Who looks after Seoul’s pets during Chuseok?
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Dogs are being taken care of at Mungpa, a pet boarding centre in Gangnam-gu.
PHOTO: THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
- Seoul pet owners face a surge in demand for pet care during Chuseok, with pet hotels seeing two to three times more bookings as many pets cannot travel with their families.
- Gangnam-gu offers a free dog-care shelter programme hosting up to 50 dogs, prioritising safety and 24-hour attentive care amid increased holiday demand.
- Alternatives include online platforms like Wayo and neighbourhood services via Karrot, allowing owners to arrange home visits or local pet sitters during the holiday period.
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SOUTH KOREA – As Seoul residents pack their bags for major mid-autumn Korean holiday Chuseok, the pets staying behind are creating a holiday rush of their own.
Not every pet can join the family trip, leaving owners to choose among boarding facilities, sitters and neighbours willing to step in. For many, pet hotels offer the most straightforward option, providing daytime care and separate rooms for overnight stays.
Some pet hotels in the capital are seeing daily reservations double or even triple as owners secure care before leaving for vacations or visits to their home towns.
“For the Chuseok period, we have seen around two to three times as many reservations each day,” a staff member at a pet hotel in Yongsan-gu told The Korea Herald. “Customers usually book around one to two weeks in advance.”
The Gangnam-gu district is offering some residents a free alternative through its Chuseok holiday dog-care shelter programme.
Under the programme, up to 50 registered dogs belonging to district residents can stay for as long as five days at six designated animal boarding facilities between Sept 23 and Oct 5.
Mungpa’s pet hotel rooms for overnight stays.
PHOTO: THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
Mungpa, one of the six participating businesses, said attentive care and safety are its priorities during the busy holiday period.
“We have staff stationed at the centre 24 hours a day,” said Mungpa chief executive Lee Seol-hwa. “We want to ensure that someone can respond immediately to any health or anxiety issues that the pets may experience.”
Mungpa typically receives about 10 overnight hotel bookings, but reservations have risen to around 30 for the Chuseok period, according to Lee. About 20 to 30 dogs also used its daycare service.
The facility separates dogs by size to reduce the risk of larger animals injuring smaller ones. Staff monitor the dogs throughout the day, feed them according to their individual schedules and take them on group walks lasting 10 to 15 minutes.
At Mungpa, large dogs are segregated from smaller ones.
PHOTO: THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
Petdae Sonson, a pet-care centre in Seocho-gu that opened in July, said bookings for its hotel service had been limited since its launch. The approaching Chuseok holiday, however, brought four additional reservations.
For owners who prefer to keep their pets in familiar surroundings, online platforms provide another option by sending caregivers to their homes.
Wayo, an online pet-care platform, offers services in which sitters visit homes to feed and play with pets, clean up after them and provide other requested care.
The company said that accepting reservations during the Chuseok holiday would depend on the schedules of individual sitters and require additional confirmation.
Some owners are also arranging care directly with individuals through neighbourhood-based platforms.
Karrot, best known as a second-hand marketplace, carries part-time job listings through which users can seek people to care for their pets. Such posts began appearing ahead of Chuseok, typically specifying the animal, requested care period, location and proposed payment.
Many also included photographs and descriptions of the pet, along with reviews from previous carers. THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK