Life of Guangzhou - Matchmakers...for Dogs

Matchmakers for pets, a new kind of professional individual or agency that provides matrimonial services for animals especially dogs, is emerging in Guangzhou. Targeting the approximately 100,000 pet dogs in the city, these special matchmakers are estimated to have coupled hundreds of pairs. Some successful individuals even make ￥10,000 a month.

"It's not an easy job to find a boyfriend or girlfriend for a dog", said Ms. Miao, owner of a pet dog, "since you need to find a mate that matches his or her breed, blood lineage, and character." She also worries about infectious diseases from other dogs, but a newly-opened pet service station at Binjiangdonglu, Haizhu District, in her residential complex, has changed all that.

Just give us the picture of the dog, and "I promise your dog will find a date", said a working professional at the station, "our selection will be based on breed, body build and the owner's preference. If the owner is still unsatisfied, we can contact the breeding farm, too." For every couple, the station charges ￥1,000.

"Sometimes when we find a date for a rare dog, we'll ask its owner to certify its blood lineage" said Hu Yun, a matchmaker at a pet-care center at Tianhebeilu, "as some foreign owners of rare dogs are very particular about that." According to Hu, they need to familiarize themselves with different breeds of dogs and their blood relations to avoid inbreeding; otherwise the couple may give birth to defective puppies.

"It's quite complicated, when you're in charge of the dating couple", Hu Yun added, "I make sure the dogs I find are licensed, with no infectious disease…" Besides these basic requirements, matchmakers need to provide the couples with a safe, quite place and help their owners in controlling the mating process.

A pet-care center like Hu's can couple about ten pairs of dogs a month, for ￥200~800 per couple for general breeds, and up to several tens of thousands yuan for rare ones. As Hu estimates, there are more than ten such centers in the city with information on thousands of pet dogs.

While matchmakers of this kind in Guangzhou represent an emerging business, those in some northern cities have taken their registering and dating operations online, which may be the trend traveling down south.

(By Jiang Jianming and Alan Devey)