Home away from home

Allandale Park Kennels and Cattery owner Brent Baguley plays with Noname (left) and Holly at the...
Allandale Park Kennels and Cattery owner Brent Baguley plays with Noname (left) and Holly at the cattery near Green Island. Photo by Linda Robertson.
With school holidays under way, Taieri Times visited dog kennels and catteries to check the accommodation options for your pet if your family is planning a trip away.

If you're being a dog in the manger about leaving your pet behind during the Easter break, then relax and stop being a scaredy-cat because there are plenty of luxurious holiday options for your beloved pooch or puss.

There are a number of catteries and kennels south of Dunedin, with owners happy to accommodate your pet's whims.

Allandale Park Kennels and Cattery owner Brent Baguley says he has spent $1.5 million establishing a facility which can provide the lap of luxury for pets temporarily separated from their owners.

''We have luxury penthouse suites for the cats,'' he says.

The suites are available in single or double units and if your feline likes its space, double units - with bay windows, scratching logs, music and a water fountain - can be rented for one.

Mr Baguley says he has had special requests for bedding in the past despite the lodgings on hand.

''We have had people that have brought in a La-Z-Boy [chair] for their dog,'' he said.

''It was no problem at all. We accommodate everyone's special needs.''

Demanding diets are also catered for, he says.

''We have had a dog that eats apples and carrots every day.''

Bridgend Boarding Kennels and Cattery owner Pat Axe is familiar with pets' interesting dietary needs.

''I could write a book [on customer's requests],'' she says.

''We do what the customer wants and some bring their own food. I wouldn't say they are strange diets, they are just specialised diets.

''Some people's dogs might have skin problems... I have had dogs I had to inject because of diabetes.''

Sometimes the separation is harder on the owners than the pets.

''I have had people ringing me up from England or Australia and asking me to put the dog on the phone,'' she says.

After 29 years in the industry she has seen it all, but ultimately she aims to throw people a bone when it comes to their requests because ''the dogs and cats are their families''.

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