Dogtopia, a doggie daycare and boarding facility, opened up in Herndon on Saturday with a grand opening party.

The daycare and boarding facility has its roots here in the Northern Virginia area, where the first store opened in Tysons Corner in 2002. The shop is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and customers can drop off dogs any time during the day. Their days include playtime, snacks and naps.

"I had originally targeted Herndon as the area where I would open my first one," owner Amy Nichols said. Though Dogtopia began franchising in 2005, three stores are owned by Nichols, who began the chain, including the Tysons, Herndon and White Flint, MD locations.

Nichols said while a dog like her Boston terrier is perfectly happy staying at home all day and sleeping, other dogs, like her spaniel-poodle mix would destroy her house if left alone. "Labrador retrievers are what keep us in business," she said.

"Dogs are ultimately social animals," Nichols said. "It's hard to replicate wrestling with your dog the way they would with a similar dog." She said using a doggie daycare allows them to play and get out their energy a couple days each week.

For owners who board their pets while they travel, Dogtopia offers another unique service. The shop has webcams in its playrooms so owners can see their dogs and know how they're doing while they are away.

Nichols said she likes it that she can log into these cameras from her desk and see what's happening in her stores from wherever she is.

Nichols said she wanted to open a store in Herndon because she lives in the town. She said this time around she was contacted by staff of the Herndon Animal Medical Center, who she is friends with, and they suggested the space in their building to her.

After taking a tour, Nichols agreed and almost exactly a year later, the Herndon store became a reality. "We're really excited about being co-located with a veterinary hospital," she said. She said it makes it easy when they need each others services.

Nichols said she was surprised there wasn't a similar business already in Herndon or Reston because of how many people in each community love their dogs. She said many also travel to Herndon for work so it makes the location convenient for drop offs.

Dogtopia also works to help support working dogs through its nonprofit, K-9 Support, which started in 2005.

Nichols had read about how dogs in the military are trained by positive reinforcement, but once they get overseas they don't have any toys to play with to help continue that training, or simply to play with. She said Dogtopia started a collection and got a tremendous response, collecting more than $9,000.

The company supports working dogs from local police stations and fire and rescue squads as well, including in Montgomery County, Prince William County and Fairfax County. In addition, whenever there is extra space at the area Dogtopia stores they take in dogs from area rescue groups who need foster homes until they are adopted.