Welcome Sweet Friends,
I hope you all had a great weekend, I did! I took a little spontaneous road trip with my husband to Franklin, Tennessee. It has become one of our favorite little weekend getaway spots, that is close to home.
You know when you get back from a vacation or even an overnight trip, you realize just what you really missed; the attention and companionship that you have with your pets. Yes, I’m talking about those cuddly, snuggly, playful little fur babies that we love so dearly. As the saying goes, there’s no place like home. We obsess over our animals! Most of us have at least one pet and we all have that special connection with them that no one else can really understand.
Recently, we had a lady call into our office asking us to design a barndominium for her and her beloved pup. She asked about a barndominium that I helped to design that incorporated a dog washing station into the washroom with a special entrance just for the pooch. Just the tone in her voice when describing the design of her new bardo build had me excited for this pampered pup!
I had a yorkie-poo for 14 years and I always found it difficult to wash and groom him without him trying to jump out of the sink, followed by chasing him down right before he shook the water all over me, and the floors and the walls. And goodness, the muddy paw prints all over the floors after a walk outside on a rainy day, let’s not even mention that. Being a dog owner/lover has given me a greater understanding of the needs of others in the same situation.
I am finding that more people are requesting specific spaces in their custom house plans for their furry friends. You can use a mechanical room in your home or a safe place under the unused stairs for your pets luxury living space. There are so many places and spaces that are customizable for your pet and their needs. Think about how you can utilize a space for pet supplies. Leashes, pet food, bedding, kitty litter, they all really need to be stored in a specific place that is accessible and close to an outside door. Also, consider an area that is out of sight to visitors. Sometimes our guests don’t care for our pets like we do, and we need to understand that everyone has a different connection with animals so be courteous to your guests. One thing that I do know for sure is every animal deserves a cozy safe environment just for them.
Keeping pets confined to one area for long periods of time causes anxiety and stress for your pet, resulting in bad behavior, in hopes of getting more attention and that is not okay. Pet play yards are gaining attention in new home designs as well. Play time is a special time, one on one or with the pack. All animals need exercise and safety when unsupervised, so think about these things when you are building a new home.
If you are looking to build a new home and create a pet suite within, consider a barndominium for its wide, open, easy to clean spaces. Opting for heated, stained and sealed polished concrete for the flooring is a must. These homes with polished concrete flooring are amazing for no fuss clean ups for people with children and/or pets. I know y’all have seen all those Instagram pictures of the goats and miniature donkeys roaming in houses and sitting on nice furniture like the little pampered farm animals that they are. Barndo’s have such large open floor plans that you could really fit a zoo of pets into your home and fit comfortably. We actually designed a barn home for a lady that wanted to be able to walk her horses straight through her home, from the large double front entrance, through the house and out the back. It made me wonder if she was one of those animal Instagramers.
So, let’s start designing some special spaces for these pampered pets. You know they deserve a cozy little place to call their own!
Until next time, sweet friends,
Arlene
