Pet Life Magazine, New Zealand Pet Life Magazine Issue 6 Autumn 2018 | Page 3

ditor E e h t m o r Letter f As editor of this magazine, I get to meet and talk to many new people who are passionate about pets. But I also get to rope in animal lovers I know to share their stories with our readers. In this issue, that person is Jude MacDonald. I met Jude when we visited her property in Aotea Harbour on the west coast of the North Island a couple of years ago for the purpose of possibly sending our (then two) dogs to her for four weeks while we went on holiday. Jude has a doggy homestay, and I was instantly impressed when she told me on the phone that, no, I didn’t need to bring kennels or bedding because the dogs could all sleep on the couches! For someone whose dogs bounce off the walls and furniture at home, that was music to my ears. In the past we had always had house sitters while on holiday, for the sole purpose of looking after our dogs. But Facebook posts by them only ever showed our pups with their faces pressed against the glass doors wanting to come inside. Not to mention there was always a mountain of dog poo in the garden when we got home. So, sending the dogs away was something different for us. We wanted our dogs to have freedom, be walked, be mad, be allowed to get unruly, be cared for by someone who does love dogs not just pretend they do. A kennel wasn’t going to cut it. Basically, we wanted a home away from home. I fell in love with Jude’s setup the moment we set foot on her property (on the way home Bald Pommy Bloke said to me “I bet you want to sell up and move out here and have your own doggy homestay”) but I’ll leave it with you to read her story. Elsewhere in this issue, I spoke to the partners of ARK Property Management, who advocate pets to landlords. They make up CVs for the pets of prospective tenants, based on personality and responsible ownership, and remove risk for landlords by offering a free carpet clean and extra inspections every year. It’s such an awesome concept! We are constantly bombarded with sad stories about tenants unable to find new homes that will allow their pets. And it ensures pet owner responsibility. Although, I can’t but help think that if I was a tenant my property manager would have to offer a bit more than a carpet clean. I often look at my kitchen door with it’s giant grizzly bear scratch marks down it and think: Oh well, not much point in sanding and painting that, it’s only going to happen again! Anyway, we hope you enjoy reading this issue as much as we did putting it together. inger THE TEAM MANAGING DIRECTOR & ADVERTISING EXECUTIVE Amy Scott-Thomas [email protected] EDITOR Inger Vos [email protected] WRITER Morgan Healey [email protected] CREATIVE In house Print & Distribution: Inkwise CONTRIBUTORS Jo Clough - Dog Safe Work Place [email protected] Liza Schneider - Dr Liza Holistic Vet [email protected] CONTACT DETAILS Red Swamp Road, RD1, Kaikoura www.petlife.co.nz facebook.com/PetLifeNZ instagram.com/PetLifeNZ DISCLAIMER Pet Life magazine is subject to copyright in its whole entirety. No part of the contents within are to be reproduced in any form, either whole or in part, without prior consent from Pet Life Ltd. Pet Life Ltd reserves the right to accept, reject or modify editorial and advertising material. All rights reserved. Opinions expressed within this publication are not necessarily those of Pet Life Ltd, their contributors, associated businesses or any related entities. Pet Life Ltd makes every effort to ensure that all information is true and correct from experts within their field. However, Pet Life Ltd or any persons involved with this publication does not accept any liability for the magazine’s content. The inclusion of any product, service or business within this publication should not be interpreted as ratification by Pet Life Ltd. Copyright © 2018. ISSN 2537-7140 (Print) ISSN 2537-7183 (Online) COVER PET COMPETITION THIS COULD BE YOUR PET! We are now searching for a special pet to feature on our winter cover. If you think your pet has what it takes then head to www.petlife.co.nz to view competition details and enter your pet.