In the back are a recreation area for larger dogs and a small swimming pool. Chu Ya-wen (朱雅雯) takes her two-year-old Labrador retriever Cindy here once every two weeks. “I let her swim for 50 minutes and she's still not tired,” Chu said as Cindy did laps and chomped at the waves.
“This is the only time she doesn't listen to me.”
Most of the dogs seemed comfortable in their home away from home, and none appeared overly aggressive. But Tango, a shy white Pomeranian who seemed to prefer humans to other dogs, looked lonely and stared plaintively at the door. Lin said his employees take special precautions with dogs that aren't used to being around other animals.
Dog Baby has a special enclosure separated from the main activity area by a low glass wall. Dogs lacking proper socialization stay here for a few hours until they get used to the other dogs. Yao and Lai follow a similar approach when it comes to swimming lessons. “We don't just throw them into the water,” Yao said.
“We wet half of their body so that they get used to the water first.”
“They treat dogs like children,” said Wu, who runs a kindergarten for children. Another customer agreed: “They're very gentle,” said Ma Hui-lin (馬慧伶).
Her poodle Coco likes Dog Baby so much that she sometimes refuses to eat when home.
The success of larger pet hotels has hurt business at Happy Dog (快樂天堂), which claims to be Taipei's oldest humane boarding facility.
Like Pet's Dream Park, it offers a cafe where owners can dine with their pooches. Employee Tseng Da-hua (曾荅華) said the cafe is full on weekends, but their lodging business has suffered because they lack space for amenities like swimming pools.
Fortunately, Happy Dog (happydog.idv.st) is home for a family of English sheepdogs with names like Momo and Gucci and a one-year-old St. Bernard named Money. The sheepdogs have appeared in numerous TV ads and Money has found work doing promotions for a Swiss company.
“They have to earn their keep,” Tseng said.
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