Dogged demand for kennels
It’s lucky that Hayley Hutterd loves working with dogs and working from home because she rarely gets away from either.
As owners of Petwatch boarding kennels near Stratford, she and husband Richard have looked after other people’s dogs for more than 18 years, so they’re flat out at holiday times.
And they just got busier, with an expansion – finished three days before Christmas – that’s doubled their capacity.
Demand for their boarding and doggy daycare boomed last year after another long-standing kennel in New Plymouth closed, and Richard, who works fulltime, persuaded her to build a new block of kennels.
Hutterd said the return to travel and normal life after Covid, when lots of people got dogs, had also contributed.
“We were fully booked for Christmas back in June, so we bit the bullet and doubled it here. I never thought we would ever go bigger, ever.
“We’ve just done our 19th Christmas. Richard and I ran it by ourselves for about eight years,” said Hutterd, an experienced vet nurse. “We have clients that come to us from as far as Auckland and Tīrau, also New Plymouth, Hāwera and Whanganui.”
Although the 365-day service means the couple usually holiday separately and the hours are long, she wouldn’t change it.
“We start at 7am, and Richard and I don’t finish until 9 at night. We keep the dogs rotating in and out of the exercise pens. The happier they are, the happier the clients are.
“I love dogs and being able to have a job where you work with dogs all day long is the best. The most rewarding thing is winning over a dog that is a little nervous, to see them come out of their shell is gold.”
Staff member Abbey Ford is assisted by Aylah Fletcher and Shanika Beard on daycare days.
There are five exercise spaces where the dogs play in small groups if they are social.
“We have one German shepherd who comes, Zari, she’s amazing with other dogs, she shows them the ropes,” Hutterd said.
Over the years, she’s noticed dogs are increasingly being treated as family members. “Dogs have become like extra children, rather than just this thing we used to have outside.”
The kennel buildings are fully insulated and double glazed, so they’re comfortable all year round. The new area has larger kennels, with an XL space on one end that fits giant breed customers like Axel, a St Bernard.
The kennel is named Pet Watch after a TV programme Hutterd enjoyed called Third Watch, about a crew of emergency services characters working the night shift.
The couple originally intended to open a cattery alongside the kennels. “But the cats never came,” she said.