Puppy Heaven When Becky Caton retired from the military after 27 years of service, she wasn’t sure what she wanted to do, the only thing she was sure of, was she loved animals. For the last seven years she and her husband have taken in rescue dogs and fostered them. Evenually that dedication to caring for abandoned dogs developed into the dream of opening a kennel, thus the idea for Countryside Bed and Biscuit was born. “This has been my dream for the last five years,” Caton said. “The issue has been getting the land. Any land near the highway is so expensive, especially with water attached. My realtor found this land for me. I bought the land in April and it was just yuck, so I started from the ground up.” The facility she has designed and had built is nothing short of a dog -- and cat -- play land. “We have several different sizes of kennels for the dogs ranging from a few smaller 30x30 kennels to the runs which get as large as 4’ by 8’ for the larger dogs,” Caton said. The kennels which sport a variety of bright colors are complimented by a special floor designed to protect the animals that will be walking on it. “We have a special floor throughout the building that is designed that even if it gets wet it isn’t slippery and is not hard on the dog’s feet,” she said. “The first couple of days after they installed the floor I walked around barefoot for a couple of days to make sure there wasn’t a place they could get snagged.” In addition to the spacious room for housing dogs, there is a smaller room designed for kenneling up to four cats, a shower room, an office, entry, a large play room and a huge fenced in back yard. “We can house up to 42 dogs and four cats,” Caton said. “We do have a room set up for a groomer, but I don’t have one at this time. But, because I anticipated one day having one I wanted to have the room set up and ready to go.” The large playroom sports tall ceilings, When asked old couches and lots of toys which allows what she most the animals to run and play at will. enjoys about her “We are not a kennel where our guests new business, are locked in their kennels all day,” Caton Caton said she explained. “Really the only time the dogs are in the kennels is between 10:30 p.m. loves seeing and 6:30 a.m. when we are closed for the the animals night. Other than that they are allowed to interact and have free reign of the facility, unless they looks forward are not a socialized animal and are not to seeing more comfortable with the other dogs.” animals in the Countryside Bed and Biscuit is open for facility. drop offs from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. and with the addition of Caton has several volunteers that help care for the borders. “We have taken every care to make sure that this facility is vPUPPY HEAVEN continued on page 10 Beat the Winter Blues!! WE CAN TEACH YOU HOW TO ROLL OVER. YOUR 401(k), THAT IS. • Yarn • Books • Needles & Hooks • Gift Certificates • Classes Available You’ve moved on to a new job. Your retirement assets should, too. Consolidating those funds into an IRA can help you simplify your inancial life and build a solid foundation for retirement. Plus, you’ll be able to choose from a broader range of investment options, giving you greater control over your inancial future. LIFE WELL PLANNED. Start a knitting or crocheting project this winter Kathy Greeneway Certiied Financial PlannerTM 225 Cedar Street, Yankton (605)665-4940 1101 Broadway, Suite 104 • Morgan Square 605-689-3999 • www.eweknitit.com Open: Mon.-Fri. 10am-6pm • Sat. 10am-5pm First Dakota Brokerage Services, Inc. A subsidiary of First Dakota National Bank. Securities offered through Raymond James Financial Services, Inc. Member FINRA/SIPC an independent broker/dealer. Securities are offered through Raymond James Financial Services, Inc., member FINRA/SIPC, and are not deposits; not insured by FDIC or any other governmental agency; not guaranteed by the inancial institution; subject to risk & may lose value. First Dakota National Bank and First Dakota Brokerage Services are independent of RJFS. HERVOICE JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015v5