Owner Donnie Farner stands amidst the treats at Doggie Delights in the Broad Street Market.
Walking through the brick building of the Broad Street market, you’ll find a stand full of dog treats that come in various shapes, sizes and colors—and an owner who’s tried them all.
“I have to make sure it tastes good,” said Donnie Farner, co-owner of Doggie Delights.
The gourmet treat shop opened earlier this month in the Broad Street Market, having already operated in the West Shore Farmers Market for 15 years. The husband and wife duo—Donnie and Kelly—make all their products from home and, Donnie said, use only the freshest ingredients.
Farner assured me that there’s nothing at the stand that a human couldn’t eat, and I could’ve almost guessed just by looking at them. Baskets and dishes were bursting with doggie delicacies iced with colorful, yogurt-based spreads and filled with peanut butter or cheese mixtures. Pumpkin pie, pizza, snickerdoodle and toasted cheese are just a few of the flavors they offer for hungry pups, but their most popular is the “Blueberry Woofle.”
In addition to their sweets, Doggie Delights carries a variety of bones, antlers, jerky and other bagged snacks.
The Farners make made-to-order cakes for holidays, birthdays and adoption days, so no four-legged friend is left out of the celebration.
They scoop treats into a simple white bag with a stamped-on logo, but Farner assured me that they are highly recognizable by their furry consumers.
“Whenever our long-time customers carry the bag in, the dogs know they’re getting a treat,” he said.
For years, Patti Little has been shopping at Doggie Delights for her “granddog,” a silver lab, who she admittedly spends more money on than herself.
“She loves everything I give her from here,” Little said. “She knows when mimi comes with the bag.”
Not only do the Farners have their two market stands, but they added a food truck to their business within the past year. Every Saturday since April, Farner has worked on the “Street Treats” truck, attending festivals like Harrisburg’s Woofstock and Kipona, Humane Society fundraisers and Make-a-Wish Foundation events.
Since the dogs can’t come into the markets, the owners wanted to go where the dogs were.
At the food truck events, Farner loves getting to meet all of his canine customers in person, but in the market, it’s not unusual for him to spend upwards of 10 minutes exchanging “oohs” and “awws” over pictures of his own and his customers’ fur babies.
The display case at Doggie Delights
Not only do the owners look to satisfy the dogs of market-goers, but they also care for dogs in local shelters. All of their leftover treats go to shelters like Molly’s Place and Speranza Animal Rescue in Mechanicsburg.
The husband and wife’s passion for dogs shows through the six days they spend baking each week and the 200 to 400 pounds of flour they typically go through in that time. And, although their Broad Street Market stand is smaller than the one on the West Shore, it holds a special place in Farner’s heart.
“I’m going to be here until they wheel me out,” he said that he once told the Broad Street Market manager.
At the end of each day, the Farners head home to their Chihuahuas, Rosie and Remy, and their pit bull, Truman. After about eight years of owning the dogs, Farner was still excited to show off their pictures to me. Dog people are a different breed, he admitted.
“Do you ever not smile?” someone once asked Farner. “Dude, I sell dog treats,” he replied.
Doggie Delights is located in the brick building of the Broad Street Market in Harrisburg and on the lower level of the West Shore Farmers Market in Lemoyne. For more information, visit their website.
