(This is an updated version of an earlier post.)

KING 5 did a story yesterday on a Whidbey Island company that has made wheelchairs for dogs for 55 years.

About K9 Carts

K9 Carts ships 50-70 dog wheelchairs worldwide every month from its operation in Freeland, WA. Image from K9 Carts.

Barbara Parkes started K9 Carts when she worked as an administrative assistant for a veterinary hospital in Pennsylvania where her ex-husband was one of the first orthopedic veterinarians in the country. She moved the company to Freeland, WA 40 years ago.

K9 Carts was the first company in the US to make wheelchairs for dogs.

Parkes told the Whidbey Island Times that she founded K9 Carts because “there is a time limit for doing back surgeries on animals, particularly dogs. Otherwise, they lose their mobility and have to drag themselves from place to place in a miserable stupor.”

K9 Carts will make wheelchairs for any animal, including sheep, turkeys, and cats, that have ambulatory disabilities.

The company also donates wheelchairs to dog rescues like Valhalla Rescue, which got 3 dog wheelchairs from K9 Carts in 2012.

Although it’s in a small town, K9 Carts is not a small company. It employs 8 people and ships 50-70 wheelchairs per month all over the world.

I had no idea the preeminent manufacturer of doggy wheelchairs was located in Western Washington. I hope to pay them a visit soon and learn more about their operation.

Here’s the story from KING 5:

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Buy Dog Stuff from Local Pet Businesses

Do you know one of the largest pet insurance companies in the country is based in Washington? 

Or that both a leading leash manufacturer and dog harness maker are based here as well?

In fact, over 70 Washington companies make products for dogs like wheelchairs, cannabis oil, and dog food.

Buying from local pet businesses doesn’t just help individual businesses. The Bellingham nonprofit Sustainable Conncections notes that buying local “will keep money in your community.”

And this study of 15 New Orleans businesses found that only 16 percent of the money spent at a (national chain store) stays in the local economy. In contrast, the local retailers returned more than 32 percent of their revenue to the local economy.”

So if you’re looking to buy a dog product, check this list to see if you can buy it locally.

And please let me know if I left any businesses off the list. You can email me the info at info@seattledogspot.com.

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As I sat in the lobby of Amazon headquarters in Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood, I quickly realized who had the best job in the company: the receptionist.

This treat bucket on the desk of Amazon’s receptionist is a favorite stop for the hundreds of dogs that go to work there with their people. Photo from Seattle DogSpot.

That’s because the dozens of dogs that accompany their people to work there make a beeline for her desk whenever they walk by with the hope of getting a snack from the treat jar she keeps on her desk. They got lots of petting and scratching as well.

Her job is definitely a dog lover’s dream. Of course, working anywhere at Amazon would be a dog lover’s dream as the online giant is one of the dog friendliest companies in the world. Wondering what it’s like to work at Amazon? If their policy on dogs in the workplace is any indication, pretty amazing!

Amazon’s Dog Policy

• Employees have to get manager and officemate approval for bringing their dog to work
• Dogs must be up to date on their vaccinations, housebroken, and well-behaved
• Dogs must be on leash when employees take them around the campus but can be off leash by their person’s desk if there’s doggy door
• Employees cannot leave dogs alone in their work spaces (so officemates can dog sit!)
• Employees with permission to bring their dogs to work must register them with the company

A dog stops at the reception desk for a treat. Photo from Seattle DogSpot.

Amazon’s dog friendly policy is clearly popular with its employees. Currently, about 1500 dogs are registered on the company’s database of employees with permission to bring their dogs to work.

While I doubt all the employees on the list bring their dogs to work everyday, on any given day hundreds of dogs are on the Amazon campus.

History of Dogs at Amazon

Amazon’s dog loving policies are nothing new. It began in the company’s early days when a Welsh corgi named Rufus accompanied the company’s editor-in-chief and principal engineer to work every day.

Rufus still has his own page on the company’s website. Here’s how it describes his career at Amazon:

“During his tenure, Rufus could be found strolling our hallways, sitting in on meetings (he loved a meeting), or catching a few z’s in his crate. He was a master of the hallway tennis ball chase, and had everyone snookered into giving him too many treats.

Rufus was catalyst for Amazon’s dog friendly culture. Image from Amazon.

His life was a great one. When Amazon customers found out there was an Amazon dog, they sent Rufus presents. (He was particularly delighted to receive an offering from friends in Guam.) His celebrity status never turned his head, though. His proudest accomplishment: starting up the dog-friendly culture at Amazon.com. Employees who bring their four-legged friends to work today have Rufus to thank.

Beloved by many, Rufus passed away peacefully on May 27, 2009.”

Rufus is still revered at Amazon. One of the buildings on its South Lake Union campus is named after him, and his name is stamped on door handles around the offices.

Dogs at Amazon Corporate Headquarters

When Amazon built its new campus in Seattle it took great pains to make it as dog friendly as possible. Between the buildings are large, open courtyards that encourage people to walk their dogs.

Amazon designed the courtyards to ensure that the parade of dogs that employees take into the courtyards won’t destroy the landscaping by placing poop bag stations all over the campus. It also put a couple of feet of stones between the walkways and the plants where dogs can pee without hitting the plants.

One of the dog friendly water fountains on Amazon’s South Lake Union Campus. Photo from Seattle DogSpot.

But the coolest features are the dog friendly water fountains below every human-sized water fountain on the campus. All a dog has to do to get a cool drink is walk up to a ground level fountain and have its human press the button to start the water.

Due to visitor restrictions I wasn’t able to see people with their dogs in the campus’ buildings, but I assume the inside of Amazon is just as dog friendly as the outside.

Amazon’s commitment to dog friendliness even goes beyond its own employees. It’s future plans includes a small, off-leash dog park for both employees and the general public just off Sixth Avenue between Lenora and Blanchard streets in the Denny Triangle.

A couple of years ago it teamed up with Vulcan Real Estate to make a $95,000 contribution towards the construction and maintenance of the temporary Denny Park Off-Leash Area.

Amazon is often lauded for being on the cutting edge of online businesses. After my visit to it’s Seattle campus, I realized it has also set the gold standard for dog friendly businesses. Hopefully, other large Seattle area employers will follow their lead.

Are you listening, Microsoft?

Amazon’s campus has lots of open space where people can walk or hang out with their dogs. Photo from Seattle DogSpot.

Of course Amazon provides plenty of poop bags for their employees to use. Photo from Seattle DogSpot.

This Amazon employee taught her leash aggressive dog to do this when another dog walks by. Photo from Seattle DogSpot.

Amazon’s dog friendly environment helps reduce stress for all it’s employees. Photo from Amazon.

Hundreds of Amazon employees bring their dogs to work daily. Photo from Amazon.

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If you have a dog friendly business in the Seattle area Seattle DogSpot wants to help you tell the world!

I wanted to remind dog friendly businesses that we have decals that you can put in your window to let potential patrons know that they are welcome to bring their dogs into your establishment or on your patio.

You have 3 options:

One decal says “Dog Friendly Business”.

Another tells potential customers “Dogs Welcome.”

The third decal is for restaurants, cafes, etc that have a dog friendly patio. It says (and we worked hard on the wording for this one) “Dogs Welcome on Patio.” 

Dog Friendly Business Decals

All the decals have the Seattle DogSpot logo and a background of the Seattle skyline. We think they’re gorgeous but we’re a bit biased.

And the best thing about these decals? They’re free!!!

After we get your email we’ll drop a decal in the mail and you should get it in a couple of days.

So let your dog friendly business flag fly and get one of our cool (and free) decals to slap on the window of your business.

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When I redesigned my website last year I wasn’t able to transfer all my post from my old site to the new one, so I have to do it manually. Since I had hundreds of posts, it’s going to take awhile. This article was first posted in December of 2012. 

I’ve decided to periodically highlight dog friendly businesses around the Seattle area.

I hope this new feature will show how many employers allow dogs at work and maybe convince some businesses to start letting their employees bring their dogs to the workplace.

Today I’m highlighting FareStart, which is located in downtown Seattle.

Maezy Daisy keeps stress levels low at FareStart.

I learned about FareStart through when my wife started volunteering there.

FareStart is an amazing organization with a mission to create a community “that transforms lives by empowering homeless and disadvantaged men, women, and families to achieve self-sufficiency through life skills, job training and employment in the food service industry.”

It was started in 1988 by David Lee, a chef and entrepreneur who recognized a need” to serve Seattle’s homeless and disadvantaged populations with nutritious and culturally appropriate food.”

Through his early work, Lee “saw an opportunity to train the individuals he was serving”, so he launched FareStart’s job training program which now serves as a model other charities around the country.

While at FareStart yesterday my wife met Maezy Daisy, who is the VP of Stress-busting in FareStart’s Development Office where her mom works.

Maezy Daisy is well aware of the studies that show dogs reduce stress in the workplace, so she does her best to keep everyone calm and happy while they work to raise money for FareStart’s amazing programs.

Of course, since FareStart makes and serves food dogs aren’t allowed in the kitchens or restaurant, but Maezy Daisy doesn’t mind.

If you have a dog friendly business that you’d like Seattle DogSpot to highlight, please send an email to info@seattledogspot.com.

If you’re interested in learning more about FareStart’s work watch this video.

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