Tad Walden didn’t run down the road to his friend’s house to play ball on the weekends. He didn’t ride his bike around with the neighborhood kids. He didn’t have any next door neighbors, but he wasn’t lonely. He wandered around his family’s 16 acre property with his dogs. They always had at least one, sometimes two. Walden’s dogs were his childhood best friends.
As an adult Walden is the proud owner of three dogs – two vizslas and a wire fox terrier. Although he trains, shows and breeds his vizslas, he’s also spent the last five years channeling his passion for dogs into a professional quest. Walden is the founder and CEO of an independent television channel that is solely focused on offering canine-related, family-friendly programming for dog lovers. The channel is called FidoTV.
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The channel launched on October 14, 2015 on DISH, the third largest television platform in the United States. FidoTV is located on channel 245 and is available to DISH’s nearly 14 million subscribers. Although he can’t disclose the platform yet, Walden says that negotiations are already underway to expand FidoTV and make itavailable to an additional 26-30 million homes.
“It really is boiled down to: Life is better with a dog. And now TV is too.” – Tad Walden
FidoTV is also partnering with the American Kennel Club. Now it will not only air its original programming, but will also feature AKC events. The 2015 American Kennel Club/Eukanuba National Championship evening events will air on December 12 and 13. Some of the channel’s original programs include “Dogs with Jobs,” “Pick a Puppy” and “Pet Heroes.”
Things are growing quickly at FidoTV. Walden says they already have 20 core programming categories. They feature everything from movies, to rescue shows, to vet shows, to breed shows. He also said that there are many new shows currently in production that will air on the channel in the near future.
One of these new shows, “Which Woof’s for Me?,” is being produced by MotionMasters and will air early next year. The show will discuss the different dog breeds available, how to care for each breed and the history and specific traits of the breed. This will be an excellent resource for potential pet parents or pet owners who did not research their dog’s breed before adopting him.
After just a few short months on the air, FidoTV is already off to a great start. Walden says he isn’t worried about finding people that are interested in watching the dog-focused content, because so many people are already naturally intrigued by it. More than 40 million households in the United States own at least one dog, and that number is steadily growing. In fact, even during the economic decline in 2008 the pet industry grew.
The best businessmen use their heads to come up with simple solutions to everyday problems, or in this case, a simple concept for a market that is already brimming with customers. Virtually every household in America has at least one television, and over 40 million of those households enjoy dogs. Why not combine the two into a revolutionary business venture?
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It’s kind of amazing that no one has created a television channel specifically geared toward dog lovers before. We don’t use DISH as our television provider, but I’m hoping that the channel will expand to our carrier very soon. Obviously, our family loves dogs. Actually, we love all animals for that matter.
Usually when we’re watching television together as a family we end up flipping through the channels until we find a show about funny animals, animal rescues, or some kind of wildlife show that tells about animals in their natural habitat. I know our family would certainly enjoy a channel dedicated to all things dog.
