Canal Bark Remains Open During Pandemic

If you need help caring for your pets during this crisis, there are still options available for you in the Northland.

DULUTH, Minn. – If you need help caring for your pets during this crisis, there are still options available for you in the Northland.

Canal Bark in Duluth has stayed open because it is considered an essential business. The company, which serves as a daycare for dogs, recently received federal loans, which gives them more incentives for small businesses to keep their workers on the payroll.

Canal Bark had to lay off thirty people but now, everyone is back thanks to the loan.

“It was such a relief, I didn’t know what we were going to do,” said Andrea Schokker, owner of Canal Bark. “Payroll is a huge part of our expenses here, it’s people. So when the revenue dried up the way it did, we just didn’t know how we were going to continue to survive.”

Canal Bark relies heavily on travel, so airline traffic will dictate how the company does in the near and distant future.