Leaving your pet behind when you go on a trip can be very hard. They are your loved ones and leaving them in the hands of those you don’t trust is never an option. To add to that one needs to think of hygiene, safety, location and comfort. With a significant number of pet stays and pet hotels opening in the city, the options are abundant and Benzi Pet Stay seems like a safe haven for your loved ones.
Nestled in a quiet neighbourhood, Benzi Pet Stay completely removes commerciality from the equation. Eliminating the idea of kennels, it is more of a place where pets can be pets and feel at home. The neighbourhood is serene, quiet and very safe for your pets.When you reach the entrance of the pet stay, you can see the colourful quotes painted on the compound wall. Benzi Pet Stay is definitely a dream come true for pet owners who want their pets to feel loved and calm when they are left for boarding. Everything from their immense cleanliness and the sound of wind chimes is sure to make one feel peaceful.
The Beginning
“We always had a problem with dropping our pet dog (Benzi) when we wanted to travel. The problem exists with all pet owners. Eventually we had our friends drop their pets with us for taking care of them. So we decided one fine day that we should just start a pet stay business. The pet stay is named after their first pet, Benzi, a friendly German Shepherd. Speaking of Benzi, Nirmiti says that she was everything that a breeder could have done wrong. While their veterinarian gave Benzi4 years to live, Nirmiti and Prasanna have raised her with so much care and she is now celebrating her 9th year.
Speaking of the beginning of Benzi Pet stay, Nirmiti says, “Initially when we started 4 years ago, we were still learning. We had taken in almost any dog that walked in. We were new and I was still working, whereas Prasanna had quit his job to run the establishment. We didn’t want to say no to any pet. Benzi has taught us a lot about which pet to accept into Benzi Pet Stay. There was a time when she warned us in her own way. She walked away, she pushed us away and she did her way to let us know she wasn’t quite comfortable with the boarder.” Today, Prasanna and Nirmiti are certified in various fields such as dog behavioural training and correction etc.
Co Living at the Pet Stay
The couple conductstrial runs for new pets to see how well they will adjust at the place. Co living with other dogs is an important aspect of Benzi Pet Stay and this is an element that they strongly look out for. “We do not take dogs without a trial run because we do not have enough space to separate them out if needed. Senior dogs stay downstairs in the afternoon but they all stay together upstairs, at night. If a pet can’t socialize, then we shouldn’t force them to do so.” says Nirmiti.
“Our trial run is performed with Dash and Cheeky.” Nirmiti says that the two most important members of the trial run are Dash, an amicable Labrador and Cheeky, a playful Dalmatian.They approach the new pet, try and socialize and befriend the pet. It is based on how the pet reacts to Cheeky and Dash, that the pet’s stay in Benzi’s is finalised. Nirmiti says, “There are signs which Prasanna and Cheeky can pick. If the dog is tense or if there is even a minor chance that the dog can snap, we don’t take him. That is because we can’t afford a dog fight.”
They also have cats staying at their place. A cat pen was constructed by Prasanna and can house 8 cats. It has been painted and very cheerfully decorated.The number of dogs that can be boarded is 10. They have long term boarders in Benzi Pet Stay with the longest boarder having lived there for 3 years.
For the Love of Pets
While we discuss about pet problems that owners face, Prasanna tells us, “You have people complaining about their dogs barking all day long. They simply have to establish a pattern.” They further tell us that anything can be achieved with a dog if the time and effort are put in. Pets always learn what we try to teach them, but we should teach them the right way.
We ask Nirmiti what it has been like to dedicate their whole life to Benzi Pet Stay. With so much gratification she says they have no regrets. Benzi Pet Stay is open all around the year, taking care of pets that need to be supervised. They also conduct workshops on Puppy Training, How to approach a Dog and Kids & Pets etc. When we ask Nirmiti about where they see themselves in five years, she says, “A big farm with everything that we can do for a dog. An ideal environment would be a hydrotherapy pool and to take care of dogs with special needs.”