American dog owners checking their dogs into luxury 'canine capsule hotels' while shopping and drinking

300 more Dog Spots are due to be installed by the spring
300 more Dog Spots are due to be installed by the spring

Winston was bored and stressed out. Time after time, he was being left at home in Brooklyn, rather than going out on adventures.

Chelsea Brownridge, owner of the six-year-old terrier mix, wanted to change that.

And so Miss Brownridge, 34, came up with an ingenious solution: a high-tech, pay-as-you-go dog kennel – in effect a canine capsule hotel.

“He’s a rescue dog, and he gets anxious,” she said. “If he’s left alone, he chews things and is really not very happy. Plus I liked taking him everywhere, so he could get exercise and get tired.

“I couldn’t leave him tied up outside places as he would get upset. I was worried about him breaking free of his leash, or getting into trouble. So that’s how I came up with the idea for Dog Spot.”

The concept is simple. Dog owners sign up to the app, and book their time at one of 60 Snoopy-style aluminium dog kennels, placed outside shops, cafes, supermarkets and libraries in 35 cities, across 14 states.

Dog owners sign up to the app, and book their time at one of 60 Snoopy-style aluminium dog kennels
Dog owners sign up to the app, and book their time at one of 60 Snoopy-style aluminium dog kennels

They can unlock the air conditioned kennel, with heated floors, and their dog can remain inside while the owner runs their errand, or meets their friend. The app features a “puppy cam”, so the owners can keep an eye on their pet.

Using the kennel costs 30 cent (25p) a minute, with a 90 minute maximum.

Afterwards, the dog is simply checked out of the kennel. Hospital-grade ultra violet light then cleans the area.

“In the four years we’ve been working on this, not one dog has used it as a bathroom,” said Miss Brownridge. “They are not meant as bathrooms, and the dogs generally avoid soiling an environment they occupy.

“But having said that, we know it will, one day, happen. When it does, we’ll know about it thanks to the puppy cam. So we can lock that kennel, and send out a team to clean up and sterilise it.”

Miss Brownridge’s innovation – 300 more Dog Spots are due to be installed by the spring – is just the latest addition to New York’s pampered pooch portfolio.

Dog owners can visit America’s first dog food kitchen-restaurant, which opened in Manhattan in May, and watch as the “chefs” whip up 2,000lbs of food each day, which will then go straight to the shelves.

Among the meals on offer for dogs are turkey mac and cheese, venison with squash, and a surf and turf dish.

While at the Petco store, for $45 your dog can have a full salon experience – the store offers a natural shampoo, blow-dry, 15 minute brush-out, ear cleaning and nail trim, finishing with, according to the website, “a scented spritz.”

Petplan, an insurance company, even estimates that pet owners spent $62 million in 2011 on plastic surgery for their animals. The most popular procedures include tummy tucks, nose jobs and eyebrow and chin lifts.

American pet owners are on track to spend an estimated $75 billion on their animals this year, according to the American Pet Products Association.

“It’s definitely more of an urban issue, but it’s not limited to New York,” she said. “In many cities there are more dogs now than children – in San Francisco dogs significantly outnumber children. The demand is nationwide. And we’re getting calls from the UK, Canada, New Zealand from people asking for Dog Spots in their city. We’re working on it.”

 

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