuLu!
Although she has surpassed her fostering goal, she has no plans on slowing down her dog-loving efforts. She is continuing to foster through Starfish and works tirelessly as Head of Marketing (or BARKeting, as she likes to call it) at PUPS Pet Club. She’s also an active pet sitter for the company.
“Crazy dog moms” get a bad or embarrassing reputation sometimes, but we are immensely grateful to have Danya on our team and are glad that she wears her Crazy Dog Lady crown with pride!