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Pet tour operators provide tips on training pets right

Travelers dine together with their dogs in this undated photo. PHOTO COURTESY OF STAR TRAVEL

Pet owners in Taiwan should provide their pets with more training in etiquette and manners so they would know how to behave when they travel with their owners, said Chuang Shu-fen (莊淑芬), a pet tour operator.

Having led several pet tours to Japan, Chuang said she was very impressed with the way Japanese pet owners treat their pets and the facilities that cater to the needs of pets in public places.

For example, Japanese pet owners would take their pets to etiquette courses, have their pets wear clothes, put their dogs on a leash and cover the private parts of male dogs with "etiquette bags" -- practically sanitary pads, Chuang said.

Clothes reduce the amount of floating dog hair, leashes prevent pets from running around, and "etiquette bags" prevent dogs from urinating at will, she said.

Japan also has designated pet playgrounds in rest areas along highways, Chuang said.

Pet owners in Taiwan should treat their pets appropriately, as "the respect is mutual -- only when you respect others would they do the same to you," she said.

Marketing director Liu Chun-yi (劉俊毅) of Star Travel said that many hotels in the country do not allow pets into their facilities for a reason.

Many hotel operators are worried that pet dogs may not behave and scare away customers, break hotel items, or make messes in rooms or in restaurants, Liu said.

While it's true that many hotel operators are conservative about allowing pets, it's also true that many pet owners do not teach their pets to behave, he said.

Although there are still challenges facing pet tour operators in Taiwan, both Liu -- a dog owner himself -- and Chuang said they were confident of the market potential.

Chuang said that although the average daily expense per person for package tours to Tokyo, Osaka or Okinawa is about NT$10,000 and another NT$8,000 to NT$15,000 for a pet to travel along, her tour groups often fill up quickly.

As for Liu, he said his firm's first domestic travel-with-your-pet program last year to Kenting (墾丁) was a success. As a result, Liu's company is planning another domestic pet travel tour at the end of this month and pet travel packages abroad later, he said.

Although traveling with pets is still not mainstream, Chuang said she was confident that the market would take off.
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