WHEN IT COMES TO HOW HUMANS INTERACT WITH DOMESTICATED dogs, everything has changed. Humans are no longer “owners” of dogs. They are “companions” or “parents.” Adopting a dog can be a daunting experience, with prospective dog parents peppered with questions about their financial ability to provide for the dog to beliefs about “indoor” vs. “outdoor” dogs. There are Halloween costumes for dogs; birthday cakes with ice cream made especially for the canine digestive track; and an increasing number of dogs are finding places of honor in the family holiday photo. “I view them essentially as my children,” says Kelly Lo, the director of operations for a Silicon Valley startup. Lo’s “kids” include big sister Dallas, a terrier mix, 11, brothers Tobie, a chocolate 5-year-old husky mix, Rudy, 5, a Pomeranian mix, and baby sister Cassie, 3, a rat terrier mix. Americans are expected to spend more than $60 billion on their pets annually. That makes sense when you realize that 54 million households are home to 77.8 million dogs. At the epicenter of this explosion of spending on pets is the Bay Area, where human companions like Michele Kiss and Lee Isensee make sure their Labradoodle Fenway belongs to a Meetup group, has a Facebook and Instagram account and is fitted with his own activity monitor. To help doggie parents and their furry charges get the most out of South Bay life, we fetched information from dozens of dog-related businesses, everything from traditional services, like groomers and boarding kennels, to more specialty and fun things, like birthday parties with all the trimmings. IT'S A DOG’S LIFE SPAS, MASSAGES, BAKERIES, TOYS AND SO MUCH MORE FOR THE FOUR-LEGGED CROWD. August/September 2015 65 BY PAM MARINO RICHARD STACKS/KIMBALL STOCK
South Bay Accent - Aug/Sep 2015
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