Best Friends to Build Luxury Pet Resort at Walt Disney World Resort

Best Friends Pet Care Inc. has signed an agreement to build and operate a full-service, luxury pet resort at Walt Disney World Resort. The one-of-a-kind facility will cater to park and resort guests as well as Walt Disney World employees, providing a full range of pet hospitality services including dog and cat boarding, day care and grooming services, and doggy day camp.

Pet guests will enjoy such amenities as luxury suites with television and raised bedding, activities such as nature walks and playgroups, and pampering services ranging from ice cream treats to bedtime stories. The state-of-the-art facility will be located on Bonnett Creek Parkway in the Walt Disney World Resort, and is expected to open in mid-2009.

In anticipation of opening the new facility, Best Friends will assume operating responsibility for the five existing pet boarding facilities in Walt Disney World Resort, beginning in January 2008. Kennels on the Walt Disney World Resort property are located at the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney-MGM Studios, Disney's Animal Kingdom and Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort and provide both daytime and overnight boarding.

We are thrilled to have this opportunity to come to Walt Disney World Resort to create the premier vacation destination for pets, said Dennis Dolan, president and CEO of Best Friends Pet Care. This project is still in the design phase, but our goal is to create a true resort destination for pets. This facility will be designed to fit into the Walt Disney World Resort vacation experience and will be unlike anything else in the industry.

We are also fortunate to be taking over operation of the existing boarding kennels in January, he added. It will allow us to get to know the pets and pet parents who already use the Walt Disney World kennels, so we can be sure our new facility will meet their needs.

We are very pleased to have Best Friends working with us on this project, said Kenneth Janik, regional manager, Walt Disney World Operating Participants. Best Friends is well-respected both for the quality of care they provide, and for their innovative pet amenities and hospitality services. We know they will deliver a unique experience for the family pets of our guests and employees that is both fun and consistent with the Disney approach.

Best Friends is a leading provider of pet hospitality in the United States, with 44 locations in 18 states. The company introduced the concept of a pet resort to the industry in 1996 and has been responsible for popularizing such services and care options as luxury suites and doggy day camp programs.