 |
| Michael McTeigue left the rat-race to set up a business that helps rescue dogs. Here he is with his Lab aka Chief Tasting Officer Buddy. (Note to self: write pets into business plan!!! Genius). |
Here at SAT we like to try to help animals every which way. We support various animal causes, we aim to provide info for vets/vet students/pet owners, we volunteer our time, and we try to shop ethically. Heck, we even adopt them sometimes (in a sign of just how helpful we are, one is warming his little tushy against the computer as we type). The philosophy we try to live by is one of harm minimisation/benefit maximisation in life, and we're always interested in different approaches people take to help animals.
So we were interested to learn about a guy who threw in a major corporate job to put his eggs into the basket of a startup company to support rescue dogs. SAT spoke to Michael McTeigue about his company, SavourLife, and how it all works.
You left a successful corporate career
for a startup venture designed to help dogs in need. What was your previous job
and did anyone suggest you were crazy at the time?
I was a marketing executive at one
of Australia’s biggest companies, it was a great job working at a great
company, working with some very talented people. I’m sure people still think
I’m crazy (!), but I’m doing something I’m passionate about and I think we are
really making a difference. The bigger we get, the more we’ll be able to help
and that really excites me.
There are plenty of good causes worthy of our attention. What is it about rescue dogs that inspired you to take action?
I grew up with dogs and have
always been a big softie when it comes to them. I guess I’ve been really affected
by the innocence of rescue dogs. They are there through no fault of their own
and are powerless to change their outcome. I wanted to be able to do something
to change that situation.
 |
| A happy rescue dog. |
Why did you make the leap instead of
donating cash to an animal charity?
From a personal perspective, I
thought I could use my own money to create a business that could eventually
deliver many more donations than I, as an individual would ever be able to.
Kind of like planting a seed for someone and watching it grow. I wanted to
build a business that would continually be able to generate donations for
animal welfare groups. From a wider perspective, not everyone has the means to
donate cash to animal charities, so I thought if I could create a way for
people to lend a hand to a great cause just by buying something awesome for
their own dog, then everyone would win.
How big a risk is it for a startup to donate 50% of profits?
It’s a big risk, we are a family
company, we are not backed by some big investors with lots of money, and like
every start-up, yes sometimes it’s a struggle. But we are in this to help
rescue dogs, so really that’s what it’s all about and I feel very strongly that
we are doing a really unique and great thing. The support from people we don’t
even know has blown me away; we just love it when people help us spread the
word. I know we’ll be successful with the help of people just like the ones
reading this blog; they’re the kind of people who are going to make us a
success.
How does SavourLife help rescue dogs?
How does SavourLife help rescue dogs?
We partner with four, medium-sized
pet rescue organisations throughout the country, you can check them out in
detail on our website. We chose them very carefully, all are no-kill organisations, which was
important to us. They are the experts in their fields, I just hope to
facilitate them in doing their work even better.
So there’s a few way we help. There’s the direct assistance we give in the form of donations to our partners, that goes to things like vets bills for example which make sure the dogs have the best health, no matter what background they’ve come from.
We also give them our products for
them to use with their dogs, whether it be for playing, training, feeding or
just simply for rewards. Which really helps makes rescue dogs a great choice as
the new addition to your family, you know that they are in good health and they
even get basic obedience training!
[Ed - if anyone doubted the trainability of rescue dogs, check out this article about the fantastic display courtesy of Dave Graham and the Australian Canine Sports and Training Centre in The Australian].
And then lastly we help promote
the dogs through the unique “See Who You Helped” code on each of our packs. The
7-digit code from your SavourLife pack is your key to seeing the picture and
profile of a real-life rescue dog, just like the ones your purchase is helping.
You can sign up for updates on how your dog is doing and even share his profile
with your friends. You never know, by sharing him you might help us find him a
new home! By doing this we are getting these dogs in front of thousands and
thousands of people who would otherwise not have seen them, so we know that
helps drive more adoptions.
Are there any non-humans in your life and can you tell us a bit about them?
Ah, yes our CTO (Chief Tasting
Officer), Buddy! He takes his work very seriously! He was the inspiration
behind SavourLife and you can see him on the back of every one of our bags of
treats. He is an 11 year-old yellow Lab and the world most perfect dog, he has
the best nature of any dog I have ever met, I could be biased though….He’s
hilarious, or at least I think he is, he’s got a very funny personality and
loves his routine. I know what time of day it is, literally, by looking at him
and what he’s doing. He is my mate, he’s been with me through thick and
thin.
 |
| Here's Buddy again in case you missed him. |
How do you spend time together?
He comes with me pretty much
everywhere. He’s with me all day in the office which is great; but when I am
not working (which is not very often at the moment!) we love walking as a
family, so we’ll all go out and just wander for a couple of hours around where
we live. He’s a Lab, so he loves the water, so I take him for a swim at least
once a week. He’s also got the most incredible tennis ball radar, he’ll smell one
from 50 metres away, I swear, so he loves playing fetch with those.
What could we all do to improve the lives of non-human animals in Australia?
There’s so many things you can do. You can volunteer at your local
shelter, you can donate goods or money, you can be a foster carer for an
animal. I know people are time poor, so simple things like telling your friends
what a great option a rescue dog is instead of purchasing one from a pet shop
is a great thing to do.
Thanks Michael. I love this idea for a business and I like the idea of a business based on giving back.
Speaking of rescue dogs, this is a beautiful account about a dog named Bran who was rescued by some compassionate and dedicated peeps.
