Fur Baby cuts the ribbon on new pet resort
Fur Baby Pet Resort in Milford celebrated its 10th anniversary May 1 by cutting the ribbon on its new facility on Front Street.
Owners Sherry and Bryan Shupe have moved their business just down the street to a larger building across from the Milford Police Department station. Fur Baby had been located next to Arena’s, adjacent to the Riverwalk.
Bryan Shupe, who also serves as a state representative, said the building had sat empty for years, but when they saw it, they thought it would be the perfect home for Fur Baby.
“We were looking to expand. We started in an 800-square-foot facility. My wife was the genius behind seeing the market trends and where it was going, and saw that to stay competitive we needed to offer services,” he said.
After they negotiated for a year to buy the building, Bryan said construction took a year instead of four months due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But the new pet resort finally opened earlier this year, offering doggy daycare, dog and cat boarding, grooming and retail.
Sherry said the building consists of three distinct parts. The first is the retail store where customers go in, which has all the pet supply needs: toys, food, leashes and crates. During a typical doggy daycare trip, owners will drop their dogs off in the retail area, a part of which is fenced off so the owner can hand the dog off to Fur Baby staff.
The second portion of the facility is the doggy daycare and dog hotel portion. This is the biggest part of the facility, and a luxury Bryan said they did not have at their former location. Sherry said dogs can be separated by size, so small dogs mingle with other small dogs, and large dogs are with large dogs. She said dogs are also placed by temperament. The facility has indoor play zones and a large dog run area in the rear of the building. Sherry said dogs that are boarded overnight spend the day with the doggie daycare animals and then have their own area for the night. Staff make sure the dogs are exercised frequently, and clients putting their dogs in daycare can either bring their own pet food or have their dogs fed an in-house made meal.
“A quiet dog is a happy dog,” Sherry said.
The third part of the building is the dog-grooming area. Sherry said all staff interacting with dogs are certified by the American Kennel Club. Dogs are bathed and groomed in tubs that can accommodate both large and small dogs. Also in this area is the cat boarding space. Sherry said each room has multiple levels and will have a window so the cats can look in on customers in the retail area below.
“It’s a really great feeling to be in here. We look forward to expanding our services even more, to be able to offer more unique things to the area. We’re here; we’re ready,” Sherry said.
For more information on Fur Baby, go to furbabypetresort.com.
