The Dog WizardFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A The Dog Wizard franchise requires a total initial investment of $116K – $194K, including a $60K franchise fee and an ongoing 8.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2024 FDD, average unit revenue was $262K[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 21, 2026 · figures per the 2024 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $116K – $194K
- 31st pct Pet Services
- Avg gross sales
- $262K
- 8th pct Pet Services
- Royalty
- 8.0%
- 50th pct Pet Services
- Units
- 69
- 65th pct Pet Services
- SBA default
- 0.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Pet Services · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Pet Services avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
The system grew 89% year-over-year. Fast growth means demand, but can strain support.
25% cash-on-cash return (based on P&L Bottom Line). Within the 15-30% range most franchise investors consider acceptable.
Bottom line
- Total investment $116K – $194K including a $60K franchise fee, 8.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $262K/year (median $143K), with an estimated 25% cash-on-cash return (based on P&L Bottom Line).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 43/100.
- System growing at 94.1% CAGR over 3 years with 69 total units. Strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- ITK9 Franchise, LLC
- Parent company
- ITK9 Company, LLC
- Predecessor
- The Dog Wizard Academy
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Grant Reeves
- Incorporated in
- OH
- HQ
- 4170 Pearl Road, Medina, OH 44256
- Auditor
- R. Evans & Assoc., Inc.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $4.8M
- vs $2.6M prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Affiliated brands
- The Dog Wizard Academy
- Dog Wizard Resource Center
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
The Dog Wizard franchisees operate dog training facilities offering obedience training, behavior modification, and training classes to pet owners. Day-to-day operations include conducting in-person training sessions, managing client relationships, handling boarding/daycare services, and overseeing staff trainers. Franchisees manage a local territory with protected geographic exclusivity.
- CEO
- Grant Reeves
- Headquarters
- OH
- Founded
- 2019
- FDD year
- 2024
- States available
- 20
FDD Item 7 · 2024 filing · 14 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $60K | $60K | |
| Travel and Living Expenses to Attend Initial Training | $2K | $4K | |
| Initial Training Fee | $10K | $30K | |
| Start-up Kit | $6K | $7K | |
| Start-Up Digital Marketing | $5K | $8K | |
| Licenses | $1K | $2K | |
| Computers, Software, Office Equipment, Furniture, Phones, Answering Service | $750 | $3K | |
| Professional Fees | $0 | $3K | |
| Insurance | $2K | $3K | |
| Utilities and Operational Services | $250 | $500 | |
| Vehicle Expenses | $0 | $5K | |
| Vehicle Wrap Production and Installation | $3K | $4K | |
| Inventory and Supplies | $500 | $750 | |
| Additional Funds - 3 months | $26K | $65K | |
| Total initial investment | $116K | $194K |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. Total is the sum of line-item lows / highs — actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$34K
13.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
17%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
5.9 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $116K – $194K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $26K – $65K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $37K – $60K
- Below avg, review vs category
- Royalty
- 8.0%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 10.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
- Payback period
- 4.0 yrs
- From FDD / Item 19
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 8.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $5K |
| Training fee | $20K |
| Transfer fee | $13K |
| Renewal fee | $10K |
| Inventory (initial) | $500 – $750 |
| Total fee load | 10.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $262K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $143K
- Avg p&l bottom line
- $39K
- Reported as P&L Bottom Line in FDD Item 19
- Cash-on-cash
- 25.2%
- Based on P&L Bottom Line / investment midpoint
- Item 19 type
- Historical Performance
- Sample size
- 45 units
- vs category median 12 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $12K→$1.6M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency tier
- revenue_only
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Reporting year
- 2023
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Transparency
- 7 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 75 Pet Services brands
vs Pet Services averages
How The Dog Wizard Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 69
- Opened
- 34
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 3
- Turnover rate
- 4.3%
- Company-owned
- 3
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 96%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +88.6%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +94.1%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 2
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 5
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 1
- Franchisor bought back
- Transfer rate
- 5.7%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Termination rate
- 5.7%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 15 states with active franchisees
The Territory Map
Derived from franchisee contact records. Shows states with at least one current operator. Not where the franchisor is registered to sell new units (that data is re-extracting in a future refresh).
States derived from franchisee contact records (FDD Item 20). Shows states with at least one current operator on file. Full state registration data (Item 12) will appear on a future FDD refresh.
Available to sell in · Item 12
- Michigan
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
Fast growth in a small system. Newer franchisors expanding quickly may not yet have the support infrastructure of larger systems.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA loan disclosures. This brand has only 8 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 8
- Loan volume
- $1.2M
- Median loan
- $163K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- rates vary by category · see methodology
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 5
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into The Dog Wizard's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 5 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 4 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 3-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Small, growing franchise with recent litigation, unverified financial claims, and tight unit economics that warrant careful reference checks and legal review before committing capital.
Litigation (Item 3)
2 case reference(s): 0 pending, 2 settled.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · R. Evans & Assoc., Inc.
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 43 / 100 rating
- 01HIGHRecent litigation (2023) involving breach of contract and wrongful termination claims with a franchisee — signals potential franchisor-franchisee relationship issues and possible operational or contractual disputes
- 02HIGHNo Item 19 financial performance representations (Going Concern: False) — unable to independently verify claimed $262,139 average revenue and $39,116 net income figures
- 03MINORUnit growth of 88.6% YoY appears strong but absolute unit count is only 69 — small base makes growth percentage volatile and may not indicate system stability
- 04MED8% royalty on weekly gross revenues is high relative to net income of ~$39k annually (~15% net margin) — leaves limited cushion for franchisee profitability during downturns
- 05MINORHigh initial investment ($115,700–$194,350) relative to claimed net income ($39,116/year) produces 3+ year payback period with execution risk
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Territory type | Zip Codes |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Territory population | 200,000 |
| Online sales rights | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 30 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | No |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 2 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 4 |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Arbitration location | Medina, Ohio |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Ohio |
| Litigation count | 2 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
2 case reference(s): 0 pending, 2 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 56 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 184 hrs
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 6 mo
- From signing to launch
- POS system
- Fullsteam/Vonigo Pay
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Fullsteam/Vonigo Pay
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
65 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
The Dog Wizard · FDD (2024) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a The Dog Wizard franchise?
The total investment to open a The Dog Wizard franchise ranges from $116K – $194K, with an initial franchise fee of $60K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do The Dog Wizard franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the The Dog Wizard FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $262K. The median is $143K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is The Dog Wizard's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for The Dog Wizard (fewer than 10 loans on file). Charge-off rates are one way to gauge franchise risk, but not all franchise loans go through the SBA program. We recommend reviewing turnover and closure data in the FDD and speaking with current franchisees.
How many The Dog Wizard franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, The Dog Wizard has 69 total units in the United States, including 34 franchised units and 3 company-owned units. 34 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is The Dog Wizard a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates The Dog Wizard as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 43 out of 100, based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
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Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.