Pet service providers said the boom in interest is due to the high costs associated with transporting pets or putting them up in kennels, as well as the emotional challenges the animals face when removed from their familiar environments.
"Let's see, which one of you will join me in my office today?" Every day, Wang Jingqi would bring one of her dog companions to work at her newly-opened Marsmart pet store in THE BOX Youth Energy Center in Beijing's Chaoyang District.
Pets could live in a single room with air conditioning, SPA or have summer-limited snacks. A dog enjoying such service in the whole summer will cost 10, 000 to 20, 000 yuan.
Recent years local authorities have taken steps to boost local pet supply industry. Dongxinzhuang Town now has over 80 manufacturers and companies in the industry, with its products exported to a dozen or so countries and regions.
The southern Chinese city of Shenzhen plans to complete installing microchips inside all dogs by the end of this year to better manage the pets, according to the city's urban administration and law enforcement bureau.