Play Place for the Puppyrazzi
By Lawrence Gibbons
In Beverley Hills Chihuahua, the great baritone Placido Domingo encourages a Paris Hilton styled pup to put ‘the wow back in Chihuahua.’ It certainly is a dog’s life. Here in Sydney, man’s best friend is exfoliated with organic granules, soothingly soaked in a hand-carved stone tub, sprinkled with herbal powders then blown dry to perfection. Appropriately enough, Oscar and Felix (pictured) met Mandy Richards, Paw Paws’ founder at Moonlight Cinemas’ opening night of Hotel for Dogs in Centennial Park. It turns out Paw Paws is not your everyday poodle parlour: the three floor urban oasis cost $3.2 million dollars to open, proving the economy really has gone to the dogs. Hailing from Newcastle (like her old friend, Chris Brown the cover boy on this month’s Bondi View) Mandy’s pet project debuted on the Seven Network reality television programme Dragon’s Den where her business plan was popular with a panel of high-profile would-be investors. Mandy developed the concept when faced with the prospect of kennelling her own fur-baby in a doggy detention centre. With a good business plan in place Mandy located her puppy retreat conveniently on the way to the airport. The five star dog hotel has facilities for up to 140 guests, who are put into a playpen with dogs their own size until it’s lights out. Why doesn’t someone send me to the doghouse’
