Eric Bleile
Founder, Owner, Dog Hiker
Eric grew up in Maine, spending much of his childhood exploring the great outdoors and enjoying the company of his family dogs. Eric founded Active Dog in 2011 with his dependable, right hand “man” (or shall we say, dog) Tobias. Weighing in at a whopping 140 pounds, Tobias, a Greater Swiss Mountain dog, was a gentle giant and loyal hiking companion. Tobias crossed the rainbow bridge on Easter morning of 2018 at 10 and a half years old and will always be remembered as the reason for Active Dog’s inception. Eric currently lives in Weston, Connecticut with his wife Tara, sons Casen and Brayden, Golden Retriever, Cooper and English Cream Retriever, Cammy. He has a Master’s degree in Financial Risk Management from the University of Connecticut and enjoys playing golf, skiing and performing with his modern-country band, Hazzard County.
Alicia Andrianus
Director of Operations, Expert Dog Hiker
Alicia grew in Connecticut loving everything outdoors. She studied International Hotel and Tourism Management and has lived in Sweden and Switzerland. She most recently lived in St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands and Colorado. From island life to mountain life, her love for dogs only grew more and more. She now has two dogs, Mr. Mac and Miss Maple who come to work with her everyday. On her days off, you will either find her in a coffee shop, at the beach or exploring some new trails with her own dogs. The most special part of her job is when she captures the moments of pure glee in an Active Dog’s life!
Stephanie Facciola
Director of Operations, Media Director, Expert Dog Hiker
Stephanie grew up in Garnerville, NY and currently lives in White Plains. She was brought up in a family of dog lovers and has been around dogs for her entire life. Stephanie graduated from SUNY Oneonta with a degree in Graphic Design. Her interests include hiking, the beach, and photography. She likes to spend her free time exploring new places and finding that perfect shot. Stephanie decided to leave the corporate world to pursue her passion for animals and her love of the outdoors.
Cristen Heavens
Expert Dog Hiker
Originally from Connecticut, Cristen lived in Boston and NYC before moving back to her home state. She lives on a boat with her boyfriend in Stamford and enjoys the freedom and challenges that come with living aboard. Following her passion for education policy, she graduated with a masters degree in public policy in 2015. Cristen was raised by a family that encouraged her to love all animals, and she has wonderful childhood memories with her many furry siblings. She loves being active, rock climbing, yoga, reading, DIY projects, and swapping dog stories!
Konstantinos Giazitzoglou
Expert Dog Hiker
Konstantinos began his passion for learning and working with K-9‘s while serving time overseas in the Marine Corps. During his operations, he saw the unique and skillful way canines were able to aid the troops overseas by detecting explosives, enemy insurgents and simultaneously, saving lives. It then became clear to him that dogs really are a man’s best friend!
Catie Onorato
Manager, Media Director, Expert Dog Hiker
Catie was born and raised in southern CT and loves to hike all over the East Coast with her German Shepherd rescue Lenny by her side. She is a Uconn graduate who majored in History and Political Science before switching gears to pursue a career in fashion. After seven years in the industry, she is ready for a career that involves two of the greatest gifts life has to offer: nature and dogs! When Catie is not hiking she can be found crafting at home or seeking out live music.
Sarah Bonomo
Dog Trainer & Expert Dog Hiker
Sarah was born and raised in Westchester, NY. She‘s always had a love for animals and when she was nine years old her family adopted their first puppy, Diesel. Growing up together, Sarah became interested in dog behavior by observing and trying to understand Diesel’s "problem" behaviors. She pursued her passion for animals at SUNY Oswego, where she obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Zoology and completed her thesis which analyzed the stress levels of shelter dogs. Afterwards, she became a Certified Dog Trainer through CATCH Canine Trainers Academy. In her free time, Sarah volunteers at a local dog rescue and helps with training and attends adoption events. She also enjoys working out and getting coffee with her friends.
Kelly Hendricks
Dog Hiker
Kelly was born in Mountain Lakes, New Jersey. Her love for animals started with her first two dogs, Chocolate and Molly. It was at this time that Kelly learned the love and devotion it took to care for animals. During college, Kelly would visit local animal shelters while studying for her English degree at Sacred Heart University. In her free time Kelly loves spending time with her friends, working out, and of course, spending time with her pets!
Joanna Nevins
Groomer & Expert Dog Hiker
Joanna grew up on a farm in Bedford, NY and now lives in Ridgefield, CT. She always had lots of pets, dogs, cats, ducks and even a pig. She graduated from Pace University with a major is Biology and a minor in Criminal Justice. Her interests include the outdoors, hiking, yoga, activism, gardening and being with her pets. For her 40th birthday present to herself, Joanna decided to leave the corporate world to pursue her passion for animals and her love of the outdoors.
Andrew Boush
Dog Hiker
Andrew grew up in Walpole, Massachusetts just south of Boston and spent most of his time outside mountain biking, hiking with his dogs and playing golf. His love for the outdoors never fades. Andrew spent two years after graduating High School working and studying to be a golf professional at country clubs in Nantucket, MA, Jupiter, FL, and Sanibel Island, FL. Since then his aspirations of owning a farm and plenty of land for an off-grid outdoor sport vacation resort has led him to Greenwich, Connecticut where he currently lives with his girlfriend. Together they will be studying different areas of naturopathic medicine and plant-based eating.
Melissa Miller
Dog Hiker
Melissa has always had a strong love for dogs. She grew up in Westchester and graduated with a degree in teaching from Florida State University. When living in Westchester, she volunteered at a local Animal shelter. After working with Sephora for almost a decade, she decided to pursue her dream of working with dogs. In Melissa’s downtime, she loves to play beach volleyball and ski. She now lives in Fairfield with her fiancé Cameron and dog Oscar. They plan to adopt a sibling for Oscar soon!
Leslie Singer
Dog Walker
Leslie was raised in NYC and then CT before heading to college in Boston with a major in Communications. Animals have always been a big part of her life having brought up 4 dogs and 3 cats as well as being an avid horseback rider. She helped raise money to fund an animal sanctuary with Mary Tyler Moore and most recently worked for The Maritime Aquarium in Norwalk. Her interests include, travel, outdoor activities, photography, cooking and spending time with her Maine Coon cat Raya.
Tory Brown
Dog Hiker, Media Creative
Tory is a dog lover from Iowa, making her move to Connecticut to pursue a career in the Hospitality Industry. She studied Event Management and Entrepreneurship at Iowa State and is excited to use some of those skills to help Active Dog’s online presence. She has always loved being around animals and constantly shows people photos of her Shih-Poo Joey back in Iowa. Tory has experience boarding and watching over dogs of all sizes and is excited to be in a career where her love for nature, dogs, and social media can all live in harmony.
Sebastian Martinez
Dog Hiker
Sebastian was born in New York City and grew up in Fairfield County where he’s always taken full advantage of the outdoors. Hiking, trail running and rucking have always been some of his favorite activities during his free time. He’s always found them to be a great escape from the pace of his previous occupation in the Emergency Medical Services. After ten years of public service he’s decided to come join us at Active Dog where he can continue to experience the great outdoors alongside all of our furry friends!
Kat Rose
Dog Hiker
Kat was born in Louisiana and raised in Westchester, New York. Growing up she had two German shepherds named
Jake and Pete, and then a Jack Russell terrier named Annie. From early on, Kat started to ride horses and compete
in horse shows. Her love of all animals had no bounds. When it came time for college, Kat was considering becoming
a veterinarian, but ultimately chose a major of art & design. Upon graduating from Marist College with a fashion degree,
she wound up in Manhattan designing and illustrating active wear clothing, which was an unforgettable experience.
Now, back in Westchester, Kat loves to stay active at the gym, hone her cooking skills, and play with Mason, her favorite
French Bulldog. To her, dogs aren’t merely animals—they are the best friends that anyone could have!