[Photo of dogs in Petworth by Wayan Vota]
Between City Market at O's rooftop dog park/pampering station and 2M's communal bulldog puppy, D.C. looks like a pretty good city to be a pooch. In fact, it's only the seventh best city in the nation to have a dog according to a study done by NerdWallet. While still a pretty good ranking considering that the study looked at 95 of the country's largest cities, it also speaks to what pet-friendly amenities other cities have that the District lacks. A large part of D.C.'s high score comes from its high level of walkability. However, price of a visit to the vet drops the District below places like Portland, OR and Madison, WI. Also, there are somehow fewer dog parks per 100K residents than cities like Portland, Las Vegas and Norfolk, VA. Admittedly, there are zero city-operated dog parks east of the river, but who would've thought that several other cities had a higher concentration of dog parks?
· Best Cities to Have a Dog [Nerdwallet]
· Dog Parks [Department of Parks and Recreation]