1st time boarding

We have boarded Salem 3 times now. He has gone 2x for 1 week and 1x for 2 weeks. He did fine for the 1 week periods, but 2 weeks was too much for him. The staff said he was a bit depressed for the last 3 days before we came home and called me while we were away to ask if it would be okay for the owner to keep him at her house for the nights so he could get some extra attention. He seemed fine after that, but I don't think we would ever leave him for 2 weeks again.

The important thing is to find a place you trust. I visited countless places and some were terrible. One of them I met a dog in the parking lot by himself that was supposed to be inside the kennel, and another put shock collars on all of the dogs as soon as they were admitted.

The trick is to always walk into the place completely unanounced. You don't want them to prepare for you, you want to see how it normally is. If they tell you to make an appointment then cross them off your list. Also come up with your requirements for the facility so you can narrow down how many you visit. One thing to make sure is on your list is a sprinkler system. When I was a kid a kennel near us burned down over night with all the pets trapped inside and no one onsite to call the fire department. I visited all the places myself first and then after I had narrowed down my choices I visited again with Salem so I could see how the staff interacted with him. My 1st choice was not a good pick for Salem and he did not want to be anywhere near the employee that was there so I crossed them off the list.

The place we bring him is a traditional kennel with indoor outdoor runs. You pay extra for walks and playtime. The main rate just covers boarding and potty walks. It also covers food, but I bring my own. My place will give your dog homecooked if you bring it in individual frozen containers that they can microwave. I don't homecook, but they would do that if I wanted. They have no problem giving the natures variety medalions for me either.

The owner of the kennel lives on site with an intercom connected to her house, so if the dogs bark at night she will check things out and make sure everything is okay. If your dog is scared of thunderstorms they will also send someone to stay with your dog and comfort him until the storm is over. Salem also really likes the staff there, and they love him as well. I pay for 2, 20 minute walks and 1 20 minute play / attention periods for him when he visits. I would prefer a place with dog daycare, but I am comfortable with this place, and Salem is skittish around people other then us and it may just be too much stress for him to have us gone and be around a bunch of strange dogs.

 

We board Apollo at a very nice facility that is right next door to his vets office, when we go away and he can't come or my parents can't watch him. It's comforting to have his vet so close just in case anything happens. We pay $30 a day. He was in a room that was too small for a person's bedroom big defiantly big enough for him, like a large walk-in closet size- he doesn't liked crates so this worked out good. He had a dog bed; a kuranda with fleece, but we brought his regular bed too which was allowed. They fed him on his normal schedule, I brought his own food in a tupperware container. He had access to fresh water all the time. He got walked 3x per day for about 45minutes each time. Then staff would come in and pat/play with him in between walks. He had a plasma TV (that was encased in plexi glass and mounted in a corner) with Animal Planet on, not sure if he watched or not, lol. We were allowed to bring his favorite toy(s) if we wanted. The rooms had heat/AC. I also told them I had access to e-mail so they sent me daily updates and pictures of him, which I LOVED! I've never had a problem boarding him. He does fine there, but when I first hand him over he barks because we're leaving (which breaks my heart) but after a couple minutes he's fine. I'm not sure what would ease the transition, maybe their favorite blanket or bed??

Thanks for the input. : )  It seems like we may not have to do this after all. But it is good to know about what experiences there are out there (good and the bad). And what to look for is essential.  

I just recently boarded my dog for 7 days while we were in vacation.  This was the forth or fifth time we boarded him.  I would agree with everyone above and make it a point to go look at the places before you decide on where you want to go.  We go to a "resort" type place and while it is pretty expensive - the dogs are all allowed free run of the place and they have pools, agility equipment, lots of toys, etc.  The only time they are in their kennels is when they are sleeping.  At my place you can bring anything you want - your own food, beds, blankets, toys, etc.  You decided whether or not to share the toys or keep them for when the dogs are in the kennels.  My place also suggested bringing in a worn sweatshirt or other item of clothing that has your scent on it so the dog can cuddle up with it at bedtime.  I have to say - my dog LOVES the place, and I have to practically drag him out of there when we get back - also he's usually exhausted for a few days from all the playing and running he does with the other dogs!!!  So- all in all - there are very good boarding places out there - you just have to look for them and like everything else - you get what you pay for !!!

 

Deb W.

One suggestion I didn't see mentioned is that once you find a boarding kennel you like, bring your dog a few times for day care so he can get to know the place, the staff, get familiarized with the sounds and smells, but it won't be as stressful, because he'll only be there for a few hours. Also, you can do a trial boarding - leaving him there for one night. Check with the kennel on their policies in terms of what you can or can't bring. Most kennels won't allow you to bring your own bowls, some kennels have restrictions on what you can bring as far as bedding goes - some people like to bring huge beds that don't fit in the runs, get in the way for cleaning, fill the washing machine so that you can't wash a load of bedding..., many kennels have restrictions on what you can bring for toys, because they won't allow the dog to have toys that seem unsafe in the runs. All the kennels I know of allow you to bring your own food, but some charge an extra fee for that.