FORBES NAMES COLORADO SPRINGS FRIENDLIEST CITY FOR PETS

0 Comments | Gazette, The (Colorado Springs), Nov 3, 2007 | by CAROL McGRAW

The human population of Colorado Springs might complain that their roads need upgrading, schools need fixing and traffic lights need to be better synchronized. But for the pet population of Colorado Springs, nothing needs fixing (except, perhaps, the pets). Yes, life here for pets is peachy -- "heaven on earth," according to the estimable Forbes magazine.

Things are so good for our pets, in fact, that the magazine has dubbed Colorado Springs America's most pet-friendly city.

"Generous public space, ample veterinary care and wealth of pet- friendly retailers all added up to heaven on earth for this small metropolis of just under 400,000 people and their estimated 61,000 dogs and 54,000 cats," the magazine says on its Web site. We could brush this off as fluff, but we detect a pattern that's hard to ignore: In June, Men's Health magazine designated Colorado Springs as the most dogfriendly city in the U.S.

In the Forbes survey, Colorado Springs landed in the top 20 in all categories factored into the rankings: public park acreage, dog parks, pet supply and service businesses, and veterinary facilities and costs. The Springs has more than 10,000 acres of public park space, or almost a tenth of an acre for every pet, seven dog parks, and 113 veterinarians, the magazine said. Colorado Springs fit a profile similar to the other winners in the top 10: a small to mediumsize city with a median population of 507,000 people. All are "large enough to draw lots of pet shops, vets and public parks, but small enough not to drown out such amenities with overly dense populations," the magazine said.

To learn more about the survey and see photos of winning cities, visit forbes.com.

TOP PET CITIES 1. Colorado Springs 2. Portland, Ore. 3. Albuquerque, N.M. 4. Austin, Texas 5. Charlotte, N.C. 6. Virginia Beach, Va. 7. Kansas City, Mo. 8. St. Louis, Mo. 9. Seattle 10. Denver