Christopher Fouser
Founder & Pack Leader
Boise native. Fifth-generation Idahoan. Lifelong athlete. Red Cross Pet First Aid & CPR certified.
Chris Fouser has logged more than 21 million steps with other people's dogs. His single-day record is 50,221. He is not a dog walker, and he never set out to be one.
A Boise native and fifth-generation Idahoan, Chris grew up with dogs and cats at his side and the Foothills on the horizon. He has been an athlete his whole life, and after earning his degree in Media Management from Menlo College, those were still two separate passions: animals on one side, training on the other.
Then one statistic pulled them together. More than half of the dogs and cats in America are overweight, and that extra weight quietly drives arthritis, diabetes, high blood pressure, kidney disease, heart and respiratory disease, and certain cancers. Behind that number were pets living shorter, stiffer, more anxious lives. Not because their owners didn't love them, but because love alone doesn't burn calories.
So in 2016, Chris built something Boise didn't have: a pet fitness company. Not a lap around the block. Structured, breed-specific exercise programs built to progress over time. Off-leash group hikes and trail runs through the Boise Foothills, including the high-intensity "BEAST" adventures for dogs with stamina to spare. Every outing is GPS-tracked and followed by a full report with the route, miles, elevation, and photos, so you see exactly what your dog did while you were at work.
Chris brought an athlete's discipline to all of it. Warmups, pacing, hydration checks, steady progression. And he made Red Cross Pet First Aid and CPR certification the non-negotiable standard for himself and every handler on his team.
The results have a way of speaking up. Zen Pet Care has been named Dog Walking Service of the Year at the Pet Innovation Awards two years running (2025 and 2026), earned a 2025 Global Recognition Award, has held a BBB A+ rating since 2022, took Idaho Statesman Boise Favorites Gold, has been a Nextdoor Neighborhood Fave every year since 2022, and carries a perfect 5.0 Google rating across 47+ reviews. When ThreeBestRated inspected the company, it scored 116 out of 120.
But the number Chris cares about most is the one on your dog's scale, and how deeply they sleep after a day on the trail.
"Chris goes above and beyond to take our dog on the coolest trail runs. We have a very happy doggo because of Zen!" - Jenni S.
Ten years in, Chris still laces up and hits the trails with the pack. A healthier, happier dog is one message away. Reach out, and let's get moving.
