Top Three Things to Look for in a Dog Boarding Facility
Dog boarding is highly recommended as a home away from home for pet parents traveling out of town, especially during the Holidays. Your pups are your fur babies; you wouldn’t trust just anyone with taking care of your dogs while you are away. Therefore, it is very important to thoroughly research the facility, program, and staff. A trusted, great dog boarder will be able to take care of your dog’s needs and offer a variety of services. Your goal when looking for a dog boarding kennel is to find a facility that gives you peace of mind while traveling. Here are three key things to ask when looking for the right dog boarding facility for you and your pup.
Does the dog boarding facility offer other services?
You want your pooch to be as comfortable as possible at the boarding kennel. To lessen the anxiety of being away from home, your pup should have access to fun activities and many opportunities for socialization with other dogs. The program should have qualified trainers who are able to group dogs with similar personalities and play styles to make your pup the happiest he can be!
It is imperative that you find a dog boarding facility that has a heavy emphasis on play and socialization for most of the dog’s waking hours. Dogs definitely should not be spending all their time cooped up and secluded in their crate. This will lead to exacerbated stress and anxiety for the dogs, as dogs are social creatures!
Another huge plus is if the facility offers training. Does your dog need to brush up on obedience training or even get a head start on agility training? Training while boarding offers a variety of training with a custom plan and personal communication with the trainer to give you a bigger peace of mind. You’ll come home to an obedient, happy, and tuckered out pup!
How clean is the dog boarding kennel?
We highly recommend visiting the facility yourself. During the visit, look around and check for cleanliness. How clean does the facility seem? How clean does it smell? Are there signs of negligence in the sense that dog accidents are just left out and not cleaned up immediately?
Going along with overall cleanliness is easy access to clean water. After an intense and exciting playtime, dogs tend to excessively drool, which leads to thirst and dehydration. If water is not easily accessible, it could potentially put your dog at harm. During your visit, look out for water bowls throughout the facility that seem filled, kept, and readily accessible to the dogs.
Especially as we are in the middle of the pandemic, be sure to also look for facilities that are frequently cleaning the facility and disinfecting common-use areas. At K9U, we have been vigilant about following CDC guidelines to ensure that the pups, parents, and staff stay as safe and healthy as possible.
Most importantly, is there 24-hour care available?
You would be surprised to hear that in many kennels, there is no staff available overnight. As a professional dog boarding facility, we at K9U always have someone on staff available to watch the dogs at night. This is extremely important to us in case there is an emergency or the dogs need any sort of assistance during the night.
Look for a pet care team you can trust!
The last thing you want to do during your vacation is to worry about your pup. If you do the right research and vet for a good dog boarding facility beforehand, you will find a team that you can trust. We at K9U have proudly boarded many dogs, and have had many pups and their parents come back time and time again to our dog boarding program. We take each and every dog’s safety and comfort seriously.
We also offer a variety of services, such as training and grooming that you can enroll in for your dog’s stay! We even have shuttle services for busy parents, so we can easily pick up and safely drop off your pup for you! We encourage you to visit our facility and take a tour! Check out more information on the K9U experience and pricing here.
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