Molly’s Dog Care, a daycare, boarding and grooming brand with about six sites around Washington, D.C., filed an Initial franchise application in Virginia on October 12, 2026. Its 2026 disclosure document lists a total initial investment of $641,880 to $1.7 million, which puts the brand at the high end of pet care franchising.
The brand is young. Its first location opened in December 2024 in the Reston Town Center expansion, in a facility of nearly 4,000 square feet. Over the following eight months, Molly’s Dog Care added Baltimore Peninsula in May 2025, Alexandria in July 2025, and two Maryland and D.C. sites run by the same owner, at The Parks at Walter Reed and Chevy Chase Lake. The consumer site also lists Charlotte, North Carolina. Local press has named a different owner or operator at several of these sites.
Molly’s Dog Care
Warmer, Fuzzier Neighborhood Dog Care.
- Personal Services
- Liquid capital: $75000
A Virginia Filing Backed by a 2026 FDD
The Virginia application, file number 8707, was signed by the company’s chief executive. Virginia is one of the states that requires franchisors to register before offering franchises there. The filing came three weeks after the brand amended its Franchise Disclosure Document.
According to Molly’s Dog Care‘s franchise site, the FDD was issued on December 23, 2025 and amended on September 22, 2026. It sets the initial franchise fee at $49,000 and the royalty at 6.9% of gross sales, or a weekly minimum royalty if that is higher. Other fees apply, and the site states that actual costs may exceed the published range.
A Founder Who Grew Another Dog Care Brand
ALXnow identifies Steve Gaudio as the CEO of Molly’s Dog Care. He spent 15 years in commercial real estate and launched his firm, District Equities, in 2015. Before Molly’s, he co-owned and led the franchise growth of District Dogs, a D.C.-area dog care chain.
ALXnow reported that incidents at District Dogs facilities in 2023 and 2024 caused the deaths of several dogs. In a LinkedIn post, Gaudio wrote that he did not control those locations, disagreed with how the incidents were handled, and then left the brand. The Alexandria site of Molly’s now occupies a former District Dogs location. The same post, quoted by ALXnow, describes the new brand as “a fresh start built on real safety, real standards, and real care for dogs.”
A Capital-Heavy Model in a Growing Pet Market
Home-based pet sitting franchises sit at the other end of the sector: Pawsitively Spoiled, for example, lists an average initial investment of $33,750 to $62,000 on its franchise site. Molly’s is a different model: it combines daycare, overnight boarding and grooming under one roof, in urban, mixed-use developments. That explains an investment range that reaches $1.7 million at the top. Demand is growing. The American Pet Products Association estimates that US pet industry spending reached $158 billion in 2025, up 3.7%, and projects $165 billion for 2026.
Good to know
An Initial application in a registration state is a request, not an approval. Under the FTC Franchise Rule, the FDD must be delivered at least 14 calendar days before a prospect signs or pays. A state registration does not mean a regulator has vetted the business model.
What the Virginia Review Will Show
Virginia regulators will now review the application. Once a registration takes effect, the FDD’s Item 20 outlet tables will show how many units are franchised and how many the company operates. The brand has not published that breakdown on its franchise site. Charlotte is the first market listed outside the Washington and Baltimore area. Whether other filings follow in neighboring registration states will show how far the brand intends to take its franchise program beyond its home region.
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