If you like dogs and spend time on social media, you’ve probably already heard of “Golden Retriever Life (GRL)” and have seen videos of Kevin and Katie Bubolz with their two golden retrievers, Ellie and Emma. With over 9 million followers across their social media channels, GRL is widely known for their cute dog videos and helpful training tips. They have even made appearances on famous television shows such as “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” and “The Rachael Ray Show.” While creating entertaining and engaging social media content is what drives most content creators, Kevin and Katie are just as interested in the philanthropic aspect of what they do. 

“Our focus has and always will be on our mission to spread smiles,” says Kevin, who has teamed up with his wife Katie on this full-time entrepreneurial journey. “Over the past few years, we’ve been truly blessed to connect with millions of people around the world. We hope our fun-loving content featuring Ellie and Emma brings happiness to your life. We are a community that celebrates the joy of having a dog and the many ways they enrich our lives.”  

Kevin and Katie’s journey as content creators has, in their own words, followed a nontraditional path. Kevin is an Army Veteran with an MBA from the University of Minnesota, and Katie practiced as a speech-language pathologist for eight years before pivoting from the medical field to join Kevin in their full-time entrepreneurial journey. It was the philanthropic appeal of animal-assisted therapy that led Kevin and Katie to pursue spreading smiles. 

“As an Army pilot, I saw first-hand the benefits of animal-assisted interactions on mental health while deployed overseas. This inspired me to get a puppy, Ellie, and create a similar impact in my local community,” Kevin reflected. “As a therapy dog team, we volunteered in schools, nursing homes, and hospitals for several years. However, in 2020 we were prevented from in-person interactions and pivoted to social media.” 

In searching for new ways to spread smiles, GRL found Warrior Canine Connection (WCC) in 2022. “We wanted to connect with a nearby organization that trains service dogs for Veterans. WCC’s Mission Based Trauma Recovery model is unique and impressive! They discovered a way for one dog to impact an average of 60 Veterans! As a Veteran, who has seen first-hand the impact of animal-assisted interactions, I can assure you this organization has a tremendous effect on the lives of Veterans. The work WCC is doing is life-changing to those who have given so much to our country.” 

GRL’s support of WCC has come in many forms, from creating collaboration videos with WCC to helping to raise awareness of our No-Fail Mission to holding a 4x4x48 Challenge Fundraiser on GoFundMe, which raised over $34,000 for WCC. 

Be sure to follow GRL’s journey on all of their social media platforms! Plus, GRL is working on a new training course/community to help people build better relationships with their dogs. If you head to their website (https://www.goldenretrieverlife.com/training) and leave your email, they will let you know when the course is ready this summer!