Once dubbed the “Taj MaDock of NADD” by the organization’s operations manager, K9 Coastal Sports offers many fantastic services out of its Aransas Pass, Texas, facility. Just four miles off the Gulf of Mexico, K9 Coastal is the farthest south NADD facility in Texas and centrally located to plenty of beaches and dog-friendly restaurants.
Owners Brian and Elsa Whitton were first introduced by their Rottweiler breeder after they individually picked up a pup from the same litter. A few years later, they had their first date at a mobile dock diving event, and their interest in the sport persisted. When they were looking for a pool for their personal dogs, Andra Moore of K9 Water World directed them to NADD regulations and said, “If you build it, they will come.”
“When we began building the facility, we looked at it as if we were the customers,” Elsa said. “We have been in dog sports and conformation for many years, and we discussed what we liked about other facilities or what we would’ve liked to see. Some of the first things we planned were different entrances/exits from the dock so dogs would never cross paths; shaded areas for people to sit and kennel their dogs; and roomy, air-conditioned gendered restrooms.”
K9 Coastal opened in 2018 after surviving the devastation of Hurricane Harvey. The pool and base running dock were installed just two weeks before the storm hit and fortunately survived that and the ensuing tornadoes. Voted the Best Facility of the Year in Texas in 2020, K9 Coastal also boasts numerous RV slots for traveling competitors and a local food truck service on the weekends.
K9 Coastal has become a prime spot for training with onsite swimming, diving, Air Retrieve and Hydro Dash classes as well as basic obedience, rally, shed hunting and conformation.
Each event includes games for humans and dogs to have fun along with the rosettes and ribbons, including special ribbons for personal bests and catches of the day. Junior handlers are the stars of their non-sanctioned Spring Break event, while Veterans Day weekend features their non-sanctioned, in-house Customer Appreciation event.
“Over the years, we’ve welcomed input from our customers for improvements to safety, convenience and flow,” Elsa said. “They’ve shown their support and love for the facility at every turn, from general compliments to all their votes for 2020’s Facility of the Year. We owe our success to those loyal, wonderful customers, and we continue to strive to be a top-notch facility. We love our dock diving family!”
NADD will continue to feature its competitors and facilities based on a random drawing.
Brian Whitton and Zoey (Monique Krouse Photography)