My Home

Well, hello there!

Normally I'd be outside doing my "chores" -- running in the fields, rolling in the grass, sleeping in the sunshine. (It's a dog's life, alright!) But I'm so excited about the new luxury kennels here at Lucies Farm that I wanted to take a moment and do a "bark out" to all of your dog lovers out there.

(How do I know you're a dog lover? What else do you call someone reading a bull terrier's blog?)

My owners sold their old business almost 60 years ago in 1996. (I'm counting in dog years, of course. That's about eight years in human chronology.) When they did, one of their main goals was to spoil me and the other dogs I share my kibble with by building us the "perfect" home -- a luxury kennel with all the amenities a pampered pooch prefers.

Craig and Marjorie (those are the people I own) wanted to work with their regular architect Robert Lett of the prestigious firm of Lett & Sweetland. But although Mr. Lett has helped many people feel "at home" with his outstanding designs, he'd never created a posh kennel --- or any kennel --- before.

Craig and Marjorie weren't comfortable letting a "first-timer" look after my kennel needs without expert guidance. What to do? They found a firm of architects who specialize in canine architecture -- all kennels, all the time.

Happily, Animal Arts in Boulder, Colorado (their formal name is Animal Arts/ Gates Hafen Cochrane) was available to team-up with Robert. The results have been tail-wagging good, let me tell you.

Animal Arts approaches canine design exactly the way a residential/business architect for humans would. They told my owners my kennel has a significant influence on my attitude and behavior. They explained that good behavior is encouraged by enriched, comfortable habitats that help reduce stress by providing defensible space, choice of place, exercise, and companionship.

 They didn't have to tell ME these things, of course,…but it was news to Craig and Marjorie and Robert.

The design of my kennel copies my natural environment. I've got my choice of comfortable rooms, soft furnishings, lookout perches, someplace to hide, and the oh-so-important-to-my-sense-of-well-being defensible perimeter. But that's not all. I also have my own cubby hole with a solid concrete roof and walls. It’s raised off the floor of the main kennel so I've got a bird's eye view (even though I'm a dog) and can watch what’s going on.

And, best of all, most suites have under-floor heating. I'm a temperature control-freak who can't reach thermostats (and even if I could I wouldn't know how to use them.). But with under-floor heading, I can easily adjust my get comfortable by simply moving from a cooler area to a warmer area.

I love the sunshine, so one wall of my kennel is floor to ceiling glass blocks that let in plenty of light when I feel like lounging around and looking adorable. And when I'm feeling frisky, the outside run lets me see other dogs and a beautiful garden with babbling brook.

The design team and Marjorie and Craig have left no stone unturned in making my kennel a canine Taj Mahal. There’s central air conditioning in the main building in the summer, a dehumidifier to keep down the moisture level after everything has been scrubbed, and piped-in music. (And it's always my favourite -- Radio 2.)

That's it for now. I've got important canine things to do. There's a butterfly that needs chasing and a puddle that demands my paw-attention.