Hotel for Dogs

Imagine that you need to travel, spend some time in another country – for business or for pleasure. Where will you leave that beloved dog of yours? Or will your neighbour be up to looking after your guard dog (who is pretty uncomfortable with strangers)? These are perfectly normal questions that pop up from time to time for anyone owning a dog. Solutions can often be a real problem, though.

“The project involves an hotel and a school. They’re two very distinct entities. The hotel is there to service, above all, the Algarve’s foreign residents. People who are generally mobile and need to travel on a regular basis – for example, people who visit England, Germany and Holland two, three or more times a year. Very often, they own medium-sized or large dogs that double up as pets and guard-dogs”, Horta explains.

“Every time these people need to go away, they have trouble finding the right people to look after their animals. It’s always a difficult problem to deal with – and brings with it certain risks. Therefore, I thought about creating a service to respond to this need.”

The hotel is also geared towards Portuguese holidaymakers who like to spend their summer breaks in the Algarve. If animals aren’t allowed where the owners are staying, they can stay here – and the owners can even pass by and visit them. “This situation actually just happened during the Easter holidays. People from Lisbon and Setúbal came here for a week – and preferred to bring their dog with them. They know he’s safe, nearby – and that means they can relax.”

Afonso Horta studied Anthropology in Lisbon – and didn’t start out with this idea. Instead, he went into hotel management. But the idea was germinating. “Working outside with animals is something that always attracted me”. And, as part of his academic studies, he learnt the theory behind the social interaction of animals. At the same time, he also attended a dog-training school in the capital.

Thus, the idea blossomed on a plot of land that this young man from Faro owned in the borough of Silves, near the road leading to Alcantarilha railway station. Building work began in August last year, and the place is “almost ready to start working at 100 per cent”.

Here, there’s a small reception for the hotel guests. Admission criteria are simple. “We accept all dogs, as long as they don’t arrive with contagious diseases that would compromise others, and aren’t aggressive”, Horta elaborates.

The hotel has the capacity for 15 guests. “There are bigger places, for 50/ 60 dogs – but we think this is taking the idea to the levels of an industry. We prefer to have quality, and receive less”. In other words, Horta is advocating the same concept of a country hotel in the two-legged world? “Yes, 15 is the perfect number for us to walk the dogs easily – without a great big confusion”, he smiles.

The average number of guests per week up until now has been between six and seven animals – and just like a hotel, or guesthouse, there’s a daily rate here: €15 a day. The sum includes meals and other activities, like regular walks during the day – depending on the age and fitness of the animal.

Working alongside Afonso Horta is Austrian Veronika Fischereder, who has vast experience of working with dogs.

“Ideally, people should bring with them objects that carry their smell. This is very important to keep the dog calm during its stay. If it’s possible, it’s also good for owners to bring their dogs to see us, and get to know the place, before they have to come and stay with us”, Horta adds.

Meantime, the proprietor is also a dog trainer – and so the training school, which has been very successful, came about. What are owners looking for? “That all depends very much on the nationality,” he tells. “The Portuguese, on the whole, want their dog better behaved. Often, they only come here when the dog is a complete disaster: when he’s already bitten someone, is uncontrollable, or has destroyed the entire house. For the Portuguese, training is very much a last resort.”

Why? “In my opinion, it is a cultural issue”. Until recently in Portugal “only the police and military really trained dogs. It was an aggressive, violent form of training”. Also, the regular Algarvian is fairly laid-back. “For many people, their relationship with their dog doesn’t involve rules – it’s not about nurturing sociability” he explains.

But, aggressive behaviour and other problems can be dealt with. Horta recommends that owners, under his guidance, train their own dogs. “It’s a question of improving the communication between both parties”. The school offers various programmes for different objectives.

So, is the dog still Man’s best friend? “I know it’s the animal that best adapts to our personality. All of a sudden, humans have begun living in apartments, in a modern world. Dogs have an enormous capacity for adapting – and if they’re educated, they can live with us in any situation.”

And finally, he’s not afraid of the crisis? “No. There are a lot of people out there who have special relationships with their dogs, and for this reason they’ll always seek out a service where their animals are in good hands. Also, when one creates one’s own business, one works better – and with a different kind of dedication.”