Need advice on new dog daycare...

I've seen wood shavings and very small wood chips - no litter.  I think what they do is, pick up the #2's throughout the day, then at the end of the day, they just sweep up all the shavings - mop the floor - then put fresh shavings down the next day.  I think alot of puppies (from breeders) are initially trained to go on shavings, no?  My boy was.  Anyway, I don't see why litter wouldn't work also.  Maybe litter is messier?

I managed a doggy daycare in Chicago for over a year.  We had a real small outside area, the place is kinda hard to explain, it was an old rug store, and had a garage in back.  We exteded a fence to make an outside area.  But in the winter time when it was too cold to keep the garage door open, we would have the dogs go to the bathroom at the back which was the garage, it had a drain and asphalt.  The floor were cement with floor paint.  The paint does come off, but it has a lot of wear and tear.  Good luck, hopefully you will expand to Indy one day.

I haven't been to it - just checked it out for potentially going there, but there's an indoor one in Portland that also has a designated potty spot.  If I recall, it is rock over a floor with a drain.  They pick up the poop and hose down the pee to the drain.  Also has a fire hydrant in the middle.

Oh yes, important detail I forgot to mention!  Each of the ones I've been to have a drain in the middle as well (the drain is in the potty spot).  And the floor itself is covered with "bumpy" grey rubber flooring.  It's got some traction with the bumps so that the dogs are not sliding around and it's a bit cushioned, so they're not falling/jumping/landing on hard concrete.  It seems to be the standard flooring around here at most daycares.  Also the marking posts are generally off to the side, close to a wall - so that the "markers" are not actually marking other dogs!  (ick, I'd be very unhappy if my dog came home from daycare covered with pee)

Cedar and pine shavings is what I've seen used at a daycare in San Francisco.
 

Thanks for all the ideas.  I'll will check out the new location and try and map out the potty spot.

Mic, I wouldn't use astroturf.  Call Gemini Training Center in Littleton, MA or Monadnock Humane Society in Keene, NH.  Both have nice floors - rubber matting.
They can be washed down with hoses or a power washer, I think, and the facilities don't stink.  I think they both have drains installed in the floors.
I think astroturf will be a problem if you get a disease outbreak, because you can't possibly hope to disinfect all those little fomite crevices...

Hi Mic,
 
The dog daycare that I take Caesar to has an elimination area similar to what I think Jen was talking about. The daycare he goes to is in downtown Seattle and so it is all indoors. So, there are basically two huge, huge play rooms that are connected in the back by a smaller room with doors and windows that are usually open so it feels like that back room is more outside than the main play rooms.
 
So, whenever I drop Caesar off the staff will take him directly to the back room where he can eliminate. Then throughout the day when he and the other dogs are playing they have learned to go into the back room to eliminate. In the backroom there are two huge areas that are sectioned off with - I think - something like a chainlink fence. Behind the chain link is lots and lots of rocks/pebbles over the floor with a drain and with a fake fire hydrant in the middle. So basically they pick up the poop and hose off the urine. 
 
I've been back there several times and it never smells because of the open windows and doors and they clean it a lot.
 
I too was worried when I first took him there that he would start peeing in the house, but because it's enough of a difference between the main play area and the pee area the dogs understand.  And Caesar has had no accidents at home, so he definitely knows the difference.  I think you just have to make sure that there is a marked difference between the pee and the play area. I also think that having the underfooting be more of an outside material as opposed to what they are playing on - so using pebbles, rocks, astroturf, whatever simulates "outsideness". 
 
Good luck!! And also a big THANK YOU for starting daycares and worrying about these sorts of things! I know that they are a lot of work and I so appreciate the staff and owners at C's daycare - they treat him really well and it is like his second home.

FWIW, The place we go to training has some matting on the floor of the training area, but the daycare is outside most of the time. If a dog pees on it, they have some spray to clean it up with. I've never seen a dog poop on the floor there. Also, I wouldn't think you would have much an issue with dogs going on the floor at daycare, and then going on the floor at home, simply for the fact that dogs don't generalize. In your case, that could be to your advantage. Although, you could potentially have a problem getting dogs who have been in a lot of environments and generalized no going indoors across environments to go indoors at your facility. 

Some awesome ideas here.  This is the first time I have done something in the center of downtown.  The location I have is going to be awesome.  It is going to be a boutique style, high end, daycare.  I will never have more than 25 dogs, and we are going to do a membership system. The location is across the street form the Proctor and Gamble headquarters, a block away from the Fifth Third building, and is near the Bankers Club. I am doing this outside of my current chain because I am going for such a different image. 
 
Lets put our heads together and come up with an awesome name. 
 
I was thinking something like "Bark Avenue" or the K9 Club.  Or the Main St. K9 Club (it's on main st. so close to the banker club)
 
I would love to hear some more creative ideas!
 
Think high end...not to cheesy....
I am going to start a new thread for the name.