Our Close Encounter with Dogs at Barkin' Blends Cafe
By Mommy Donna and Kib - July 29, 2019
I raised Kib to have a love for animals. I let him to be exposed to all kinds of animals, even to the animals that I don't like at all. He doesn't fear reptiles, big mammals, and insects. He would even touch it and would even dare to kiss it, waaah!
I brought Kib to several zoos and animal sanctuaries so that he would appreciate and learn more about the animals.
Kib had his first pet when he was a year old. He had a hamster. However he was too young to remember it. He only saw his pet hamster on pictures.
Next, he had a rabbit. He took care of the rabbit for two years. We had to give the rabbit to my aunt because we were going on vacation. Kib got heartbroken when he learned that his rabbit died.
Then, Kib had a pet fish. Kib loved that fish that we even brought it with us when we went to Bataan. However, the next time we went out of town we forgot about our pet fish for two days and sadly, we went home to a dead fish. Kib was so mad at his grandmother for not bringing the fish with us. He buried the fish in our garden (read the story about it here).
It took years for us to have another pet. Kib was begging me to have a pet dog. I told him that we will just have a pet dog if someone will give it to us. Our dog was given to us in November 2017 (read the story about it here). Kib loved the dog so much that he would be watching TV with the dog or would even walk the dog in the neighborhood.
Since Kib became interested in dogs, he would take admiration to the dogs that we would see everywhere. He would greet them and ask the owner if it is okay to pet it.
When I heard about dog cafes here in the Philippines years ago, it made me excited. I wanted to visit a dog cafe so that Kib can experience mingling with different dog breeds. I was able to see one in Araneta Center; however, they have age and height requirements. Kib cannot be allowed to enter the dog area because big dog breeds might overpower him.
Last April, we were able to visit an animal cafe in Japan. It was a cat cafe. There are actually different kinds of animal cafe in Japan. You can check out the cat cafe we visited on this here.
Here are some photos of the cat cafe we visited in Tokyo:
Recently, I discovered that there is a dog cafe near our place! It's Barkin' Blends Cafe. I saw the photos on their Facebook page and I asked Kib if he liked to visit it. He said that he wants to visit it on his birthday.
Barkin' Blends Cafe is not just your ordinary dog cafe; it has an area for eating just in case you don't want to mingle with the dogs. However, if you are not a dog lover, you might find it unappetizing to eat because you can smell the dogs from the dining area. We never tried to eat there but their menu is affordable.
We went at Barkin' Blends to mingle with dogs. We spent an hour there to play with the dogs. Part of the fees we paid included a cup of the drink of our choice.
Before we enter the dog area, it is a must to wash hands. There is a wash area near the dog area. As we entered the dog area, there is an attendant who assisted us on putting our things in the locker. The attendant also gave us slippers to use while we are in the dog area. The slippers are just ordinary rubber slippers and I am not sure though if the staff sterilized the slippers before letting others use it.
Unfortunately, it seems that it was the rest time of the dogs when we arrived and they were too sleepy to play with its human visitors. Despite being sleepy, the dogs don't mind to be stroked while taking a nap.
Kib tried to put small dogs on his lap but the dogs are aloof towards him. Maybe they smelled our pet dog on Kib and they feel jealous about it, hihi.
There were some dogs which pooped and peed on the dog area. The attendants were quick to clean up the area but personally, I find it as a turn-off that the dogs are not toilet-trained.
When our visitation time is over, we need to wash our hands again as we leave the dog room.
Kib can't wait to go back there again.
Having a dog cafe gives people an opportunity to mingle with dogs of different breeds at an affordable price, however, here are my observations:
Kib tried to put small dogs on his lap but the dogs are aloof towards him. Maybe they smelled our pet dog on Kib and they feel jealous about it, hihi.
There were some dogs which pooped and peed on the dog area. The attendants were quick to clean up the area but personally, I find it as a turn-off that the dogs are not toilet-trained.
When our visitation time is over, we need to wash our hands again as we leave the dog room.
Kib can't wait to go back there again.
Having a dog cafe gives people an opportunity to mingle with dogs of different breeds at an affordable price, however, here are my observations:
- There is nothing much to do inside the dog area. As a visitor, the only thing that you can do is to stroke the dog's fur and try to sit the dog on your lap. No dog toys in the area for the guests to use and play with the dogs.
- I mentioned earlier that I am not sure whether the guest slippers are sanitized after each use or not. If you with to visit this place the next time, wear socks. It is not included in their house rules that guests should wear socks during visit.
- The attendants are using mobile phones when the environment seems to be 'idle' and will only stop using mobile phones when their attention is being called.
Barkin' Blends Cafe is promising because it is one-of-a-kind cafe. I just do hope that they improve their services in the future.
