SEPTEMBER 10 • 2020 | 23

ing the Jewish Community 
Center’
s day camp; it was a way 
to demonstrate the Jewish value 
of caring for animals.
Even though Alex has no pets 
of his own, he loves animals, 
especially dogs. Before Rosh 
Hashanah that year, he started 
his own company, Dandy Dog 
Biscuits, with the idea of raising 
funds for animal welfare. 
He found a recipe online 
with only three ingredients — 
baby food, whole wheat flour 
and water — and mixed up his 
first batch in the family kitchen. 
He used his great-great-grand-
mother’
s rolling pin to roll the 
dough and a Jewish star cookie 
cutter for shapes.
Alex since expanded his 
vision: He’
d sell the biscuits at 
the Novi Memorial Day parade 
so he could raise even more to 
help animals.
“He came up with the idea on 
his own,
” said his mother, Jodi, 
who does marketing, adult edu-
cation and youth engagement 
at Adat Shalom Synagogue. “He 
said, ‘
We have to go big.
’
” 
Alex, then finishing third 
grade, made up a sign to adver-
tise the dog treats. He decided 
how many biscuits to put in 
each bag (four) and how much 
to charge ($2). At the parade, he 
approached people with dogs. 
Within an hour he had sold his 
25 bags.
Soon after the parade, he 
made his first donation to the 
World Wildlife Foundation.
With his mom’
s help, Alex 

made up some business cards 
that he handed to people walk-
ing dogs in the neighborhood.
In the spring, Alex started 
deliveries to help people and 
their dogs get through COVID 
lockdowns. “It feels good to 
make them smile,
” he said. His 
dad Danny, an attorney, and 
older brother Mickey, 12, sup-
port his efforts.
He doesn’
t venture far 
beyond his Novi neighborhood, 
though his grandfather, Lester 
Berger of Farmington Hills, 
promoted the biscuits among 
his colleagues. Alex quickly 
sold a large batch of biscuits 
he made in April, and another 
batch of 180, his biggest ever, 
that he made in July.
Over the summer, Alex, now 
10, started making dog tug-toys 
from fleece, trying out his pro-
totype on a puppy he met while 
delivering biscuits (the dog 
loved it).
So far, Alex, whose parents 
have donated all the dog bis-
cuit ingredients and supplies, 

has raised $400 for the World 
Wildlife Foundation.
The venture has been a 
great way for Alex to develop 
self-confidence and improve his 
math skills, said his mother.
He’
s not really looking for 
more business right now — one 
big batch of biscuits a month is 
about all he and his mom can 
handle — and he doesn’
t have a 
website yet. But interested cus-
tomers can email him at dandy-
dogbiscuits@gmail.com. 

Know of other local kid entrepreneurs 

for JN to spotlight? Let us know at 

letters@renmedia.us.

Jews in the D

Alex Gross 
making dog 
biscuits

“He came up 
with the idea 
on his own.”

— MOM JODI GROSS