boarding Ocean during honeymoon

[Ocean]

Ocean has been boarded at her vet twice now, and while they are okay for an occasional overnight stay, the dogs are inside in the dark (at least it's air-conditioned) with no runs or outside access. They say they walk them 5x a day, but the dogs seem to pee in the kennel area an awful lot - I wonder?

I brought her food to the vet, measured out carefully (she eats 8 cups a day). They gave most of it back to me after a 5 day stay :( . They also threw out her rather expensive Booda-Bone because it got wet. AND couldn't find her brand new choke collar so that I had to go buy another one (they later found it so now I have two). AND let her chew her new leash into three pieces (new one $17.00). So understandably, I think, I really don't want to leave her there again.

I am going to visit several boarding kennels in our area this weekend to find one that meets my standards. Any advice, questions I should ask, things I should look for? We will be taking her to kennel on a Saturday and picking her up on a Monday (9 nights in all). If it was up to me, I'd take her to Key West with us!

[godfreyc]

Why not get a petsitter that will come to your home?

[Leader]

Whatever you do; I'd take her there for a short visit, and leave her for a couple of hours and come back and get her. Take a good look at the other dogs and see if they seem happy well taken care of etc. They will be the true test, won't they? if they seem really unhappy, well then you'll know. Remember it won't hurt a dog to be in a kennel all day long as long as it gets enough exercise and can do its business outside. My two con't really mind kennels (blaze is fine and Leader accepts them) but they NEVER do their business inside and Blaze will not perform on leash so I have to be sure they can run around for that!:D

Congratulations on the honeymoon etc:D :D :D

And best of luck,

Leader

[Grendl]

I think that in most cases a good boarding kennel is preferable to boarding at the vet. That is not really their specialty. My local Kennel club recommended a kennel that specialized in large breed dogs, and I used them for years. I never left leashes with the dogs, and my dogs always were in good shape when I returned. Try to find one more suitable to your dog's needs. Good luck and congratulations!

[austin]

I board at a daycare/boarding kennel. They let me bring her bed, food and toys, and during the day all of the dogs are out in a well-supervised play area. Its more expensive than a traditional kennel, but I feel a lot more secure about it.

I have boraded her there many times, but I made several unscheduled visits first, and they also let me leave her there for an afternoon before I boarded her.

I hope you find something suitable. Congratulations on the honeymoon!:)

[Ocean]

Thank you all for the good advice; in regards to a petsitter, my mother will be in the house taking care of my son for the first 4 days, and she can't handle Ocean (neither can my son). In any case, I am not comfortable with having a petsitter come into the house, as they would not be here long enough to keep her happy and since she needs supervision while inside, she would have to be left in her crate between visits. A kennel is by far a better solution. She would benefit from the stimulation as well.

[SABELLESMOM]

Well a few things come to mind here. When I board my dog at the vets, they come out with a loop leash and an Id band. My leash/collar, etc goes home.

The food? Goodness, ask? Was the dog ill? Did he/she mope about and not eat?

We are lucky to have indoor/outdoor runs available and I reserve early to assure getting one. I don't take toys, as she could choke if someone weren't sitting there for 24 hours every day.

Have you checked for a doggy spa type arrangement? We have 2 near me and I didn't even know they existed! One of them looks really interesting, too!

The lady has (optional) community play areas, where the dogs can be for a few hours each day as she supervised. I'd have to know more about it, like how do they determine who may/may not get along? What immunizations are required (hopefully they are!) before my dog is allowed to run with others, etc. She does have individual runs if you'd rather not participate.

She will also groom your dog during his/her stay if you want. She also does training so your dog can even be in school. AND...there's a pond (fenced, of course) for swimming.

I'd have to do some more checking to see if this is what I want, yet. Like is there a vet 'on call'? This is only on recommendation of a freind, who co-incidentally is on her honeymoon too! BTW: CONGRATULATIONS! :D :D :D :D

[samanthac]

Also, any good boarding kennel will take you on a tour of the premises. Tell them you wish to see the runs both indoors and out. If they balk, do not board your dog there. Make sure the runs are spacious with access to indoor and outdoor alike so they can get out of the elements if need be. Make sure the chain link is in good condition and the runs are clean both inside and outside. Make sure each dog has its OWN run. Sometimes less reputable kennels try to boost profits by doubling up dogs in kennels. I don't care if they put my dogs in the same kennel, but I sure as hell do not want someone else's dogs in with mine.

Also, check to see if they put all the dogs in a pen and let them run togther as a pack. I personally do not like this. Large packs bring out pack behavior, especially in Rotts which are a very pack oriented breed. I have a dog aggressive bitch who I do not want out romping with any other dogs. My young boy is fine, but by the same token I have seen how even the midlest mannered dog can change in a pack situation. AMO its just asking for trouble.

All the kennels I have ever dealt with have always brought out loop collar leashes and I take collars and leashes with me. I'd be concerned about the food thing. Did she just not eat or did they just feed her what they wanted. Its very suspect to me that a vet's office would not be concerned over a pet that has not eaten for days on end. Sounds like they may have just given her what they feed. Hope they didn't charge her for feeding her.

Also, make sure she is UDT on Bordatella as most of them require that vax in order to board. Proof of vax and rabies will also be required.

Also get charges up front. Many kennel charge per item. For instance, say they charge $20 per day for boarding. If you want the dog to come out for playtime or walks, there will be a charge. If you want her to have her own food, meds or treats they will charge you for this. Ask up front about this. One time I boarded Athena in a kennel that I did not know in a pinch. I checked them out and they looked fine. When I got the bill I had been charged for two walks per day for 4 days plus a bath. I had never asked for any of those services and refused to pay the charges. The lady said that it was their policy that all dogs must come out of their runs twice per day and that a bath was to be givn in prep for the animal to be picked up. Great, but then it should have either been included in the price ot disclosed up front. Needless to say I did not pay for those extra services.

HTH!

[Ocean]

I took Ocean to visit a mew kennel last Sunday, they seemed okay... The girl showed me the premises - stinky, though it is cleaned 2x a day. I guess when you have about 50 dogs in runs, there is no way it is going to smell GOOD no matter what they do! Runs are indoor/outdoor with a flap door between, and they just installed white rubber ventilated matting in the outdoor runs for comfort and ease of cleaning. They don't come out of the runs at all, which I didn't like - I hoped there would be some kind of "play time" or human interaction for her. It's a lot better than the vet, but there is another one nearby I am going to try to see this Saturday. Pricey too, $23.95 a night plus tax. She gets a free bath for staying more than 5 nights.

[ladawn]

I know its a lot to ask, but do you have any dog friendly friends. When I went on my honeymoon, my friend kept Daisy for me. We usually do an even exchange of keeping each others dogs. I would have been happy to pay him the going rate for a kennel (he wouldn't accept it) and you could offer and it would still be worth it for the peace of mind. Just a thought.

[Leader]

Couldn't you find either a dog sitter or an amateur kennel, with fewer dogs? Here in France you can find people who have kennels and only keep up to 10 dogs, or fewer. The VP of my club has an amateur kennel and keeps up to 6 at a time, prime people time an hour twice a day.

Hope something works out.

Leader

[Bucky's Mom]

I am sure your dog would enjoy the vacation if they got to come along:)

[Ocean]

:D Believe it or not, I suggested it! :D But my fiance said and the hotel said . LOL!!!

We only have one dog-friendly friend, but he has two dogs in a small house and I don't think Ocean would fit - besides, I doubt he would agree. He has never met her (his dogs are small). I don't think Ocean would let anyone come in, she is quite protective of us and the house. She wouldn't bite, but she would raise her hackles and brak in a threatening manner. There aren't too many people who would persist in approaching a Rottweiler under these circumstances!

Amateur kennels, huh? Sounds great - I haven't found anything like that here! We are going to look at another one tomorrow so hopefully it will be better. Off to "Bed and Biscuit" and also "Cozy Noses!" :D

[mickeymichellie]

Look around, and call dog places to see if they know anyone who takes dogs to their homes. I dog sit dogs in my home all the time, and we have a great time with it. I originally started as a way for my dog to get some more exercise, and boy did it work! I work at a doggy daycare, which is where I get most of my business from. Granted, I have no insurance, and I have to leave for a couple hours during the day and the dogs are crated, but while I am home they play a lot and get a lot of one-on-one attention. Good luck!

[dragontear2s]

Okay, when you go to these kennels find out if they will let you see the WHOLE kennel. I worked at a kennel for two years. Whenever someone came back to see the kennel a door was shut between the front room and the rest of the kennel. This was because she had small cages down the center of the rooms as well as crates on top that the dogs were put in. The owners were told that all dogs got runs and from what they saw it looked this way. All dogs did get to play in the HUGE play yards twice daily for 15-30 minutes each time. :p If the owner requested it they were charged for it otherwise the dogs got it for free. All the dogs were bathed before going home. If owners brought beds or toys they were put in a storage area and the treats that would have been consummed were put in a seperate bag to later be given to her dogs. I thought that was horrible and aweful to rip customers off that way. All toys and beds were returned to the owner when they picked up the dogs. I am letting you know this so you can know what kind of stuff to watch for. It might seem on the up and up at first but dig deeper. Look for little things, it can be obvious if you just look around realizing the possiblity. I now tell people who think about boarding their dogs there what really happens. If you have big big dogs, they are great with them, cause they do get runs and playtimes, but any dog 60 and lower risk getting uppers or small cages. Well enough talking. Good luck finding a place good enough for Ocean. Every dog deserves a mini vacation too.
Edie