Photo by Kevin Lowery | www.kevinlowery.com
For dog lovers, it's hard to make a place feel like home without a dog.
That's why hotels all over the country are teaming up with local animal shelters to provide services that benefits both shelter pets and hotel guests. Some hotels are starting to offer complimentary hikes with a shelter dog on scenic trails in the area, while others offer an overnight option with a four-legged friend.
The Aspen Animal Shelter in Aspen, Colorado is one of the shelters taking advantage of these new programs. They offer free 'loaner' dogs for in-town walks or day-long hikes.
These types of outings provide critical exercise and socialization for dogs that may otherwise never leave the confines of the shelter. As an added bonus, many of the dogs are adopted after these types of interactions with guests.
Some pet-friendly Aspen hotels are waiving their pet fees if a guest would like a shelter dog to spend the night with them. The hotels even provide a shuttle for the dogs to come back and forth from the shelter.
It's a win-win: the dogs are getting much-needed time away from the shelter, and the hotels are reporting higher guest satisfaction and more personalized guest experiences.
The most important part of this process is that the hotels and shelters take the necessary steps to ensure that anyone who will be 'loaning' a dog for any period of time will be a safe, responsible caretaker of the animal. As long as the safety and well-being of the animals is a priority, this seems to be an incredibly beneficial program for everyone involved.
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For more on the Aspen Animal Shelter, check out this episode of American Dog: