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Dogs for rent: how do they feel?

 

Jang's family which lives in Dogok-dong, southern Seoul, recently spent a dreamy two weeks with a rental dachshund "Jerry." Jang only planned to have Jerry to stay for five days, but the kids loved him so much that Jang had to extend.

"Many customers extend the rental period. Kids in particular hate to return them. Some just end up buying the dog because they become so attached to it," said Park Jeong-hwan, president of Dog Rent, a dog rental shop based online.

While some extend the rents, however, some confessed that they felt guilty while being with the dogs.

"My kids wanted a dog so badly so we decided to try renting one first, to see what it would be like. Of course, the kids loved it. I also tried my best to make it feel at home, but I couldn't help feeling guilty because I knew the whole renting thing probably wasn't good for the dog," said Rho, the father of a family in Ilsan, Gyeonggi Province, who also rented Jerry.

"The dog was a little timid, maybe because it had to move homes so frequently. It was personally a good experience but I don't know if I want to recommend this service to friends or hope more services like this would appear," Rho said.

Dog rental is not yet well-known in Korea, but is popular in Japan. Opened in July 2009, Dog Rent is one of Korea's first companies to offer the service. Some pet shops are planning to open rental services.

Dog Rent, however, does not exclusively handle rental dogs. It is part of a broader company that lends toys and game supplies to churches, university students and companies. Park said that he had tried to launch the dog rental service in 2005 but failed, due to delivery problems.

"All delivery services at that time were done mechanically, with boxes being thrown around on conveyor belts. Dogs couldn't be carried like that. So when subway delivery services opened last year, our dog rental service could finally start," said Park.

"The deliveryman carries the dog in a carrier, so that it is safe and it does not bother subway passengers. It gives our customers more confidence, too," said Park.

Park said that the waiting list was quite long at this time of year. Families with children on vacation, single families and couples going on short trips are the shop's main customers.

The rental fee ranges between 50,000 won to 70,000 won for three days and 70,000 won to 120,000 won for one week. It varies according to the kind of dog. Families in the Gangnam area especially look for expensive pedigree dogs, said Park.

"We lend perfectly healthy dogs which have completed their checkups and are vaccinated. Customers can return them if they are sick. In case of death, we follow the policy terms that are given out with the dogs," said Park.

"But not a single rental has gone wrong. We even give out protection gloves with ones that tend to bite. And most of our dogs don't bark much so they will be quiet enough to keep in an apartment building."

Park said customers do not have to worry that the dogs will suffer from stress.

"The types we have are ones that do not easily get stressed out. They do recognize their owners but are usually delighted to be around new people. They do get a little confused when they are in a new environment, but they adapt themselves within a few hours," Park said.

Lee Won-bok, president of Korea Association for Animal Protection, has a different opinion.

"Dogs also have feelings and memories, just like humans. If a dog is treated like a doll or an accessory, having to move from house to house, the confusion and the difference in affection the dog has to experience will create a certain amount of stress for the dog," Lee said.

"It should be made clear whether the rental shops have a license or not, what kind of license they have, and how they manage the breeding environment," he added.

Lee also raised concerns about the borrowers.

"Renting a dog could make kids think that dogs are not precious pets or members of their family but just toys," he said.

"And it is hard to expect as much responsibility, devotion and affection from borrowers as from owners. Considering that there are even some people who mistreat their own pets, I am sure that some of the borrowers might purposely mistreat the rental dogs."

(claire@heraldm.com)

By Park Min-young