HADLEY — As the COVID-19 pandemic approached more than two months ago, Dr. Ted Diamond saw demand plummet for kennel services and boarding at the Valley Inn for Pets.
“No one was coming. Everyone was canceling,” said Diamond, a veterinarian who opened the business alongside his Valley Veterinary Hospital at 320 Russell St. in 1996.
The reality of people staying at home with their canine and feline companions, out of both concerns for their health and safety and state emergency orders, forced Diamond to let go almost all of the 12 employees who worked at the kennel — except for one to care for a couple of pets that remained as emergency boarders — though he continued to pay their health insurance.
On Monday, the pet hotel reopened, thanks in part to a loan Diamond obtained through the federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a Small Business Administration loan that helps businesses keep their workforce during the COVID-19 crisis. In addition to covering payroll for eight weeks, the loan money can be used for rent, mortgage interest or utilities.
In an effort to entice returning or new clients and provide a critical service, Diamond is offering essential workers free kennel services for up to three days a week. There is a limit of two dogs per client.
Other customers will also see significant discounts, including 50 percent off normal day care and boarding rates and 25 percent off bathing and grooming prices during the reopening period.
While he wouldn’t divulge how much the loan is for, Diamond said he realized he would have to start rebuilding what has accounted for about 20 percent of his business — the kennel. (The veterinary hospital accounts for around 80 percent.)
“It’s a significant amount of money, but nowhere near enough to cover the costs,” Diamond said.
The loan provides money to bring back half the employees to start, though Diamond said he’ll likely end up losing money; it’s just too early to tell how the business model will fare.
“We don’t know what the demand will be for services we’re offering,” he said. “We see this as the beginning of the rebuilding of the business, though it’s going to take a long time.”
Traditionally, the kennel can accommodate 60 to 70 dogs and 20 cats, with the pets receiving personal attention as they stay in suites or more conventional crates. There is also a small group outdoor play area with a large turf yard.
“We’ll take as many dogs as we can safely,” Diamond said.
To keep people safe, clients are being limited to the parking lot, where a concierge service brings the pets into the building.
Diamond said he also received a separate PPP loan for the veterinary hospital, which, as an essential service, has been able to continue its operations on a reduced scale. The staff has been separated into two teams, of 10 to 12 each, which haven’t been able to keep up with the demand.
Though no employees were laid off at the hospital, some have fewer hours to work.
Diamond said many people are getting puppies and dogs and finding comfort in them, which has reinforced how important they are to people’s well-being.
“I think they’re spending more time with them,” he said, noting “the role pets provide in companionship.”
As people begin to travel again, perhaps going to vacation homes and cottages in Maine or on Cape Cod, Diamond said, their pets will have a good place to stay.
“Dogs are likely suffering the same social distancing anxiety as people are,” he said.