Clubhound is officially open! If you haven’t heard of it yet, here are the basics: Clubhound is a huge fully-fenced dog park with an air conditioned inside bar and coffee shop area, as well as a supervised-play area with 100,000 square feet off and on leash space. Humans are always free, while dogs require vaccine records in place as well as a fee to play (daily pass or a monthly or annual membership). When we heard about Clubhound, we didn’t hesitate to sign up our pup Nyx for an annual membership and we have had a great experience so far.
Why not just take your dog to a public dog park for free?
Aside from the coffee bar and adult- beverage bar, several amenities make Clubhound worth paying for and truly separate it from public dog parks, which I’ll summarize and then go into detail on each aspect. Safety is top priority, between vaccine screening for every dog and the rufferees that monitor the pups outside. The free Wi-Fi makes it a great place to work, especially when there’s food and drink options from the coffee bar during the day, and then food trucks and the bar in the evenings. The events are tailored to dog-loving humans, so even without a dog you can come in and enjoy free events in the presence of dogs. Also, a dog-washing station is coming soon, which will be free to use and a great way for your pup to end a day of wrestling new friends.
Safety: Vaccines and Rufferees
The top reason we prefer Clubhound over public dog parks is because we can trust Clubhound to screen out non-vaccinated and aggressive dogs. Often, well-intentioned dog owners do not realize what vaccines are critical for their dog to have if they are going to be exposed to other dogs, as well as the need to update the vaccines annually to maintain protection. All dogs can attend public dog parks, with no vaccine oversight and regardless of vaccine status, which can be a risk of exposure. Public dog parks are still worth attending, especially if your dog is fully vaccinated, but the reduced risk of exposure is part of the value that Clubhound offers.
Another layer of safety that gives us peace of mind at Clubhound is the rufferees. Always staffed with rufferees, humans can leave the dog watching to staff in the off leash area. The rufferees have training in carefully watching dog interactions and escalating levels of intervention if needed. All dogs are welcome to Clubhound to start, but some dogs need additional socialization training to allow safe interactions for the other dogs at the park. Clubhound keeps an eye out and monitors for unwelcome behaviors. At a public dog park, there is a greater risk of having to personally intervene in handling an altercation with another dog, again trusting well-intentioned dog owners to know if their pup is ready for socialization. Another great bonus is that the rufferees also pick up dog poop, so there’s no need to bring poop bags and the park is constantly picked up even when owners are not watching their pups in the play area.
Here’s Nyx on the run with a new friend!
Working from Home AKA Clubhound
When I first nabbed the annual pass for Nyx, I imagined letting Nyx roam outside while I worked inside, until I learned the Wi-Fi even extends all the way out to the huge play area and that I could work outside as well. I tested this myself, and had a great time doing work surrounded by playful pups. Inside or out, the WiFi was seamless and it was awesome being able to trust the “ruferrees” to keep an eye on her in the off-leash space while I worked inside, or to join her while she played. I grabbed a coffee and a lemon-lavender scone from The Alchemist coffee bar which was top notch as well.
Events Calendar
At the time this was written, Clubhound had only been open for a few weeks, so we had only experienced a few of the events on a calendar. So far we’ve been able to experience a splash pad party, a dog-themed movie night on a projector screen, and I forgot my yoga mat but witnessed pilates with dogs which sounds like a great break from working – I won’t forget next time! Regularly reoccurring events include monthly market nights with vendors, trivia on Tuesdays, breed meet ups, yoga & pilates, and rotating food trucks.
No dog? No problem! And No Entry Fee
Of course it’s extra fun to attend with Nyx, but I think people assume you have to bring a dog because of the effort put into maintaining the dog park, which is supported by the cost of entry for dogs. Without a dog, Clubhound is like a dog version of a cat café, where you expect to surrounded by cats while you partake. Similarly, dog-lovers can enjoy free events like trivia and yoga while surrounded by pups that love the extra attention, just like any dog-friendly bar or coffee shop.
If you’re visiting the area and missing your dog at home, ClubHound could be a great stop on your list.
Not to mention, Pawspital Animal Hospital developed a pet-related community event calendar for pet lovers to be aware of local events, either with pets welcome or supporting pets in some fashion. Clubhound’s events are posted on their webpage here, if you want to see them all.
Why go to dog parks in general?
For Nyx, she is at an age where she can’t be trusted to roam the house yet with her puppy-related chewing and potty-training behaviors, so keeping her in a crate is ideal when we are at work. Yet, she also has that puppy energy which, when she has the opportunity to run and play, she has much better behavior at home. Having options like Clubhound where she can socialize in a supervised and safe setting while I can also work is a great win-win for our whole family. Our community is full of resources for dog owners, and we are excited to have such an option in our tool-box for keeping Nyx happy, healthy, and socialized. Our last pup was dog aggressive, so this time around we made it a top priority to safely and steadily expose her to other dogs as early as we could considering vaccine safety.
Similarly, another dog park bar is opening in Meridian, and is currently under construction at the time of this post, called Idaho Pups and Ales. Stay tuned for a blog post on IPA when they open, as we’ll be excited to support them as a new community resource as well!