Penny jumps into a pile of snow, her pawing and digging showering Lombard with a wig of fluffy whiteness.

“Come on, Penny,” Lombard says, patiently waiting for her to finish her snow romp. “Good girl.”

Thirty minutes later, after a few more jumps in the snow, Lombard takes the dogs home.

Penny and Sammy aren’t his dogs. They’re just two of 17 dogs he walks this day.

Lombard, cofounder of Randolph-based Spring Forth Dog Services, is a professional dog walker. But unlike others who can be seen walking five or more dogs at once, the 24-year-old travels from household to household, tailoring his walks to the needs of typically one or two dogs at a time.

The company’s approach grew out of the experience of co-owner Katherine Ostiguy, 22. She was preparing to launch Spring Forth Dog Services in 2010 solely as a dog training business, but changed her mind when she had trouble finding a walker who would give private walks to her 11-year-old English springer spaniel, Tessie, who does not like interacting with unfamiliar dogs.

“I realized there was a niche we could fill,” she says. In addition to Lombard, the company also hired a dog walker and trainer who walks dogs in South Boston, Dorchester, Milton, and Randolph. They provide walking services Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

On an average day, Lombard provides walking services to seven or eight households. Most have two dogs.

He charges $14 for a 15-minute walk and $20 for 30 minutes, higher than most services. But he contends many other walkers don’t have the experience he has in handling the animals.

Ostiguy says what makes a good dog walker isn’t just being able to control a dog on a leash. Walkers have to understand dog body language, how dogs learn, and basic dog aid, she says.

“Dan is endlessly patient and naturally very quiet with unfamiliar dogs,” she says . “This allows shy and aggressive dogs to warm up to him quickly.”

Dog walking didn’t come easily to Lombard. He had a dog growing up, and admits his family didn’t raise it well, giving it up after a few years. But that changed when he met Ostiguy in high school.

They began dating in 2005 when they attended Norfolk County Agricultural High School in Walpole. Ostiguy had just begun competing in agility competitions with Tessie.

Three more dogs and still dating seven years later, they say, Lombard is officially a dog person.

To give dogs the best walk possible, Lombard observes how they react to certain things during their first few walks together.

Take Penny and Sammy. The dogs live off a main Dedham road along which Lombard used to walk them. But Penny, he recalls, would stop with her tail between her legs every time a loud vehicle drove by. Lombard realized she was afraid, and he changed their route to quieter streets. It calmed her.

Todd McCann, owner of Penny and Sammy, says he was impressed with Ostiguy and Lombard when he first met them.

“I like the way the dogs react to them,” he says. “They’re so attuned to the dogs’ needs.”

Most of the dogs Lombard walks are in the Norwood-Walpole area. When the business began, he advertised all over the south suburbs — a mistake, he says.

“There were already established dog walkers — we didn’t get a lot of calls,” he says. An Internet search for dog walkers south of Boston yields results for dozens of businesses.

Dog walking is an unregulated industry and anyone can work as a dog walker, Ostiguy says.

“We take our business very seriously,” she says. Spring Forth Dog Services is a limited-liability company, has a town business license in Randolph, and carries full liability insurance. The company’s dog walkers are employees and are fully covered by company insurance and bonding policies, Ostiguy says.

Most calls for dog walkers have come from potential clients in Dedham, Norwood, Westwood, and Walpole. Lombard only walks dogs in that area; he says most clients live along Route 1.

The walks don’t always go according to plan, even with his experience with dogs, he says.

Lombard once found himself chasing after Joey, a poodle, after accidentally dropping his leash. Joey had caught sight of another dog and took off after it. Lombard was able to catch Joey when he caught up to the other dog.