'It's nuts.' Increasing travel creates months-long waitlists for dog boarding facilities
As return to work looms and travel is at an all-time high since the pandemic, many people are seeking solutions for their dogs.
Posted — Updated“Probably in March, everyone started coming out of their COVID cocoons. It was a lot more demand than what we ever imagined,” said Tammy Purner, co-owner of Green Beagle Lodge.
“The Fourth of July was off the charts. I think they had five or six pages, and actually wait lists are a tricky thing. We had very few cancelations,” added Margy Schmiet, co-owner.
Schmiet and Purner said they've had to hire more than 30 new employees to keep up with the pace of demand.
“Because we didn’t lose our jobs during the pandemic, we actually became a part of the solution,” said head trainer Bruvone Hill. “We dealt with a lot of doctors, nurses, people that could go to work were bringing the dogs here, so it worked out great."
Now that more people are going back to work and traveling, Green Beagle Lodge is reaching its maximum capacity of 100 dogs in daycare and 100 in boarding on a daily basis.
“We started the waitlist in April for July 4, and we’re already half booked for Christmas now. We’re usually on a waitlist by September for Christmas,” said Purner.
Purner said that any pet owners wanting to travel need to begin planning their pet's stay as soon as possible.
"If you want to get in here, you have to plan," she said.
“In a word, it’s nuts,” said owner Alex Fowler. “July will end up being our best month ever in company history. We’re booked out solid about five weeks in advance -- which for us, is pretty remarkable."
It's not just pet-sitting that's spiked for Fowler.
"The dog walking service has picked up, but not to the extent that travel has," described Fowler.
Both business owners asked for patience as they continue to adjust, hire and try to meet the new demand.
Meanwhile, Green Beagle Lodge is expanding, with plans to open a second location in Chatham County.
“The timing is right. We are emerging. There’s more dogs than ever. We have all these pandemic pups that are coming to us, and they need us,” said Schmiet.
They plan to break ground on the second location in August.
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