Admittedly, I’m a bit biased when it comes to Asheville, North Carolina. After all, this is the fun, eclectic city that wooed me to move to the southeast. Imagine my delight when I recently learned about a hotel in Asheville that staffs its lobby with dogs in need of homes!
Enter the Aloft Hotel in downtown Asheville, and you will be greeted by a dog wearing a vest printed with, “Adopt Me.” These dogs in need of homes come to Aloft via a western North Carolina adoption program called Charlie’s Angels Animal Rescue.
As reported on nytimes.com, the adoptable dogs cannot stay in guest rooms at night, but they can and do accompany patrons throughout the rest of the hotel, so long as they are on leash.
How do Aloft guests feel about the adoption program? The hotel director of sales, Christine Kavanagh’s feels that the dogs have a positive impact. She stated, “The guests love it. It shows up on guest reviews and consumer surveys1.”
A new way to adopt
Caren Ferris and her husband adopted Ginger during their hotel stay.
They were not intending to return home with a dog, but as Caren explained, “I got up to leave and told her goodbye. She sat up, looked me in the eye and kissed me on the lips.” Ferris and her husband filled out the necessary paperwork, paid the required fees, and following the approval process, took Ginger home to meet their other dogs. Charlie’s Angels requires a home visit before approving any of their adoptions. If the adopters are from another state, the rescue group asks a staff member from a shelter nearby to perform the check1.
How has the adoption program been going? Since July 2014 when the Aloft Hotel and Charlie’s Angels began their partnership, 14 dogs have been placed in new homes. Jan Trantham and her husband found their new dog this way. During their travels from Atlanta, they fell in love with a little Shih Tzu named Jackson. Trantham described their feelings stating, “Every time we went somewhere, one of us would say, ‘Let’s go back to the hotel and see Jackson.’ I couldn’t stop thinking about this dog1.”
Talk about a win-win situation! Guests at the Aloft Hotel are treated to a unique experience, and some of them just might return home with more than they brought with them. Best of all, homeless dogs are finding their forever homes. Kudos to Charlie’s Angels and Aloft Hotel for their creative collaboration that, I hope will set an example in other communities.
If you have any questions or concerns, you should always visit or call your veterinarian -- they are your best resource to ensure the health and well-being of your pets.
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