Heather and Will both grew up in Northern Virginia, attended Virginia Tech, then married and settled in Richmond in 1998. Will holds a degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering while Heather earned her degree in Family and Child Development with a concentration in Early Childhood Education. While on college break, they rescued an adorable mutt on the side of I-81. Fritz was the first of Will and Heather's three rescued dogs. Holly, a little black lab mix, is the most recent addition from Richmond's SPCA. Between Fritz and Holly came Finley, a Manchester terrier mix, and the couple's two human daughters, Lucie and Emmaline. The entire family is looking forward to being involved with the operation of Dogtopia of Richmond.

Will adopted his first dog from a neighbor when he was 9 years old and immediately began teaching his new buddy tricks like catching popcorn in midair. Will has a laid back, fun loving personality and is looking forward to being surrounded by dogs that possess the same traits! In addition to being an integral part of Dogtopia, Will is also a Production Manager at Qimonda in Sandston, VA, where he has worked for the past 10 years. Will enjoys his work, but for years he has nurtured a desire to build a business of his own. He first heard of Dogtopia from his brother who uses a Northern Virginia Dogtopia for his dog, Riggs. A young dog with boundless energy, Riggs returns from Dogtopia happy and exhausted, while his parents feel comforted knowing they can check on him during the day via the webcams. This information, coupled with meeting the incredible franchise owners and staff, convinced Will he had found the ideal business. Will pitched his plan to Heather who thought it was a "pawsitively" perfect concept.

A lifelong dog lover, Heather celebrated her first birthday surrounded by three family dogs in party hats. Since that time she has owned and loved several dogs, and she constantly fights the urge to take in every dog in need of a home. Heather initially intended to teach elementary school, but spent the first five years after college in the field of web design. In 2002, with the arrival of Lucie, she became a stay-at-home-mom. Emmaline arrived in 2004. Now that both girls are school aged, Heather volunteers in their classrooms and substitutes as a preschool teacher where she thoroughly enjoys the playfulness of the environment. Heather believes that opening Dogtopia with Will is the most amazing joining of all of her passions - family, nursery school, and of course, dogs!