Former Falcon is now top dog
FROM pitches to pooches, a former Newcastle Falcons and England rugby star has found success with a new business venture.
Sean Brown, 26, started his sporting career as a goalkeeper in Sunderland AFC’S academy, before converting to rugby aged 15.
He enjoyed six years as a winger playing for clubs, including the Falcons, and represented England at junior level.
But after retiring from rugby in 2016 due to injury, he pursued a passion for dog training.
Now his business, Petsercise, has won the dog training ser-rvice of the year prize atat the Corporate Livewire Prestige Awards, whichh recognises small and medium-mediumsized businesses and traders.
Sean, from Barlow, Gateshead, said: “When I first left rugby I felt really lost. I spent all my life driving towards something and then to feel it slip away was tough.
“I remember feeling sick all the way through my final training session because I knew it was the end unless I tried to pursue the sport in a different way, like coaching.
“I needed to find something where I could channel that same drive that I had in rugby and when I found it I wanted to keep pushing to improve, in a similar way that I did with the sport.”
He added: “I never felt like I’d worked as I was doing something I was passionate about and enjoyed playing rugby. But then I discovered that I could get that same enjoyment from dog walking and the business spanned fromfrom there.”
Petsercise was founded as a solo business venture in 2016, with Sean offering dog walking services to people across the North East.
However, his determination has allowed the business to grow into a multi-purpose dog care facility employing eight staff.
Petsercise even works with Newcastle Dog and Cat Shelter to help prepare dogs for re-homing, with manager and trainer Lauren Allan working with shelter staff to coach dogs to adopt better behaviours.
The business offers dog training, walking and agility classes, as well as luxury dog grooming, day care and boarding centres in Blaydon and Tantobie, in County Durham. ws
It was inspired by a lifetime of Sean’s family owning rescue dogs, which he has continued to do since moving out, starting with Rottweiler Cleo, who features on the company logo.
When Sean re-homed Cleo, he ended her three-year stay in a kennel. She suffered with separation anxiety, was protective of her possessions and would damage property if she was left alone.
But now she shares her toys and is comfortable in the company of children and other dogs.
Sean said: “There’s no situation that I would be worried about putting her into now. She’s come such a long way from where she was when I first got her.”
He added: “We love working with rescue dogs and we’re a training company who doesn’t turn away from any dog.
“We don’t hand-pick the ones we think will be easy to train because we want to try and help all dogs, regardless of their background and that is so rewarding.”