Wyndham Orange County Takes Pet Programs to Next Level
By Sandi Cain, Best Friends Network VolunteerPet-friendly hotels are growing by leaps and bounds these days, but in many cases that means pet amenities in the room and don’t have to be smuggled in by their caretakers. The Wyndham Orange County Hotel in Costa Mesa has taken pet-friendly idea by the paw and expanded it into a truly unique pet program. And they’re doing it in the midst of an urban setting.
The hotel is adjacent to the Orange County Performing Arts Center, across the street from South Coast Plaza mega shopping center, and less than two miles from the John Wayne/Orange County Airport. But there’s a small lake with lovely gardens behind the hotel—and a host of new apartments and condos nearby that welcome pets. There’s also a community Bark Park just a few blocks away. So general manager Thomas Smalley—a dog lover himself who’s owned by a couple of rescued greyhounds—devised a plan: come up with a pet-friendly program at the hotel that would be welcoming to guests and locals alike and that would benefit animal causes.
The result: a Paws and Claws package at the Wyndham modeled after Wyndham’s signature “Wyndham by Request’ program. The package offers a special rate, pet amenities, turndown service for guests and pets, a Pet Service Directory for the area, lint roller in the rooms, biodegradable pet waste bags and meals at the outdoor patio of TerraNova restaurant where pets are welcome. The hotel donates $5 from each Paws and Claws room night to Greyhound Pets of America—a nonprofit organization that finds homes for retired racing dogs.
“Every hotel realizes that more people are traveling with pets,” Smalley said. “We want to make sure our customers know we’re taking it to another level.” Smalley, who works with the Los Angeles/Orange County Chapter of Greyhound Pets of America, said he wanted to partner with a charity to illustrate that they take the pet program seriously. “If (our hotel) is going to pick a charity, we need to be passionate about it,” he said. And passion about greyhounds is something he has—as his greyhound pals Dallas and Sienna will attest.
When a Paws and Claws reservation is made, a PetRequest Manager contacts the guest to learn about any special needs or requests for the animals. In just the first few weeks of the program, the managers were startled to find a few people booking the package who weren’t bringing pets. The said they did it for the charitable donation.
In April, Wyndham also launched a weekend lakeside “Paws and Claws” breakfast buffet from 7 a.m. to noon. Locals and guests alike are invited to bring their pets along and indulge in the “Bubbles and Bones” Champagne Cocktail Bar with a champagne fountain and doggy treats. There’s also a Paws & Claws Personality Photo Contest each week. The winner gets a breakfast for two (presumably for both humans and pets) and their photo in the hotel’s gallery. As an extra incentive, $1 from each Paws and Claws breakfast also goes to Greyhound Pets of America—even from guests who come only with human companions.
While most of the four-legged guests are dogs, Smalley was startled to see one family with a plastic bag containing a fish under their breakfast table. They told him they’d just bought the fish and didn’t want to leave the poor thing in the car while the enjoyed breakfast, so they brought the new pet along!
During their stay, pampered pets can get a pet massage at the PawSpa nearby while the human guests visit the Spa at South Coast Plaza. And those strolling past the wine cabinets might notice a special variety called Bark Vineyards. On closer inspection, they’ll find that Bark Vineyards is a really unusual wine. In fact, it’s gravy for dog kibble—prominently displayed alongside the more usual types of wine. Another $1 for every Bark Vineyards product sold goes to Greyhound Pets of America.
Smalley said many people don’t realize the extent of the need for homes for retired greyhounds. There are roughly 40 tracks spread among 17 U.S. states plus one in Caliente, Mexico near the U.S. border. Aside from California, there are tracks in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Texas, West Virginia and Wisconsin. Each track needs about 1,000 dogs to run a full set of races, Smalley said, and when dogs don’t perform, they’re sent to other tracks. Caliente, he said, is generally the end of the line. Dogs that aren’t adopted from Caliente face euthanasia. The LA/Orange County Chapter of GPA makes monthly trips to that track to rescue dogs and find them foster and/or forever homes. “We’re not pro or con racing,” Smalley said. “We just work with (the track) to place the animals.”
Smalley can often be found at the weekend breakfasts along with his canine pals Dallas and Sienna. That draws even more attention to the rescue group’s efforts and illustrates that the dogs take their retirement seriously—lounging gracefully on the patio and surveying their new kingdom.
For More Information: To book a Paws and Claws package or to learn more about the Wyndham Orange County’s pet-friendly programs, call (714) 751-5100 or visit
http://www.wyndhamorgangecounty.com]http://www.wyndhamorangecounty.com]http://www.wyndhamorgangecounty.comTo learn more about Greyhound Pets of America, visit
http://www.fastfriends.org]http://www.fastfriends.org]http://www.fastfriends.orgPhoto of Thomas Smalley with human and canine pals at the Paws and Claws Breakfast Buffet ‘leash-cutting’ event, with permission from Wyndham Orange County