Posts tagged "Houston"

Dog parks are an incredible resource for dog owners and animal lovers. For city dwellers, dog parks provide a rare space where dogs can run free. Even suburban and country dogs love dog parks for the ever-so-important socialization opportunities that they provide. New dog owners, long-time dog owners, and dog owners' associations find dog parks to be an oasis in which to commune. Many even hold events at these parks, adding to their fun.

By sniffing out specifications and reviews, we've compiled a list of the top dog parks in the five largest U.S. cities.

New York, N.Y.
1. Carl Shurz Park Dog Run, on the Upper East Side, is a picturesque park with a small-dog run.
2. Fort Tryon Park Sir William's Run, in Washington Heights, sports grass areas (a rarity in most city dog runs).
3. St. Nick's Dog Run, in Harlem, features the largest run in NYC and an active community.

Los Angeles, Calif.
1. Runyon Canyon Park, in Los Angeles proper, is great for hiking too.
2. Sepulveda Basin Off-Leash Dog Park, in Encino, boasts five acres of fun.
3. Dog Beach Zone, in Long Beach, is a very popular destination that even hosts interfaith blessings of animals.

New York City is the place to be for fashion, theater, fine dining -- and, it turns out, is also a pet-friendly city. The housing rental website Rent.com recently released a list of the top 10 pet-friendly cities in the U.S. The Big Apple takes the top spot, with cities from North, South, East and West rounding out the list.

Rent.com president Peggy Abkemeier told Paw Nation that her company combed through thousands of pet-friendly rental listings to find cities with a significant percentage of cat- and dog-friendly pads for rent. "Of the Rent.com listings in Charleston and Austin, 98 percent are pet-friendly," Abkemeier told Paw Nation. Next, she and her team looked at other pet criteria such aspublic parks, doggie daycares, pet-friendly restaurants and off-leash beaches.

Abkemeier said that these days, the rental climate is pretty welcoming to pet owners around the country. "In fact, 80 percent of our national inventory is pet-friendly," she added. And as property owners deal with vacancies linked to the economic downturn, some are becoming even more flexible in their pet policies, she said.

Unfortunately, not all landlords are as charmed by our four-legged friends as we are. Abkemeier offered some tips for sweet-talking a potential landlord and landing the perfect pad.

• Ease landlords' worries by ensuring that your rental insurance will cover any pet-related damages.
• Show landlords recommendations from your current landlord or neighbors who can vouch for your pet's good behavior.
• Offer up written evidence of vaccinations and obedience training, so your potential landlord knows your dog is healthy and won't keep the neighbors up all night.
• Introduce your potential landlord to your pet. Abkemeier says that landlords often bend the rules when they see how sweet and well-behaved your pooch or kitty is in person.

To make things easier for cat- and dog-lovers, Rent.com lets you search a list of more than 20,000 apartments and homes where pets are welcome, and not just in the cities that made the top-ten list.

Did your hometown make the list of the most pet-friendly cities? Take a look at the top ten, then let us know what the pet climate is like in your neighborhood!

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