Ellie’s Sc’Arfs: Caledon girl’s business supporting Autism Dog Services

By ZACHARY ROMAN

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Making cute dogs even cuter is all in a day's work for 10-year-old Ellie Howey. 

Howey is a young entrepreneur from Bolton who creates stylish dog scarves with her sewing skills. She sells them through her business, Ellie's Sc'Arfs, and donates one dollar from each sale to the non-profit Autism Dog Services.

Autism Dog Services is dedicated to training, placing, and supporting dogs that offer individuals with autism safety, companionship, and independence.

Howey learned how to sew three years ago with her cousin, who taught her how to sew a scarf that you can tie around a dog's neck.

She enjoyed the creative process, but found these scarves had a tendency to fall off during dog walks — Howey has a dog herself, named Charlie, that's half King Charles Cavalier Spaniel, half poodle.

Howey went back to the drawing board and after some research, found a sewing pattern for a scarf that had a pocket so it could go through a dog's collar. This eliminated the problem of potentially losing scarves on a dog walk. 

At first, Howey made a bunch of scarves for Charlie. 

“Then, I had an idea for a business,” she said. 

Howey and her mom Jillian brainstormed a name, settling on Ellie's Sc'Arfs, and thought about what it would take to start the business. Last summer, when Howey's preparations were complete, she launched her business.

Jillian said her daughter is very creative and has always loved arts and crafts. She said Howey has been really enjoying creating the scarves for her business. 

Howey explained that her favourite part of the whole experience has been seeing the pictures people send of their dogs wearing her scarves, and being able to give back. 

Jillian said that Autism Dog Services has been an amazing charity to support.

“They do a lot of wonderful work… these dogs are changing people's lives,” she said.

Jillian said her favourite part of the experience has been spending time with her daughter doing something she loves.

Anyone interested in purchasing a dog scarf can search for Ellie's Sc'Arfs on Instagram and Facebook, or send an email to ellies.dog.scarfs@gmail.com.

Right now, Howey has a special three-scarf package for sale that includes scarves for Valentine's Day, Easter, and St. Patrick's Day.