Working Mum’s Wonderful Canine Crèche

Doggie Daycare. Ever heard of it? Well nor had I until this weekend. We went to see friends who live in London with their two golden retrievers (their self-confessed surrogate children). Over dinner, conversation turned to the usual topic of how expensive things were nowadays. We must have sounded like a group of 80 year olds: “the price of chicken today is a scandal..… I remember when a can of Coke was 12p and polo mints were only 6p……we’ll be burning the floorboards to keep warm this winter with the electricity bills as they are….these children demanding the latest toys, when I was young you were lucky to have a finger puppet…..”.

London Clare then starts bemoaning the fact that daycare costs were her biggest expense after the mortgage. We start heartily joining in when I suddenly realise that she has no children.

            “Clare, you have no children what are you talking about?” I say tactfully.

            “The Doggie Daycare. It’s £25 per dog per day.”

“What? Are you mad?! What on Earth do they do for £25 a day?

Wash and blow-dry your pooch, hand-feed it organic titbits and teach it basic home skills such as emptying the washing machine??”

“Oh no, they just look after your dog for the day and give it a walk. They do collect and drop off though.”

            “They don’t even get fed there??!”

            “No, but we know they’re happy whilst we’re at work. It’s priceless really.”

“IT’S NOT PRICELESS -  it’s costing you around £6,000 a year PER DOG that’s £12,000 a year in total. You could buy a child for that!!!!”

Ok, perhaps not the best comment to make but we were a couple of bottles of wine down and I was honestly in shock. I mean, I’m a dog lover as much as the next person but someone is laughing all the way to the bank with that one. In fact, I’m considering starting up a franchise in my area.  Roll Up, Roll Up (those fifty pound notes) – Working Mum’s Wonderful Canine Crèche, coming soon…..

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