US - Maximum Bliss at the Pound

Abused, Neglected, Abandoned Pets Bask in Deluxe Comfort at Shelter

Larry the yellow Lab sleeps on a memory foam mattress. Paddy the Irish wolfhound laps from an automatically refilling water dish. Olga and Oslo, two Rhodesian Ridgeback-mix puppies, sprawl on a radiant-heated floor in Zen-like bliss.

They are among 80 homeless hounds inhabiting a new animal shelter that is ritzier than many day spas. These mutts exude the contentment of society housewives detoxing at an ashram, soothed into near total silence under a glass skylight skimmed by cascading sheets of recirculated water, the room aglow with daylight streaming through glass walls and thrumming with piped-in harp music.

"Do you hear that? No barking. You barely hear a peep," enthused Scotlund Haisley, executive director of the Washington Animal Rescue League, which is officially unveiling its posh new animal shelter in Northwest Washington to the public this weekend.

Opulent kennels with first-class features are popping up across the country. One in Denver features international-themed rooms for cats, and one in Richmond has bronze lobby sculptures and a rubber-padded indoor track on which dogs can run.

"Slowly, what's happening is that Americans are no longer accepting the small, stinky, rusty-fence shelters as suitable places for animals," said John Snyder, vice president for companion animals at the Humane Society of the United States. "There is a renaissance of new construction of these facilities across the country, and we're seeing some very attractive facilities."

At the rescue league's 71 Oglethorpe St. NW facility, $4 million was spent on deluxe digs -- called "dens," "townhouses" or "condos," depending on size -- for 80 big dogs, 25 puppies and 100 cats.

The league, founded in 1914 to save abandoned and abused workhorses, is funded entirely by private donations. For this renovation, the largest single donation was $75,000. The group held an art auction and fundraiser last night to generate the remaining $2 million needed for building costs, and it plans a grand opening from noon to 3 p.m. tomorrow, complete with a pet psychic.

Pet lovers find the "holistic" shelter inspirational. Workers show no embarrassment over a place fancier than many of their homes. But Haisley knows he must defend it.

"Of course, people will say it's nicer than some shelters for people," Haisley said, stopping to scratch Tate, a Labrador retriever mix, between the ears. "I understand that, but I don't run a human shelter. And if I did, it would have all this.

"Though some of this may seem frivolous, it really is not. It's redefining what the needs of animals are."

What the District's abused, lost and neglected critters need, in Haisley's view, is a peaceful place to nurture their rehabilitation. To figure out what design would foster recovery, he interviewed animal psychologists and prison historians.

"I wanted to understand what fosters aggression and violence and eliminate that," he said.

Once he had an idea of what he wanted, he eschewed specialists in the growing niche of animal shelter design and went for a firm that planned solely with two-legged mammals in mind. They found Damon Ward, 33, an architect who designed such hip, urban projects as artists' lofts and skylit cafes. Ward was killed by an unknown gunman outside a U Street NW jazz club in February.

"All of this -- the care, the concern -- it's Damon's legacy," Haisley said, sweeping his hand toward the ceiling of the cat room, with whimsical paw prints embedded in the acoustic tiles.

The shelter borrows ideas from human institutions. Each doggy den has a purifier circulating fresh air every seven minutes.

The dens are made of stainless steel and tempered glass, opaque on the bottom so dogs see shadows, but clear on top so humans can see inside. Potential adopters can open the top half of the Dutch door for a pat and a lick.

Feline condos are made of sandstone Corian with beech accents. Each space has a separate toilet area. The carpet climbing structures are shaped like bonsai trees. A giant waterfall on one wall has terraced ledges, where cats perch and lap oxygenated water straight from the fountain.

Haisley leads a dozen tours of the facility a week, mostly for animal experts, veterinarians, psychologists and prison specialists.

Staff members say they have noticed a distinct improvement in the animals' behavior and health.

Gary Weitzman, the shelter's medical director, said that because of the calming music, fresh water and heated floors, abused and diseased animals heal faster. And kennel cough -- a highly contagious illness in dogs -- has dropped nearly 90 percent with fresh air being circulated into individual dens, he said.

The facility also seems to affect people who come looking for pets. Adoptions are up, said adoption manager Shelley Petrasek, who credits the visible amenities with making people feel good about adopting animals.

It worked for Aimee Coogan of Montgomery County, who steeled herself for noisy and depressing metal cages yesterday when she brought her son, Rory, to the league's space to look for a cat.

"This is a really beautiful place, and the animals seem so happy," she said, watching a herd of cats race past her feet.

Return visits from rescued pets and their owners are common enough. But, rare for a pound, it's becoming a popular spot for children's birthday parties.

The community room is open for cake and ice cream. After decorating doggie biscuits, the kids give their treats to the dogs.

Perhaps the best testament to the benefits of an extreme makeover is the story of Christiano, an ungainly terrier mix who was rescued from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina but languished in the shelter for a full year -- unfriendly, reclusive and undesirable.

Once the new shelter opened and the chimes played in his dog run and the water fountain trickled, Christiano started to unwind. He relaxed, wagged his tail and started approaching families looking for a pet. He found his match within days.

Happy in his new home, Christiano and his owner still return to the shelter for visits and a tiny dose of canine Zen.

Reference: www.washingtonpost.com

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