Understanding Key Bottlenecks: Hiring & Retention with Doug Keeling | Ep. 81

Hiring and retention are the biggest bottlenecks I see in pet care businesses today, and they’re also the areas where small changes can unlock massive growth.

In today’s episode, I’m joined by my good friend Doug Keeling, and we dig deep into what actually breaks down when companies struggle to grow their teams. Doug shares his personal journey from solo pet sitter to leading a 30-person team, and the hard-earned lessons that eventually led him to specialize in hiring and retention.

If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by staffing, unsure where to start with hiring, or frustrated by turnover that keeps slowing your momentum, this conversation will help you understand why these challenges exist and how to approach them more intentionally.

🐶 Check out Doug

👉 DougTheDogGuy

youtube.com/DougTheDogGuy

Instagram (Personal / Main Account)

👉 @DougTheDogGuyOfficial

Facebook (Pawsitive Hiring Course)

👉 https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61583169482484

Website

👉 https://dougthedogguy.co/pawsitive-hiring-course

⏱️ Timestamps

0:00 – Why hiring and retention are the biggest bottlenecks in pet care

0:30 – How Doug accidentally grew his first team

2:08 – Making every hiring mistake and learning the hard way

4:49 – Why Doug shifted fully to W-2 employees

6:05 – From YouTube videos to the Positive Hiring Course

8:02 – Why hiring is mystifying for so many owners

10:02 – Who the Positive Hiring Course is really for

13:02 – Why foundations matter before scaling

15:43 – How hiring and retention changed post-pandemic

27:00 – Looking ahead to 2026 and supporting teams long-term

🧠 Key Takeaways

• Why hiring and retention are long-term systems, not quick fixes

• How most owners skip foundational steps when building teams

• Why culture and alignment now matter more than wages alone

• How post-pandemic shifts changed employee expectations

• Why proactive culture-building prevents burnout and turnover

• How slowing down to build foundations leads to faster growth later

• Why staffing issues are solvable with the right framework

🚀 Want a Real-World Example of What’s Possible?

If you want to see how clarity, systems, and intentional leadership can transform a business, I’ve put together a case study showing how one pet care company grew monthly revenue from $17,000 to over $73,000 in a single year.

It breaks down the decisions, structure, and leadership shifts that made that growth possible, not just the numbers.

👉 You can access the case study at dogcolaunch.com/case-study and see how DogCo Launch supports pet care owners who are ready to scale sustainably.

This episode is a reminder that growing a team isn’t about finding perfect people, it’s about building the right foundation so good people can succeed and stay.