b'n BY BEN QUIGGLEPet Products See Jump in Popularity as Old & NewCampers Bring Along Plenty of Furry Family MembersT he flood of new campersinto the outdoor hospi-talityindustryisalsobringing new expecta-tions and park ownersareworkingtomeetthoseexpectationswithaddedamenities,upgradedaccommoda-tions and other services.With the growth in new campers,park owners also continue to see anincrease in the number of furry fam-ily members that are taking trips,too.Therecentlyreleased2021NorthAmericanCampingReport,producedbyKampgroundsofAmericaInc.,notesthat26%ofcampers decided on an RV park orcampground based on whether petsare allowed and if a pet area, such asa dog park, was offered.I think in general; its going to besomethingthatsgoingtogrowquiteimmenselyoverthenext probably two orthreeyears,KeithCaldwell,presidentof All Paws Pet Wash, Dog park obstacles, like this jump bar from UltraSites BarkPark line, are key to helpingtold Woodalls Camp- dogs release energy, which encourages better behavior during their stay at a campground.Keith Caldwell groundMagazine(WCM). People are treating pets astheir children nowadays and part of are going to be bringing their dogs Theretendtobe certainly helps, too.that is involving them in family activ- and want to have a spot for them to fewerissueswith How do you get started? It dependsities. get out some energy, he explained. barking and chewing on how much money you want to in-Ryan Hartberg, vice president of For park owners, the idea of pets at andothernegative vest, but the basics for any dog parkbusiness development at Commer- a campground brings up several con- behaviors, said Nora include space to run and maybe acial Recreation Spe- cerns from potential dog bites to pet VandenBerghe, sales few obstacles.cialist (CRS) agrees, waste issues. Some park owners have and marketing man- It doesnt have to be a huge parknoting to WCM that even begun to ban certain breeds of ager forDog-ON-It- at all, said VandenBerghe. Id say atdog park equipment dogs to protect against liability issues Nora VandenBerghe Parks.Definitely least one bench to make sure thatis consistently in the and lower insurance costs. whatever owners can do to get them folks who are there have an option totop10forfastest- Dogparkequipmentproviders more exercise, especially if they have sitsomewhereiftheydlikeandagrowing categories of note that park owners who do allow been kind of cooped up in an RV or a waste pickup station. Even little funpark and recreation pets would benefit from creating an car most of the day, is beneficial. If things like fire hydrants are cost-ef-Ryan Hartberg equipment. area, with proper equipment, that al- youhavespaceavailable,atleast fective and cute and they make kindRVparksandcampgrounds, lows dogs to expend energyhelping makesurethereisroomtorun of a nice visual impact.specifically the larger ones, seem to to lower incidents of behavior that within the park and obviously if there Following is a rundown of some ofbe cognizant of the fact that people can create issues with other campers. is room for agility equipment that the key pet suppliers in the sector.All Paws Pet WashIt makes sense to offer a place for pets to get cleaned tion for the dog wash, where the camper pays eachup after a romp in the park, according to Caldwell. time they use the self-serve facility, he said. OthersWhile some parks offer a hose for dogs to wash up have an added daily rate for dog owners to use all thewith, Caldwell said park owners may want to look at facilities at the campground, including the dog wash.upgrading what they offer as more RVers bring pets Instead of $15 per wash for the use of the dog wash,with them. these campgrounds have an additional $5 per day thatAll Paws Pet Wash offers kiosk modular buildings includes everything.that are installed at 600 locations across the U.S. The Caldwell noted that some park owners have a freeunits are hooked up to existing utilities and are found washtub and dont charge anything.typically in parking lots. The company offers eight dif- If you are going to do that then you need to pro-ferent models. mote that you have that option for pet owners, he ex-The units are affordable and heated/cooled so they plained. We have one campground that has aroundcan operate all year long, noted Caldwell. 500-600 sites and they charge $5 a day, per dog. TheyHe told WCMthat park owners can make money off are pulling in crazy numbers because a lot of campersthe units. are just adding that amenity to their stay.Some campgrounds have a cost-per-use applica- www.allpawspetwash.com16 June 2021 Woodalls Campground Magazine'