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Day Care Pampers Pets
Plymouth firm keeps canines happy with a full day of play
By Neal Haldane / Special to The Detroit News
PLYMOUTH — Patrons at the newest day care center south of downtown can enjoy a day of toys, games, bubbles and naps. But this center does not cater to Emily, Jacob, Adrian or other toddlers. Owners of Rover, Spot and Fido are the target market for Happy Hounds Dog Day Care.
“It’s not a kennel,” said Nancy Janoch, owner. “It’s not for when you are out of town. It’s for when you are working.”
Similar to child day care, people drop off their pets in the morning and pick them up at night.
“Their day consists of full-blown play with each other,” said Janoch, who opened a pet-sitting business in Cleveland years ago and decided to enter the dog day care field here when her husband transferred to the area. “The difference is pet sitting is seven days a week, 365 days a year and holidays are the prime time.”
Dog day care at Happy Hounds runs from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. Janoch plans to add Monday hours before the end of the year. Dogs must have proper vaccinations and are screened for temperament before being accepted, said Janoch, who expects most owners will leave their pets at the center once or twice a week.
Jeanette Murdza was one of the first customers.
“I work a lot of hours, and I have a 16-month-old golden retriever who is 125 pounds and has a lot of energy,” Murdza said about Buddy. “I’m looking for a place he can get some exercise and I won’t feel as guilty having him at home alone.”
Janoch scouted locations in Plymouth and Plymouth Township before buying a former beauty salon on Main Street.
“Plymouth is the doggiest town I have ever seen,” Janoch said. “People walk dogs around here all the time. It seems like everyone had a dog. They’re always in the park.”
But Janoch admits that dog day care with an average $25-a-day price is not for every pet owner. “It’s not a necessary service,” she said. “This is something for the pampered pet and people with disposable income.”
But dog day care is catching on, according to Felicia Lembesis, administrative director for the 1,600-member National Association of Pet Sitters.
“Many pet sitters are going that avenue because there is a need for it, clearly,” Lembesis said. “People don’t like leaving their animals at home all day alone left to their own devices. They’ll be active during the day, involved in play and all that.”
Americans will spend about $34.3 billion on their pets this year, according to the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association.
“These spending figures reflect a change that has been occurring over the past decade of pets transitioning into the family,” said Bob Vetere, the association’s managing director. “As more and more people consider and treat pets like children, they’re purchasing products and services that you wouldn’t have typically seen our grandparents buying for their pets.”
Janoch is already hoping to fashion the spending spree into a small chain of pet day care centers.
“People’s pets these days are part of the family,” she said. “They are loved as much as their children. I might be a dreamer, but I’m already thinking about my second location.”
Neal Haldane is a Metro Detroit free-lance writer.
Source: The Detroit News - Business Section
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