CORNELIUS - Steve Baughan and family of
Huntersville had their dog Cookie with them on a recent week's
vacation to Fripp Island, S.C.
Yet Cookie wasn't physically with them.
The family, especially their four children, watched the
8-year-old Boston terrier via webcams set up at Camp Wagging Tails,
a new pet day care and boarding facility at 10835 Bailey Road.
"They looked at her about 10 times a day," Baughan said. "It was
comforting watching her sleep."
The camp's 16 webcams are its most popular feature with clients,
owners Jim and Celia Bensman said. People watch their pets from work
-- day care is $20 a day -- and one couple even watched during their
honeymoon, Celia Bensman said.
Jim Bensman, a Cornelius town commissioner and retired executive,
said the couple wasn't impressed with kennel options for their dogs
Molly and George, and decided to open their own.
Other doggie and cat day cares have been springing up in local
communities, including The Meadows Bed and Biscuit at Lake
Norman.
Bensman said he visited at least 50 boarding facilities around
the country for their best ideas and features. Among other amenities
at the 7,100-square-foot, 3 1/2-acre Camp Wagging Tails:
• Large indoor playrooms with a
separate play room for smaller dogs and puppies. Dogs get four or
five hours of playtime each day, inside and outside, Bensman
said.
• Separate large outdoor play
areas covered with artificial turf.
• Bone-shaped swimming pool.
• Fifty-six "deluxe" and "luxury"
cabins or "suites" with various features, such as TVs tuned to
Animal Planet, and webcams. See http://www.campwaggingtails.com/.
Camp Wagging Tails also offers baths ($20) and training
classes.
Panels in each Camp Wagging Tails cabin prevent dogs from seeing
each other. They relax and get more sleep that way, Bensman said.
Chain-link kennels are difficult to keep clean and allow
confrontations between pets in adjoining and facing kennels.
