Over the last few years, many folks in the tourism and retail industry have seen the light when it comes to pets.
More and more stores and hotels are pet friendly, marketing themselves as such and in turn reaping the benefits of attracting those who like to travel with, for the most part, their dogs.
Attention to those who travel with their dogs is particularity top of mind with summer approaching and the dangers of leaving dogs unattended in sweltering vehicles. Many dogs are travelling with people on vacation who pop into a restaurant for lunch or stop at a mall or a shopping complex and take the risk of leaving Fido in the vehicle.
Take popular shopping destinations like Dartmouth Crossing or Mic Mac Mall. Both are easily accessed via highways and on any summer day I would venture to say the parking lots of both (throw in Bayers Lake too) are full of vehicles with — sadly —a dog or two left inside.
Before I go any further with this discussion, I will stipulate that a pet owner is responsible for the care and safety of their pet. Full stop. There is no excuse to leave an animal in a hot vehicle, even on vacation.
But having said that, why haven’t malls and larger shopping areas taken the proactive step to entice shoppers who happen to have their pets along with them?
Of course some box stores allow pets, but for the most part animals are not welcome in a place like Mic Mac Mall or most of Dartmouth Crossing. (I’m using these two as an example. There are other large shopping complexes across the province that fall into the same category.)
Most retailers think they’ve done their part by placing a warning note at the entrance of the mall or store. But if they looked at the problem through a positive marketing approach, there is so much more they could be doing.
If they want a couple of models to emulate, look at the Masstown Market, which has a lovely set of shaded outdoor kennels with locks for their patrons travelling with dogs set up in a grassy area with poop bags and water.
Also on the pet-safe bandwagon is the Town of Parrsboro, which has a Kennel K9 Program through its Parrsboro People Places & Pets Enhancement Society.
Town employee Taylor Redmond, who oversees the program, says the first kennel was placed at town hall last year with the express purpose of giving tourists a cool spot to park their pups while shopping, seeing a play at the Ship’s Company Theatre or stopping for a bite to eat.
A second kennel is being added this month.
The town also has a fenced-in play area at the visitors centre at the Fundy Geological Museum.
Redmond said they’ve also made arrangements with the Caraway Restaurant at Advocate Harbour to provide an outdoor kennel for use by restaurant patrons.
All the kennels have locks to prevent release of the dogs.
“Shade, water and a place to stretch out will make for happy pups and will allow visitors to explore and relax, knowing their pet is not waiting in the hot car,” she told me in an email.
“We will monitor the project and expand if the need is there.”
She said the money was raised by fundraisers organized by the enhancement society, which also hopes to start a courtesy dog-walking program for those unable to walk their dogs, and establish a dog park.
Redmond, who is a dog lover with a rescued German shepherd, said Parrsboro is going the extra mile to make visitors feel welcome and to keep their pets safe.
How simple is that?
If the Town of Parrsboro can raise the money to put up a few kennels through bake sales and selling raffle tickets, surely retail monoliths like Dartmouth Crossing, Bayers Lake and Mic Mac Mall can do likewise.
Hire a couple of students to run it during the summer months and you’ve got another tick in the plus column of goodwill.
What a positive, customer-attracting and ultimately life-saving act it would be.
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