A Dog Community
The other day, Pamela of Something Wagging this Way Comes posted her version of A Modest Proposal, which inspired some vitriol from her readers and also this great post on 3 Ways [She]’d Really Change Dog Adoptions. And that post (and it’s comments) in turn inspired this post. (Don’t you love knowing how I come up with blog post topics?)
One thing Pamela mentions is creating communities. And while she mentions how cool it would be to live near many of her dog blogging friends, she doesn’t mean creating physical communities, but really more social ones. Have people involved in dog rescue also be involved in life after dog adoption. We’re in the process of adopting a (human) child at the moment, and one major thing is support groups. The agency we’re going through is all about making sure you have the emotional support you need for the process. And if you’re not getting it from your family and friends, they want to provide a support group for you.
A mentor, (or dog doula, as Pamela suggests) is a great idea, but so would support groups for those who recently adopted their dogs. There are going to be many similar issues and frustrations, and other times, you’ll leave thanking the heavens that while your dog pooped in the house, he didn’t destroy a pair of Christian Louboutin heels. (Yes, I do know two English Bulldogs that did this, and yes, they are still alive.)
Adopting a human child is a long, invasive, time consuming process. And I get why it is. I also know exactly why adopting a pet is no where near as bad. (Funnily enough, in dog rescue, people often talk about how it should be harder for people to adopt dogs. In child adoption/foster care, people often talk about how they think it should be easier for people to adopt children. I think this is a great example of the grass always being greener.) But I think some lessons can be taken from one to the other. And creating a community and support group is one of them.
Getting past the social community, though, C and I have, since we bought our first home in a planned community with an HOA, talked about creating a physical dog community- a planned neighborhood where the plan includes, or maybe even focuses on, pets.
Think about it. Would you be interested in living in a planned community where there are play areas for children, but also a centralized off leash area for dogs? One where the HOA dues support not just common area maintenance but support free basic obedience classes for all dogs, and subsidize low cost classes for advanced obedience, agility, and flyball? A community center that houses a dog day care, and encourages relationships so that you never have to board your dog, but could leave him with a neighbor and doggie friend? An HOA that instead of trying to limit what pets you can have (any dog considered dangerous by other people is not allowed) instead encouraged pets and responsible pet ownership?
I would live there. In a heartbeat, I would live there.
In my mind, this community would contain single family homes, townhomes, and apartments. There would be housing in every price range. You could own or rent. Individuals who bought a home to rent out would have to sign an agreement stating their rental would allow animals, with no size, weight, or breed restrictions. (And yes, this is completely legal.)
I also think this community should be cat friendly. Maybe a cat room at the community center so that cats could be social, have a bit more room to move around? Have a safe outdoor space for indoor cats (perhaps with a netted roof). I don’t know as much about cats, but I wouldn’t be against making a community that worked for them, too.
No one has built this community just yet, at least not that I’m aware of. But if I ever win the lottery, it might just be at the top of my list. But since we don’t play the lottery, I’m happy to share the idea here. Maybe someone else could take it and make it work. Do any of my readers have real estate development experience?