Now people in Washington DC can drop their dogs off at a pet hotel that gives them five-star service. It even gives them rooms with pet-themed television shows.
In the lobby of the PetSmart PetHotel, the pets’ owners wait in line to pay US$23 for each night their dog stays.
The doggie hotel is nothing like a kennel: in this hotel there is special doggie ice cream, indoor recreation, and for an extra US$10 a night, the dogs can stay in a larger room with a television showing an “animal-related movie all day,” said Vince Malanaphy, who manages the Bethesda PetsHotel.
“It helps them to relax and to adjust as they are used to hearing TV at home,” Malanaphy says.
Half of the dogs come every day. Instead of staying overnight, their owners leave them there for the day while they are at work. “It’s better than leaving them at home alone,” said Cyra, one of the owners, as she drops off her two dogs before running off to work. Here “they can socialize,” she said.
Meredith, in charge of animal recreation, says that if dogs “are aggressive or play too rough, we give them a time out in a cage” for 15 minutes. “After twice, they get the message,” she says.
The Bethesda site has room for 180 dogs and 26 cats. Cats stay in glass cages known as “kitty cottages” for a mere US$14 a night, which includes 15 minutes of TLC － Tender Loving Care, otherwise known as petting. (AFP)
現在，美國華府民眾可以把愛犬寄養在提供五星級服務的寵物酒店了，酒店方面甚至還會播放寵物主題的電視節目給這群小房客們看。
PetSmart PetHotel的大廳裡，寵物主人排隊等著為愛犬支付一晚二十三美元的住宿費。
在貝塞斯達經營PetHotel的文斯?瑪拉納菲表示，這種狗狗酒店和一般的狗舍截然不同，除了提供特殊的狗兒冰淇淋和室內娛樂外，每晚多付十美元還可以讓愛犬待在配有電視機的大套房裡，「全天候欣賞和動物有關的電影」。
瑪拉納菲說：「這能幫助牠們放鬆及適應酒店環境，因為牠們在家都習慣聽電視的聲音。」
1. recreation n.
消遣 (xiao1 qian3) ，娛樂 (yu2 le4)
例: Many people like to go to the park for recreation.
(許多人喜歡到公園休閒.)
2. socialize v.i./v.t.
交際 (jiao1 ji4)
例: Alex doesn’t go to many parties because he doesn’t like socializing.
(因為不喜歡交際，所以艾力克斯不常參加派對。)
3. get the message v. phr.
明白 (ming2 bai2)
例: I told Steve to study harder but apparently he hasn’t gotten the message; his grades are still terrible.
(我叫史帝夫要更用功讀書，但他顯然不明白；他的成績還是很糟。)
4. mere adj.
僅僅的 (jing3 jing3 de5)
例: Of the 90 people in my company, a mere six know my name.
(我公司有九十名員工，知道我名字的卻只有六個人。)
半數的狗狗每天都來報到。牠們的飼主白天上班時就把牠們託放到這兒，不過狗狗們並沒有留在酒店裡過夜。趕在上班前把兩隻愛犬送到寵物酒店託養的飼主希拉說：「這比把牠們單獨留在家裡好。」她表示，在這兒，「牠們可以和其他狗狗交流」。
負責動物消遣娛樂的梅芮迪絲表示，如果狗狗「出現挑釁行為或玩得太粗野，我們就會把牠們關進籠子裡」十五分鐘。她表示，「兩次之後，牠們就明白了」。
貝塞斯達PetHotel的套房數目足以容納一百八十隻狗兒及二十六隻貓咪。貓咪們待在稱為「貓咪屋」的玻璃圍籠一晚只要十四美元，還包括十五分鐘的「溫柔寵護」。
（法新社／翻譯：林倩如）
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