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Zip Up The Homeless!
ONE DAY ONLY
Friday, June 11
10 am-9 pm
(248) 851-1260
6333 Orchard Lake Rd.
West Bloomfield
Trade in your used jeans (clean without
holes) for a new pair at 50% Off!
Jeans collected will be donated to the
HOMELESS OF OAKLAND COUNTY.
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(Bring additional clothing for a tax deductible donation.)
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6/4
1999
118 Detroit Jewish News
DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
JN
other unwanted doggy souvenir. His
additional services include watering
plants, rotating lights and window
curtains, bringing in mail and news-
papers, taking trash cans in and out,
and trips to the vet or dog groomer.
He emphasizes that under his super-
vision owners have total assurance that
their homes and pets will be in perfect
condition when they return. A typical
visit is 30 minutes but can easily last an
hour or more. Charges are based on the
number of calls. He always leaves
records of what he did and how the
pets behaved.
His favorite time is exercising dogs.
His routine anticipates risk. "I always
put them on a lead, and I walk on the
left side of the road, taking care that
the animals are also on my left, far
from any traffic." He knows each
dog's favorite territory from the
mandatory preliminary interview he
scheduled with its owner.
It is during these strolls, Gaberman
confesses, that he thinks about the,
meaning of life and his good fortune to
retire from law while he is young. A
graduate of Oak Park High School and
Wayne State University Law School, he
founded his own firm, specializing in
personal injury and family practice. "I
was in the trenches," he remarks,
"working 80 hours a week. When I
turned 40, I decided I could afford to
retire and be a stay-at-home dad.
"After a year at home, I learned
the real meaning of hard work and
began looking for a retirement busi-
ness. I hoped to find something
wonderful.
"I read an article about a pet-sit-
ting service, and I knew immediately
it was for me. Law is adversarial. Now
my clients appreciate me every sec-
ond, and they're always happy.
Gaberman and his wife Pam, who
live in Orchard Lake, were always
animal lovers. In their early married
days, they tried to care for a Great
Dane puppy when both were work-
ing. "If our service had existed then,"
he says, "we might have been able to
keep our Great Dane instead of suf-
fering the anxiety we felt having to
give him up."
Since then, the Gabermans have
owned numerous pets including
Siamese cats, parrots, a cockatoo and
a Weimaraner.
Gaberrnan acknowledges he has a
passion for pets but feels his wife's
attachment maybe even stronger.
"I've never met anyone as crazy for
dogs and cats as Pam. She goes to the
Franklin and Birmingham art fairs
)5
every year because there's always so
many appealing dogs there. She's too
busy petting the dogs to look at the
art.
The Gaberman children, Jacob, 7,
and Rachel, 5, occasionally accompa-
ny the pets on their rounds, ready to
pet, hug and assist with the clients if
their owners approve.
So far, the service's client base has
grown steadily with referrals and
mailbox announcements. He contin-
ues to learn all he can about pet care. (±,
He recently completed a Red Cross
program on pet first aid and carries a
well-stocked emergency kit to each
pet visit. "Name a pet product; I've
probably got it," he says.
At present, he and his wife are the
sole staff, but he anticipates hiring "a
very honest, meticulous and special
animal lover" as another pet sitter.
Gaberman prizes the close relation-
ships he has built with area veterinari-
ans and groomers; they are sources of
referrals, and he, in turn, refers clients
to them.
He doesn't see himself as competi-
tion to kennels, just "an alternative.
Some animals do very well in a
boarding kennel; others do not. The
owner knows best. "
He has already accumulated a
"happy client list," which includes
Dr. Joel and Kamala Perlson of
Franklin, Marilyn Charnes of Walled
Lake and Margo Bloomberg of West
Bloomfield.
He illustrates one advantage of pet
care at home with a quote from Beth
Lockwood of Wolverine Lake: "For
the first time, Bailey was happy and
not mad at us for going on vacation."
Mark Jackowitz of Commerce
Township wrote an appreciative note
about his Labrador retriever, Hoover:
"To be able to go on vacation and
know that our first 'child' is in good
hands is very comforting."
The hours are long, there are no
uninterrupted weekends and,
Gaberman admits, Per sitting is not
the fastest way to get rich." But he is
proud of his venture and may have
found nirvana: "What I'm doing now
doesn't feel like work at all." fl
(
Memo
Peter D. Goldman has joined PRS
Contracting Inc. as vice president.
PRS is a full-service commercial gen-
eral contractor/design build company.
Robert E. Kass was recently invited by
Women's American ORT to speak to