PETaPOTTY.COM Blog

Doggie ‘daycares’ mushroom in LIC
by Willow Belden, Editor
01/21/2010
Judging by the daycare centers for dogs in Long Island City, you’d never know we’re in a recession.
Within about a one-mile radius, there are at least four facilities, three of which sprouted since 2008 — and all are hopping. Each takes in 15 to 35 dogs on an average day, and demand is still rising.

“It’s definitely a market that isn’t saturated yet,” said Cody Osborne of Camp Bow Wow, which opened a franchise on Austell Place a little over a year ago.
Steve Neagus, Bow Wow’s owner, and Luis Martinez, who runs City Dog Lounge on Vernon Boulevard, both said the two facilities that opened in the last four months near the waterfront haven’t drawn customers away.
Most attribute the success of pet-care facilities to the Queens West development, which has brought several skyscrapers to LIC in recent years. As the new waterfront apartments fill up, the dog population is burgeoning, causing some to dub the neighborhood “Dog Island City.”
There are an estimated 1,000 canines in the Queens West complex alone, and developers are going out of their way to welcome more. AvalonBay, the company that runs the Avalon Riverview tower, set aside a prime piece of real estate — a corner unit with sweeping views of the Manhattan skyline — for a pet-care facility and signed a 10-year contract with an entrepreneur named Bruce Barlin.
Barlin, who previously ran a pet-care business in Jackson Heights, opened Pooches Sport & Spa in late 2009 and said the new facility is a big draw for prospective residents.
“[Avalon] realized they had to get dog-friendly in order to be competitive,” he said.
Daycare costs can add up quickly — the going neighborhood rate is $25 or more per day — but that isn’t dissuading people from sending their pups to the sitter.
Those who run the centers say the service is popular because people want their dogs to socialize and exercise.
“Dogs come home exhausted,” Barlin said — which means their humans can come home at night and relax.
The daycare centers in LIC all feature cage-less “playpens,” where dogs can romp about together. Dog Island City, which opened four months ago on 50th Avenue, even has a miniature treadmill for dogs.
“They know the concept: You have to run, and the more you run, the more cookies you get,” said owner Lidia Lozovsky.
Fran Cimino, who has lived in the City Lights building for four years, said she has noticed a change in her dog, Bodhi, since he started going to daycare.
“For the first couple of years, I would just have him walked,” Cimino said. “Now he’s much more sociable. For his 11 years, he acts pretty spry.”
Some pet owners also say their dogs suffer from separation anxiety, which is eased by being around other canines and people.
In case personalized care and all-day stimulation isn’t enough to draw customers, LIC’s dog facilities seem to be one-upping each other when it comes to fancy amenities.
Camp Bow Wow has webcams situated around the doggie playpens, so owners can watch their pals from the office or the Caribbean. And for dogs who spend the night, the lights are turned down low and classical music is played.
Pooches, in contrast, claims fame with its “Pet-a-potty” — a fake fire hydrant atop a patch of artificial turf, which drains directly into the sewer. Read Entire Article

October 06, 2009, 10:1AM MT
By Ted Brewer, Best Friends staff writer
This year’s Best Friends Lint Roller Party was one befitting the 25 years of saving lives, and the 25 more years to come.

Back in 1991, Francis and Silva Battista would sit at a card table in front of a market in West Hollywood and ask people to donate to an organization the couple had helped found, an organization that ran a no-kill animal sanctuary in southern Utah.

The mission of that organization — to save as many animals as it could from having to enter shelters and face euthanasia — is still very much the same, but the size and scope of its impact have come a long ways, to say the least, in the 25 years Best Friends has been in business.

Just how far the organization has come since those card table days was made rather evident at the 16th annual Lint Roller Party, held Saturday night, Oct. 3, at the iconic Hollywood Palladium to benefit the work of Best Friends’ Los Angeles Programs.

Live and silent auctions, an award ceremony, video presentations, vegetarian buffet catered by Wolfgang Puck, psychic readings, a wheel of fortune, caricature drawings, a rocking live performance by the Bangles and a bevy of other attractions and fundraising events drew a sweeping array of supporters, members, and benefactors from all over the country to the party. Approximately 600 people attended the event.

“We are celebrating 25 years of saving lives,” said Best Friends co-founder and interim CEO Gregory Castle in his opening remarks to the evening’s presentations. “With your help, we’re saving lives all over the country…. It wouldn’t have been possible without the support you’ve given us.”

Among those in the audience were a host of celebrities, including Lisa Edelstein from the television series “House.” Edelstein delivered the anniversary toast.

“A million thanks to all the founders of Best Friends,” Edelstein said. “We love you and appreciate you, and we’re so happy to be here.”

Other celebrities to walk the red carpet and pay tribute to Best Friends included Phyllis Smith from “The Office,” Monty Python’s Eric Idle, Amy Smart from the film “Mirrors,” Rachelle Lefevre from the film “Twilight,” Anna Faris from the “Scary Movie” series, M.A.S.H.’s Loretta Swit, film and television legend Robert Culp, as well as veteran actor and newly elected president of the Screen Actors Guild, Ken Howard.

Also there to pay tribute to Best Friends, especially to our work in Los Angeles, was the city’s mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa.

The anniversary celebration wasn’t just about looking backwards, but also of looking forward in anticipation of what the next 25 years will bring,” she says. “I think people [at the party] were inspired not just about the work we’ve done, but about the work we’ll continue to do in the future.”
What can you do to help? Give the Gift of a Best Friends membership to family and friends.

PETaPOTTY Gallery located on the corner of PCH and West Channel in Santa Monica. We will be using the showroom as another location for weekly sod pickup. Get your sod orders in by Sunday for pickup on Tuesday. If you are in the area for a day at the beach stop by and check us out. The address is 107 West Channel Road Santa Monica CA 90402. The Showroom telephone number is 310 454 0045. Store hours are Monday thru Friday 10-6 and weekends 11-7. Thank you for your continuous support. Hope you get a chance to stop by.

PETaPOTTY -”The pet’s place of business” Opens new distribution point in Hollywood Calif. Across the street from the famous Chateau Marmont Hotel makes for easy access to fresh grass or even pick up a new potty for your pooch while staying anywhere in the hollyhood! A loading zone in front makes for a near drive threw experience for sod pick up.

Todays Celeb gossip on the Chateau:
“JOSH HARTNETT The actor was rushed to hospital with stomach pains.
Josh Hartnett was rushed to hospital yesterday with stomach pains. The ‘Pearl Harbor’ star was staying at the Chateau Marmont hotel in West Hollywood when he began complaining of “excruciating” abdominal pain at around 2am. An ambulance quickly arrived and took the star to Los Angeles’ Cedars-Sinai Medical Center where he is currently “under observation”. In a statement, Hartnett’s representative Susan Patricola said the 30-year-old actor had suffered a “flare-up” of an ongoing gastrointestinal problem. Hartnett is currently “resting comfortably” and will see a specialist today.”- Bild.com

OrangeBone (formerly The Puppy Store), the first puppy store to open its doors to date with one big dramatic difference–OrangeBone carries only shelter and rescue puppies and some mature dogs!

OrangeBone is the first store of its kind to evolve from selling purebreed puppies (puppymill dogs) to shelter and rescue animals. Located on Melrose Avenue (between Fairfax and La Brea Avenue) in Los Angeles, the Mecca for fun, fashion and celebrities. Their aim is to provide a fun informative and exciting shopping experience and above all to support the human-animal bond. They are always on the front line with the latest trends, hottest pet fashions and accessories. We are searching everyday for unique and exciting pet products so you can rest assured your pet will be wearing the latest in chic, hip and fun apparel. We only carry the highest quality products. Come and see for yourself what everyone is talking about! OrangeBone.com

With a length of 70m, a beam of 12,5m and her seven decks, Reverie is the largest yacht built in Italy in the last fifteen years. This fabulous vessel of 1500 tons combines the space of a cruising ship with the richness and luxury of a magnificent megayacht. The interior design and decor were entrusted to the famous English designer John Munford, who proposed classic furnishing in dark mahogany and walnut. The furniture is in Regency and Imperial English style with vaulted ceilings showing fresco paintings. Columns, pilasters and capitals with floral design have been widely used, as well as a profusion of exclusive marbles. Every single detail has been carefully selected in order to make this yacht a very exclusive and unique vessel.

RNR Yachts

Los Angeles based PETaPOTTY flies to New York and takes on 3000 dogs in a week at the 133rd Westminster dog show. They say if you can make it there you can make it anywhere, well PETaPOTTY definitely made it there. Let the urine flow. From The hotel Pennsylvania’s Penn Top Ballroom where 300+ dogs used the PETaPOTTIES to the Hotel Pennsylvania’s green room where the PETaPOTTIES accommodated 3000+ dogs. The PETaPOTTIES managed to contain tens of gallons of urine in their lower trap pans. Top Dogs from around the world converged on the Hotel Penn’s green room to use the facilities ranging from potty facilities to dog grooming stations to doggy masseuses. It was a raging river of urine and the PETaPOTTIES withstood the torrent. The hotel was so happy with the performance of the PETaPOTTIES that they spread several units around the hotel in key dog traffic areas.

While in town PETaPOTTY owner/creator Brandon Hochman took in the entire Westminster Dog Show. He was able to rub elbows with all the top dogs including last year’s winner Uno. Brandon and Uno bonded and had many in depth conversations about dog’s potty needs.

The entire Westminster week was a huge success for PETaPOTTY. PETaPOTTY plans to make an annual pilgrimage to the event and become part of the Westminster tradition.

Wow! We didn’t know it was the “Top Pet Product Of The Year“-
“Pet-a-Potty Named Top Pet Product of the Year on About.com’s ‘Weird News’”
"Great news everyone. On the CSN Blog, They’ve been HUGE advocates of the Pet-a-Potty ever since they began carrying this wonderfully quirky item. The Pet-a-Potty, the revolutionary indoor dog toilet that features real grass and a unique drainage system, is the ideal accessory for the always working pet owner. Though it may look a little silly, it sure beats having your rug transformed into a toilet every time you stay at the office a little late.

“We’re big proponents of items that serve a purpose and also have a sense of humor and that’s we’re excited that About.com’s ‘Weird News’ named the Pet-a-Potty ‘the top pet product of the year.’ Author Buck Wolf included this in his ‘Weird Gift Wish List,’ a gift guide in which two other blog favorites also appeared – an Aquarium End Table and a Giant Croc Pet Bed. It’s important to chuckle more than ever these days, so it’s great when silly products like these get recognized. Great work Buck and your ‘Weird News’ Team. Also, be sure to check out this past Tuesday’s Top Ten for Ten Great Silly Gifts.” -CSN