Austin, Texas Pets: Moving with Pets

Many people have pets that are family members and need to have consideration in the search for a new area to live or home search. Does the home have a dog run or kennel? What kind of places are nearby to take my dog? What services and places are there for my pet?  Is the fence of my new home high enough for my super active dog? Is an Invisible Fence already in place? If so, how can I locate it to be sure it is not cut when landscaping. What are the best Austin Texas area homes for sale for me and my pets? These are all questions pet owners moving to or new to the Austin area may ask. 

Austin, Texas Area Activities for your Pet

Austin is rich with leash free parks, stores where you can take your dog, farmer’s markets where you can take your dog and even dog-friendly restaurants. Eating with your dog can be fun, just make sure they are relatively clean and well behaved. There are 12 leash free parks in Austin including Auditorium Shores, the Emma Long Metropolitan Parks’ Turkey Creek Trail and others. In outlying areas there are some as well. In Leander, Devine Lake Park has a leash free area. The Austin area is also home to great dog events and clubs like flyball. For local flyball there are clubs like Electric Dawg Flyball Club and Dogzrule and great facilities like the 360 acre Triple Crown Dog Academy in Hutto, Texas, just northeast of Austin. Triple Crown (200 County Rd. 197, Hutto, TX 78634 512-759-2275) offers training and boarding and holds events like UKC and AKC dog shows, International and Specialty dog shows, Whippet Lure Coursing, Agility Trials, Flyball Tournaments and Schutzhund training. Austin Canine Central is a huge facility on Middle Fiskville Road.

Austin Texas Area Dog Rescues 

There are many animal rescues in Austin and Texas as well.  Blue Dog Rescue, where our dog is from as well as specific breed rescues like Border Collies, Jack Russell Terriers, German Shepherds all  have active local members, a branch here or are located here in the Austin, Texas area. Our German Shepherd Keeton is from Blue Dog Rescue. 

Austin and Central Texas Zoos

The Austin Zoo and Animal Sanctuary is really a non-profit rescue, that has volunteer opportunities, birthday party availability and a petting zoo. If you want to see a nice zoo, the nearby San Antonio Zoo and Aquarium is great, I have been going there my entire life. On the way to San Antonio from Austin is the Texas Snake Farm, worth the visit if you like exotic pets. Featured on the TV show Dirty Jobs the farm is located right on IH 35 in New Braunfels.

Austin TX Cat and Other Animal Rescues

There are also many cat rescues as well as rescues for horses, rabbits and other animals. If you have a barn out on a farm or ranch you may want a cat to hang around the barn. Austin has a great Feral Cat program you may want to get involved in.

Our late cat Daisy was from an Austin cat rescue in South Austin that had 88 cats before we adopted 3. She’s was a clonable kitty! Now we have another kitty from a rescue, Zach. And by the way, there is a cloning facility that will preserve your pet through gene banking, they refer to it as “CryoSure” service based in Austin – ViaGen 1 (888) 8VIAGEN. Though ViaGen clones other large mammals they do not clone cats and dogs at present. See “Preserving Your Pet” on the ViaGen site.

Austin Area Exotic Animals

Exotic pets and supplies are certainly available in Austin with 2 of my favorite stores being AAA (was called Herpeton and now is AAA for “All Around Austin”) with 2 locations. AAA in South Austin is located at 4211 S. Lamar, Ste. A-1 (512) 916-9177 and Triple A in North Austin (512) 419-0077 at 9327 Burnet Road, Austin 78758. Below is the back of the Burnet location All Around Austin building.

ZooKeeper exotic pets and supplies is another great shop. My son and I love to go and just look at both Herpeton and Zoo Keeper stores. They are very educational like the Discovery channel!  Zoo Keeper (512) 453-8800 is located in the Lone Star shopping center on Burnet Road at 183 Research behind the Olive Garden. Zoo Keeper carries reptiles, amphibians, mammals, as well as invertebrates. Like a mini-zoo, these places carry snakes, spiders & bugs like millipedes that give me the creeps.

Animal Care in Austin

For reasonably priced well animal care including low cost spaying & neutering I use Animal Trustees of Austin.  Located near the Mueller development (old Austin airport).  Always in need of volunteers & donations, they hold Petcasso & dinner at Fonda San Miguel (call 512-371-1965 for more info. about the next dinner) as fundraisers. 

GREEN All Organic Pet Grooming and RAW Natural Food

West End Grooming at 2906 St. Gabriel St. in Central Austin offers grooming for your beloved pet with non-toxic and organic products. They use no tranquilizers and no perfumes or colognes. (512) 478-1007  A great holistic, natural, RAW pet food service is S.A.D. (which stands for species appropriate diet) Dog Sushi. SAD Dog Sushi offers FREE delivery! 

Need a home for you and your pets?  Let me set up a custom home search for you and your pet(s). Call me, Betty Saenz, REALTOR and pet owner and animal lover Real Estate agent for people with pets at (512) 785-5050