Doggie day care: A way forward on four paws
Life can get pretty lonely for dogs while they wait for their owners all day to come home from work. Life can be worse for adults with mental illness who can’t find work in the first place.
Fortunately, John Buck has hatched a plan that could ameliorate both of those problems in Davis at once.
Buck, CEO of Turning Point Community Programs, a nonprofit mental health support organization, would like to open a doggie day care at 212 I St. in downtown Davis that would give dog owners a place to drop off their dogs for the day while they’re away.
“The idea is that your dog gets exercise and socializes during the day and you’re not just leaving him in the back yard where he’s up to no good and trying to find creative things to do as some dogs will do,” Buck said.
In addition to the services the new business would provide, the day care would be staffed by adults with mental illness.
According to Jill Estroff, spokeswoman for Turning Point, the company would do wonders for her clients.
“This will give, we hope, up to 15 of our clients a reason, as they say, to get up, not give up,” Estroff said.
“This is an opportunity to work with animals and be in a social situation. We have Cool Beans which is our coffee cart in (the Yolo County Health Department building lobby in Woodland) … and if you ever talk to the folks that work there, it’s just great to be connected, to be a part of something and to be helpful. There’s just precious few employment opportunities right now.”
Buck would hire Robin Ray, the Davis Pet Nanny who already looks after many dogs each day, to train all of the employees and oversee the day-to-day operation of the day care center.
Permit required
The project would require a conditional use permit. The property, currently zoned for light industrial uses, houses Turning Point offices and empty space adjacent to the railroad tracks. If approved, the doggie day care could be open by July.
In April, Buck hosted a meeting for neighbors to discuss his plans and to hear any concerns they might have about the day care. Several residents worried that the center would increase noise and traffic on I Street, among other things. Buck sent a letter back to residents addressing those concerns.
Buck and Estroff will host another meeting at 1 p.m. Saturday at the site, 212 I St., where members of the mental health community — who understand how important employment is for recovery — will explain the benefits of this project.
“Working with dogs is really therapeutic for people,” Buck said. “There’s plenty of research on that.”
After Saturday’s meeting, Buck and Estroff said they will be ready to submit their application for a conditional use permit to the Davis Planning Commission.
Plans for operation
If the center is approved, owners would drop off their canine companions in the morning and pick them up after work in the afternoon or evening.
“Pick up and drop off should take about 90 seconds per customer and a circular drive will keep traffic off the street,” Buck said in his letter to neighbors. “Well-run doggie day cares are occupied by quiet happy tail-wagging dogs who bark far less than neighborhood dogs left alone all day inside or outside.”
Ray added that in a setting where dogs are allowed to play and interact, “there is, for the most part, very little noise — a lot less noise than a children’s day care.”
The dogs would get good exercise and enjoy ample outside time in the back yard of the property, which could alleviate some owners’ stress of playing with the dogs after work.
“When you’re a busy person and you come home and your dog has been there all day long, probably sleeping most of the day, they’re in your face,” said Ray, the pet nanny. “It’s nice to be able to come home and relax with your dog instead of being attacked by them.”
Buck already has drawn up plans for the back of the building where the dogs would play. The plans include segregated areas to accommodate three different sizes of dogs, shade structures, small pools and, of course, toys.
Screening process
To be accepted into the day care, dogs will have to go through an extensive screening process.
Ray explained that after all of the necessary paper work has been filled out, owners must first accompany their dog for an hour at the day care to demonstrate good behavior. The next step includes the owner leaving the dog by itself at the center for a short period of time.
Only then would the dog be allowed in permanently.
— Reach Tom Sakash at tsakash@davisenterprise.net or (530) 747-8057. Follow him on Twitter @TomSakash.
Short URL: http://www.davisenterprise.com/?p=114350
View this story on page A1
Posted by Tom Sakash
on Dec 8 2011.
Last Login: Mon 21 May 2012 09:28:43 AM PDT
Filed under City government, Featured Stories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry
This is such a wonderful opportunity for the people
that will be hired to staff it! PLUS, it helps those dog owners
that will get to bring their dogs there to play & socialize
while they are away! Turning Point knows what our community needs!
Agreed.
This is in a residential neighborhood. They did not address neighbor concerns, they negated them; they sent a letter saying they addressed them. Sending a letter saying you addressed concerns is not addressing neighborhood concerns. That is show for the city government, and the show will be exposed as a hollow show.
This is officially a toxic waste site. That may not be a problem for the dogs, but it makes the property hard to sell without a very expensive cleanup, and hard to use. This is not a proper place to have a dog facility. Almost all the facilities in Sacramento are in light industrial areas. That is the proper place to site such a facility, not in a mixed residential neighborhood.
They stated at the neighborhood that since we have a railroad adjacent, the dogs would not be louder than the ambient sound levels in the neighborhood. Sound is not all about levels, it is about the type of sound. Those of us who live near the tracks chose to live here and many of us find the railroad noise comforting. We did not choose to live near a large gathering of dogs. Dog noise is a stress-inducing sound for many; it was probably intended that way by God when early man heard coyotes howling as a danger alert.
They also stated it would only be during the day when people were at work, ignoring that many in our neighborhood do not work regular hours–the woman over the back fence from the facility is at home raising an infant and is considering moving if this goes in, and the owner of the adjacent property says his land value will decrease and it will difficult to find tenants. They tell us the dogs will not bark, of course they cannot guarantee this. Simply sweeping the neighbors concerns under the rug by sending out a letter to the neighbors is deceitful. The video was simply ridiculous. No dogs ever bark in the video. And we are supposed to simply believe they will run their day care with that level of scrutiny, because they say so?
I am sure the neighbors will be labeled by some supporting the project as ‘not in my backyarders’. We already have PLENTY in our backyards that most people who live in Davis suburbs would never put up with: a railroad with sixty trains a day that blows the horn just a few hundred feet from us, several light industrial businesses interspersed, the deep booming from subwoofers from several downtown restaurants that become nightclubs from 10pm-2am Th-Sat, an ugly metal railroad fence, groups of drunks that wander through after they leave the bars, homeless camping nearby, and a toxic water plume that runs under our houses–and under the proposed dog facility– that comes from multiple historic sources.
We have chosen to live here and we put up with a lot because we have chosen to. We do not choose to have the noise associated with a dog day kennel. This proposed facility is an entirely different animal, if you will, and this is not the place to locate such a facility. Because we put up with a lot here, we have taken on our share for the City of Davis. Now we say ‘no’ to this zoning variance. We are ok living among light industrial and the heavy industrial railroad, not a dense grouping of dogs at a day kennel in the neighborhood.
This is a good idea, City of Davis require to place it in a light industrial zone that is not mixed with residential. City of Davis, you took much time to locate the dog park for the City so it would not affect neighbors. There, there are usually no more than a couple of dozen dogs on a soccer field size field. The proposed dog day kennel Do not be fooled by the cute video, the claims, and the ‘feel good’-ness of puppies and helping those with mental illness. A great idea, in an inappropriate place. This can, will and must be located away from residential.
Thank you.
I agree with Alan, although the dog day care center being staffed by adults with mental illness is a great idea, it needs to be located in a light industrial area away from people’s residences. Would anyone who is for this want it located close or next to your house?
Dear Davis Enterprise,
Perhaps you should run a story on how Turning Point has completely misinterpreted the total lack of neighbor support and how they continue to move forward on such a project when there is a huge laundry list (much longer than that listed by Alan) of concerns (health and otherwise) that have yet to be addressed.
The proposed location backs up and is adjacent to residential property. Incompatible uses. I am a resident in the next block on J Street and strongly object.
Good idea wrong location.
Like any small business idea, it is welcome in Davis. Davis is a place where the small business can do well, look at our downtown, special, without the strip malls that are everywhere in this country. Taking care to keep our old homes without destroying them is another step in the right direction. Two homes were located at J Street and Third Street last year. These homes add to the beauty of the neighborhood, Davis is a planned community with bike paths all thru the town.
Given what I just said, I am not against a dog day care, or kennel, it is a good idea. The placement of such a business should be in a industrial location where the noise and smell of the animals will not affect the people living in the neighborhood. It is disrespectful to the residents, for the owner to both not be aware that there is opposition to a kennel right in the middle of a neighborhood, that has children and adults and students living here and it is disrespectful to even consider placing such a business here.
With many places available in the industrial designated locations in Davis, that would be better situated for such a business. Why would this kennel even be considered for a residential neighborhood?
I suggest that the owner look for a place that will not cause hardship to the I street and J Street neighborhood, and have some respect for the residents here, and find a location in a industrial park.
I am a J street resident, and I am against this business being located on I street, in the core of Davis.
I am a ten year year resident of J street and I think this is a wonderful idea! This would be a wonderful addition to the Davis community and I am completely in favor of this project. As far as noise concerns, the sound of dogs playing would be a welcomed addition to the area. Many Davis residents disgust me in negative attitudes. I welcome such a positive project and it would be a wonderful addition to the neighborhood.