The economic situation may have many families shortening vacations or staying home, but Alisha Burns of Pet City Resort in West Chester Twp. said one area they don’t scrimp on is their pets.

The facility, owned by she and her husband Robert Burns and business partner Brian Starner, was packed to capacity with dogs and cats for the holiday weekend.

She said they took in 54 dogs on Thursday, July 2 and 39 dogs July 3.

“That’s typical in the summer on a holiday,” she said.

The facility has 100 hotel suites, but she said that means dozens more remain on waiting lists.

“People are calling like crazy yesterday and today, but we’re full,” she said.

Pet owners have the choice of added amenities during the stay, which include televisions tuned to animal planet, toddler beds and even Web camera monitoring. Each pet goes home with a vacation photo.

“We try to make it a vacation for them too, and people feel better leaving them known that they get a vacation too and are not stuck in cage all day,” she said.

While the number of boarders hasn’t declined, she said the economy shift has lead some owners to get smaller suites for their dogs. Still, the added extras remain popular, including extra play time, an ice cream social and spa treatments. “Sometimes people’s (dog) activities are more expensive than the stay,” she said.

Pat Dehm of Liberty Twp. said she typically travels with her pets or keeps them at home, but each day she takes her three dogs Aggie, KC and Archie to the day care facility Dog Day Everyday attached to the resort.

“When we went looking for a place to put our two little ones, I did my homework,” she said. “It was so clean. They were so professional. They were polite, courteous. They were just absolutely over the top — like an extension of my home. I come to work every day with the total comfort that they are well taken care of. I don’t think of Pet City Resort as a business that takes care of our little ones. I think of them as extended family.”

Burns said individualized care is the goal. She has grown up around animals and said she wanted a place she would take her own dog.

“We’re able to give a lot of that attention,” she said.