About Us
Pictured Left to Right: Maloy, Tammy, Jennifer & Greg
Our Story
It all started with a dog mom's dream and little brown rescue dog named, Jeremy.
Several years ago before it became known to most of us about the treats made in China, Pawlee's co-owner, Jennifer McKay, would give her dogs treats produced by Nationally recognized companies. She noticed that they started getting sick by throwing up a yellow foamy substance and just seemed unwell. It wasn't long that she figured out that it was after she gave them certain treats. This was a very well known chicken jerky treat and a moist treat. After reading the ingredients which was enough to be concerned on its own, she saw that these were being produced in China. She couldn't believe these reputable American companies with the nice packaging and what seem to be good quality product are also being produced and traveling weeks at sea on the same ship containers as ink pens, tires, leather shoes, radios, and so on. This couldn't be healthy! Since she had a passion for baking she decided to start making her own treats for her furry babies. It was just one more thing she could do to spoil them but at the same time ensure they are getting something good for them. After hours of research on what ingredients are beneficial she came up with a garbanzo bean based recipe. It was an instant hit with her dogs and soon other family dogs. It was not long until the exact treats she was purchasing them before that seemed to be making them sick started making headlines. It was then her gut instinct had been right all along. Maybe it was a "motherly" instinct but it was on point.
Unfortunately, in 2011 Jennifer lost her beloved friend Jeremy due to age related health problems. He was around 17 years old. Since he enjoyed his homemade treats so much Jennifer wanted to keep his legacy alive by starting Pawlee's in memory of Jeremy. Jeremy is the little brown in our logo sitting on a baked bone surrounded by stars. Jennifer wanted a catchy dog related name. Since she is a huge Rocky movie fan she thought of the character, "Paulie Pennino", (Adrian's brother) because it had the "paw" sound in it. So change the spelling and she came up with "Pawlee's". Being a devoted rescue dog mom she wanted to sell her treats to fundraise for animal rescues. With a website in place, lots of support from her business partner, Maloy Frye, she went from her kitchen oven to a location in downtown Kernersville, NC.
Pawlee's has been blessed and successful with the support of local pet retailers that believe in our products and our cause. We still proudly support animal rescue groups Nationwide. We strive to keep our products safe, natural, and healthy for our furry friends. Our hands are completely in the process from start to finish. Our staff is passionate about our products as they are pet parents as well. This is what sets us apart from other treat brands on the market.