Boarding Business Still Keeping Tails Wagging

Bailey, a 120-pound Bernese Mountain Dog from Parsippany, does not like to be touched. Not by anyone. Well, almost anyone.

He does like to be touched by Lynn Phillips, groomer at , a boarding and grooming facility in

"Bailey almost goes through the door to get to Lynn," his owner, Mary Farrelly said.

Farrelly's family has been bringing their dogs to Wags 'n Whiskers since 1999. Rusty, who passed away two weeks ago, and Ashley, both Golden Retrievers, have actually only been boarded at the River Road kennel.

"The dogs are always well cared for there," Farrelly said.

Wags 'n Whiskers is owned by Tom and Dawn Mazzaccaro now, but the business has been around since 1979. Tom Mazzaccaro used to work for the former owner at the boarding business when he was in high school and while he and his wife were in college at Rutgers University's George H. Cook Campus for animal science and practical farm management respectively, the owner offered to sell him the business. When he was 22 years old, he bought what is now known as Wags 'n Whiskers Inn.

Mazzaccaro said running the business is a full-time job, though he also drives a school bus for part of the year. Mazzaccaro also serves on the Board of Trustees.

One of Mazzaccaro's main business principles is simplicity.

"I'm more what you would consider 'no frills,'" he said.

He boards dogs and cats for a basic rate of $19.99 per night and dogs are kept in indoor/outdoor runs. In order to stay at Wags 'n Whiskers, the pet needs to be up-to-date on all vaccinations. As for the temperament of the pet, though, Mazzaccaro said he is experienced with all types of animals.

Mazzaccaro said he does not offer play time for the pets because he does not want to worry about animals potentially hurting each other.

"I'm not perfect and because I'm not perfect, I'm not going to take the risk that I make the wrong decision," he said.

Mazzaccaro said he cares about the animals he boards at his business and wants to ensure the best treatment, which, in his opinion, means not allowing the animals to mingle.

"When it's somebody else's animal, I want to be so cautious," he said. "For 10 days, your dog's better off safe than sorry."

Mazzaccaro said not allowing play time has turned away some customers, but he also has some customers who have been coming to Wags 'n Whiskers for more than 20 years.

There are 60 dog runs at Wags 'n Whiskers and Mazzaccaro said not long ago, all 60 were filled during the summer weekends. Lately, he said, the economy has affected his business. While some customers used to leave their dogs for two weeks at a time, now they leave them only for three or four nights.

"People are saving money any way they can," he said.

But Mazzaccaro said the dogs that do keep coming back seem to enjoy staying at Wags 'n Whiskers. The one frill some customers opt for is a "bed time cookie" given to dogs nightly if the owners so choose.

Mazzaccaro also said the dogs get tons of exercise at Wags 'n Whiskers just being in the kennel runs. As people enter and exit the property, the curious canines are constantly running back and forth, he said.

"They get more exercise in a day here than in a week-and-a-half at home," he said. "By the time they go home they're tired."

As such, Wags 'n Whiskers is only open Monday through Saturday, with Sunday off for Mazzaccaro, Phillips and for the dogs to enjoy some quiet time.