By PHYLLIS ZORN

Staff writer

Owners of a rural Peabody dog kennel have expanded their business to include doggie day care.

South-Paw dog kennel was launched a year ago by Annette South and her mother, Carmen South. The name is a play on their last names.

Carmen and her husband retired in 2000 and built their dream house in a peaceful location outside their native Peabody. Annette moved back from upstate New York in 2016 after her father died.

The property lent itself perfectly to a kennel business, with a walk-out basement providing access to the generous back yard that offers an ample play area for visiting dogs. The room converted into the kennel had been a workshop for Carmen’s husband.

“We had this nice place out here,” Annette said. “It’s a perfect fit.”

Both had always loved dogs, and that love for them made running a kennel a natural choice.

“What better job can you have?” Annette said. “I love the dogs and take care of them for their owners all day, and then they come pick them up.”

The business started offering doggie day care after several farmers asked to bring their dogs for the day when they were working in the fields.

Annette talked to kennel owners in Wichita to get an idea of the charge for day care service, and decided it was practical to offer it, charging $1 per hour. They expanded the back yard to create more play space than it had, and were ready to go.

The holidays brought extra demand for day care services because many people had housefuls of company and preferred their dogs to be in day care.