Panama, Casco Viejo
Panama, Casco Antiguo
Real Estate and Community at Panama´s Historic District

When I was little I had dogs, cats a rabbit and even a hen. But I lived in a house in the suburbs, and pets where the "must do" of the area. When I moved to Casco Viejo, one of the things I never imagined having, as I´m living in an apartment, was to have a pet. But last week, my husband and I bumped into the sweetest pair of dogs: father and son running up the Administration Building´s stairs. When inquired, the proud owner told us they still had a baby girl, so this Saturday she came home with us.



And suddenly, a new dimension opens and you start to really ask yourself: is Casco Viejo pet friendly? For me, so far, couldn´t be better. Since I work and live here, I have the choice of either taking Chispa (Spark) to the park, or to the plaza or to the beach or maybe even two out of three on the same walk.  There is a small but growing community of pet owners, who have been kind to give us all their contacts for vets and share experiences. We tend to bounce into each other at the same "walking" times, which is wonderful for dog socialization.

There is Wags, who is learning the ropes of social skils. Lola with her great hair and sweet personality. Paco, who for a long time was my favorite (until now! I have to say Chispa is wonderful) with his scrappy and yet soft hair.  Henry´s big labradors who are so pretty that they seem out of a dog food commercial and the Roush´s sweet duet of cocker spaniels.  Eduardo´s chihuahua named Nacho (muchacho) and Harley the hairy. Slim Celeste (cute but psycho) hasn´t yet met Chispa, and Farty from Calle 2nda does nothing but ignore her. All this without even counting the cats! Feo, Robertito between the ones I can remember.

It might be that apartments represent a bigger challenge because of the small space. But the positive side is that Casco is such a walking district that you can just step outside and have fun.  Plus, I´m covering part of my balcony with grass, let´s see how that works! also I´m doing a small green roof at the building´s roof terrace. Nothing too fancy, but at least will give me some breathing for the midnight walk!

My only complaint: you have to watch out for ticks. But I don´t worry too much, in general, this is a tropical country and it is very difficult not to have ticks. I would say living in an apartment makes dealing with them far easier than if I had a backyard. So, so far, Casco´s pet friendliness score is quite high!