Nick and I began traveling to the Shenandoah area of Virginia about fifteen years ago when I came down to run in a trail half-marathon and discovered that not only were there mountains to hike, but wineries and rivers and quiet. We began traveling down every chance we could and often had to leave our dogs behind because we couldn’t find places we could rent that allowed them (they are pit bull mixes). That was the inspiration for creating Shenandoah Dog Friendly Rentals. We strive to create the kind of places we’d like to stay with our own dogs.
Nick is an engineer who works for an international tool company, so he has done 90% of the work on our houses (including building the deck on Chateau Frankie and the kitchen in Gracie’s Place). He is amazing at solving problems creatively and can fix nearly everything.
I am an author and write extensively about rescue dogs and the crisis in our southern shelter. My books include two ‘dogoirs’ (memoirs about fostering and rescue), four novels, and one nonfiction book about living intentionally. You can learn more about my books at www.CaraWrites.com. Most of my hours are spent as co-founder and president of the non-profit, Who Will Let the Dogs Out. We work to raise awareness and resources for shelter dogs.
We currently live in Maurertown (pronounced MaurEEtown if you want to sound like a local), just ten minutes from Gracie’s Place, where we both work from home and we foster dogs and cats (let me know if you’re looking for a new pet!).
Please don’t hesitate to reach out if we can answer any questions about the area or either of our dog-friendly rentals.
Cara (shenandoahdogfriendlyrentals@gmail.com)
Shenandoah Dog Friendly Rentals 