WO Founder, Josh Allen, returned to Montana from a trip to Ethiopia in the fall of 2012. He had spent time in local villages and in Addis Abbaba (the capital city of Ethiopia) working with widows and orphans. He was astonished at how difficult it was to get resources and supplies for regular health care and nutrition to the area. While there, he felt called to commit to ensuring these widows & orphans had an adequate source of home-cooked meals and nutrition.
Eight years prior to Josh’s trip, he and his wife started a local pet supply store in Bozeman, MT, called Dee-O-Gee.
Dee-O-Gee sells high quality, made in the USA, pet supplies and food for conscious pet owners.
Josh decided that, based on knowledge gained from sales in their Dee-O-Gee stores, that he would develop a line of pet toys to sell not only in their store but other independent pet stores across the country. He would dedicate a percentage of the sales to the purchase of nutritional aid for Widows & Orphans in Ethiopia; and thus started WO (W for widows and O for orphans).
The first two WO dog toys are an interactive chew toy (the Bone) and a flying disc/tug toy (the Disc). In 2018 the WO Wild collection was added, offering dogs 4 different “plush toy” alternatives. Then, in early 2019 the WO Ball joined the WO Play lineup. Today, you can find 7 different WO dog toy options to choose from!
As of the spring of 2023, WO has successfully provided over 125,000 meals for widows & orphans in Ethiopia and the United States. Learn more about our WO Impact Partners here.
Each WO product you purchase directly funds meals for widows and orphans globally. We've partnered with organizations in Ethiopia and the United States to help feed orphans and widows, thereby creating a tangible change - daily, globally. These meals often represent the highest amount of nutrition that these folks get in any given day.
Americans own more pets than any other country in the world and we take great care of them, which is amazing! All WO toys are made in the USA, directly helping to create jobs here in the USA, but generating a global impact. What if you bought your dog a new toy AND helped feed orphans & widows in Ethiopia & the USA at the same time?! It's a true WIN-WIN.