Owners seek good kennels at low prices

As the May Day holiday mood takes hold, many wealthier families have booked their furry family members into luxurious boarding kennels, which can cost as much as a threestar hotel, where the animals will be pampered with fancy experiences.

But for Cao Ying, a 24-year-old Beijing-based actress who has just started her career, and is still struggling to pay her rent and bills, things are different.

“I love my dog, but I still need to make a living, and to socialize to further my career. I’m happy for my dog to be groomed and photographed, or to sleep on a swing. But do those services really make him happy? Can you tell if a dog likes having his photo taken?”

Cao is not alone. According to a Frost & Sullivan China report, 83 percent of pet owners, about 83 million people, are in their 20s or early 30s. About 43 percent of pet owners are entry-level workers, and about 23 percent are at ordinary-management level.

Although some receive support from their families, the majority still need good pet boarding services at lower prices.

“I don’t want to leave my dog at an ordinary boarding kennel and have him put in a small space,” said Cao, adding that many of her friends have similar worries.

China’s rising demand for cheaper yet good boarding kennels has spurred a growing number of thirdparty pet boarding services like VIPTail and Rover. Operated like Airbnb only for pets, these platforms have registered hosting families that offer hosting or pet sitting services at varied prices.

Cao found her 2-year-old Pomeranian a temporary home on VIPTail for the four-day May Day holiday, while she visits Yunnan with friends.

“It is the same as booking a room on Airbnb. You can read descriptions of host families, what their apartments are like, what services they provide, and how other guests rated them,” Cao said.

“I tried it for the Spring Festival holiday season and found a good hosting family near my apartment. They are a nice couple. They cooked for my dog, let him run free in their apartment, and sent me videos of him every day. I will leave my dog with them for the May Day holiday as well,” Cao said.

Kong Jing, a consultant with the Chinese Pet Products Association, said there is still a lot of room for third-party boarding service providers to improve.

“There’s a huge need for such services, as current boarders can no longer meet demand, especially in peak holiday season, in terms of pricing, service quality and numbers,” she said.

Kong said third-party boarding service platforms have exclusive advantages in resource management, such as attracting and managing host families.

“But the industry is still at an early age, and many providers lack previous successful experience for reference.”

According to Kong, many thirdparty boarding service platforms are now working to build up staff training systems and risk control management mechanisms.

“Going forward, there will be more industry regulations for its long-term development,” Kong said.