Our Story

Our Story

A Labrador Named Ibeau

Pawshake cofounder Dries Coucke's life was turned upside down in 2009 when his father Luc Coucke (who passed away in 2012) was diagnosed at the age of 60 with lung cancer. During the numerous chemotherapy sessions, Dries and his two brothers tried their best to support their parents. Yet, it soon became clear that his parents' labrador Ibeau would need someone to take care of him. Unfortunately, Dries couldn't lodge Ibeau because the dog didn't get along with his dachshund Brownie. Moreover, Dries' two brothers had just become fathers and were couldn't take responsibility for Ibeau either. 

Dries knew that somewhere in his community there must be a dog lover who would lodge Ibeau temporarily. Yet, the difficulty was finding this person. And so, in 2010, Dries started the idea of Pawshake with a post on the Facebook page of pets.be, a not-for-profit website to rehome rescue pets, he founded in 2002. (You can still read here the original post).

Immediately, the community responded positively and enthusiastically. The idea of Pawshake was born!

Two Founders with a Shared Passion

Dries Coucke (left) &amp; Tanguy Peers (right)

The idea continued to run through Dries' mind, but accelerated in 2013 when he spoke about it with Tanguy Peers, a former colleague from eBay. Fueled by their shared passion for using the internet to make meaningful connections, they embarked on an entrepreneurial journey to bring Pawshake to the world and improve pet and owner lives. That journey continues today. 

The Third Founder: The Pawshake Community

Dries and Tanguy are using their 25+ years of experience in developing online communities to improve the wellbeing of pets and their owners. Yet, at the very heart of this project is the community itself: without its support and its suggestions, Pawshake would never have seen the light of the day. Dries and Tanguy thank you for your interest and invite you to become a member of the Pawshake community by signing up on the site and visiting the Pawshake Facebook page.