It's A Dog's Life

Hi, my name is James Doolittle. It’s A Dog’s Life in Petaluma needs your help. My mother Karen and I have been operating this beloved dog boarding facility for the past 17 years. You may have recently read in the paper about our plight. In 2018, Karen got the opportunity to purchase the property on which It’s A Dog’s Life sits. She went to the offices of Sonoma County to make sure everything was in order. Karen then relied on a letter that she and her lender received from the county stating that the structures were “legally constructed prior to Sonoma County requiring building permits” and the “permitted use of a dog Kennel is considered to be legally established”. After that green light was given by the county, Karen pulled together all of her resources to purchase the property. This story should end here with “all of the dogs played happily ever after”.

Unfortunately, the story did not end there. A new chapter began with a few neighbors starting to complain about noise from the Kennel. Attempting to be a good neighbor, Karen made every effort to work with them on mitigating whatever noise she could. Then the neighbors got the offices of Sonoma County involved. Before long the noise complaint had morphed into a David vs Goliath scenario. Permit Sonoma served code violations on the same structures that were previously recognized as “legally constructed”. The violation said that they did not have permits on file for the structures… Animal Services has held up the kennel’s license “for political reasons”. After issuing the property’s 53rd annual license, they tacked on unreasonable conditions… Furthermore, there has been a tremendous amount of overreach from other county offices. It’s A Dog’s Life has now been in a legal battle with the County for the past 4 years. It has been really sad to see taxpayers’ dollars being “hijacked” to shut down a thriving small business.

We now have the opportunity to have our case seen before a Superior Court Judge. The County has unlimited resources and we unfortunately do not. I have started this goFundme to hopefully obtain the funds needed to help with our legal battle. Should the County decide to work with us to resolve these issues, it is possible that a trial will not be necessary and the unused portions of these funds will be returned.

We have thoroughly enjoyed taking care of your dogs for the past 17 years and would love to continue to do so for many years to come. The incredible amount of support that we have already received in the form of letters has been overwhelming, humbling and very uplifting. We are so grateful to be a part of this community. Thank you for your support.

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Thank you from the bottom of our hearts,

James Doolittle