Walks, Meals, IV Drips—Even Bedsore Prevention! Inside the Over-the-Top Care at a Luxury Dog Home

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In a residential neighborhood of Adachi Ward, Tokyo, there is a luxury senior-dog home called “Senior DOG Heim.” The building has an extravagant exterior reminiscent of a luxury hotel, with a huge chandelier hanging in the entrance. There are large statues of dogs and horses, leather sofas, and tabletop lamps designed to look like candles.

According to the “2025 National Survey on Dog and Cat Ownership,” there are currently approximately 6.82 million pet dogs being kept in Japan. Their average life expectancy is 14 to 15 years, and many require nursing care during the final few months of their lives. Senior-dog homes were established as facilities specifically designed to care for elderly dogs. Among them, “Senior DOG Heim” is a high-end facility at the very top of the luxury category.

[Part 1] Chandeliers, Sofas, and Even Private Rooms for Photos! An Inside Look at an Extravagantly Luxurious Senior-Dog Home

The services provided by senior-dog homes generally include walks, meals, nursing care, and medical care. Some facilities go even further, providing meticulous care such as preventing bedsores for dogs that are bedridden and administering IV drips.

Serina Takei, one of the staff members caring for the senior dogs and a veterinary nurse for companion animals, not only handles these tasks with great care but also places great importance on sharing information with the owners. In addition to sending dozens of photos taken that day via LINE, she provides detailed updates on what and how much each dog ate, what happened during walks, and how their medical condition is progressing. Takei continues:

“We’re the ones who are by the dogs’ side, so we know their current condition better than anyone. That’s why I believe our job isn’t simply to provide daily updates. We also analyze their condition and discuss it with the veterinarian, then suggest things like, ‘Wouldn’t this kind of food make things easier for them?’ or ‘There’s also this type of treatment available.’”

Among elderly owners, there are some who, after entrusting their pets to a senior-dog home, spend their days alone and lonely at home or in care facilities. Receiving photos every day showing how their pets are doing must provide them with reassurance. For some, the LINE messages from the senior-dog home may be one of their few remaining connections with their family.

And what if they receive photos of their beloved dogs dressed up in gorgeous rooms? Perhaps it brings them the same kind of happiness as looking at photos of a grandchild celebrating Tanabata or Christmas.

The most important things is that they feel, “I’m glad I left my dog here”

As a senior-dog home, the facility is inevitably connected with death as well. It is not uncommon for it to become a place where dogs spend their final moments. Takei explains:

“When it comes to end-of-life care, we discuss it with the owner. Depending on their wishes, we may return the dog to their home, or we may provide end-of-life care here and even arrange for cremation.”

There is one senior dog that has particularly stayed in Takei’s memory. The dog had kidney disease and was brought to the facility after being told it had only a few days to live. Takei gave the dog subcutaneous fluids every day, even sacrificing her days off, and devoted herself to its care. The dog eventually recovered enough to go for walks and lived for another six months. Takei says:

“In the end, the owner decided to care for the dog at home during its final days. I had grown attached to the dog, so saying goodbye was sad, but the most important thing is for the owner to feel, ‘I’m glad I left my dog here.’ When an owner says something like that at the time of goodbye, it makes me feel that everything we did was worthwhile.”

Senior-dog homes range from luxury facilities like “Senior DOG Heim” to places in rural areas that make use of vacant houses. As pet owners themselves grow older, the significance of these facilities is likely to increase. Yet perhaps what owners seek from senior-dog homes, and their love for their pets, remain unchanged.

[Part 1] Chandeliers, Sofas, and Even Private Rooms for Photos! An Inside Look at an Extravagantly Luxurious Senior-Dog Home”

 

From the September 25, 2026 issue of “FRIDAY”