Dog Owners Get Together To Set Up Boarding Network
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Dog owners can make sure their pooches are cared for without having to spend a fortune on commercial boarding, thanks to the Rovernight Network.
As WBBM Newsradio's Bob Roberts reports, dog lover Jenna Berneck says she came up with the idea for the network because her job forced her to travel a lot.
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"It just was so frustrating, because either I was spending a lot of money on boarding, or I was leaning on my friends a lot," Berneck said.
She knew others shared the same problem and decided to network. She took the idea to dog shows first, and now has a network of more than 350 Chicago area dog owners who are willing to host other dogs for a night or even a week, if someone will watch theirs.
The operation takes a bit of arranging.
"We don't do any background checks. But what we do do is every once in a while, we host play dates around the city, and it's really invited all the members to get together to meet each other," Berneck said.
At the play dates, the owners find out whose dogs are compatible. Berneck says she herself has hosted all kinds of dogs, ranging from Chihuahuas to Great Danes:
"I can't tell you, being a dog owner, how good that makes you feel that your dog is on their own vacation, you know – and in a comfortable, dog-friendly house" Berneck said.
A map is posted on the Rovernight Network Web site so owners can find who is nearby, and how often they have hosted other dogs, to keep it fair. The network has nearly 370 members now and continues to grow.
