Whenever I leave town, I ask myself who is going to take care of my mutt Ace.
Friends and family are a good option, but only if they are reliable enough and they actually want to take my canine for a week.
For numerous canine owners, boarding is the best and in some cases the only option. There are a lot of really bad kennels out there. count on me, I worked at one. That’s the very reason I started pet sitting through my canine walking business.
I worked at a boarding facility near Minneapolis while I was in high school and college. It was a very popular and busy kennel, but the owner was very good at sucking money from his customers, and the dogs suffered because of it.
Since this week is a busy travel time, and numerous people are taking a look at dog-boarding options, I wanted to share some suggestions for you to think about when choosing a kennel for your dog.
Also see my article: 10 things to do before boarding your dog
Questions to ask before boarding your dog
1. Ask if you can trip the canine boarding facility.
Never leave your canine anywhere without touring the facility. If the staff will not allow you to see where your canine will be, that is a really bad sign. They have something to hide.
The kennel I worked at eventually stopped giving trips because if anybody saw it, they would not leave their canine there.
If the kennel you are interested in does not allow you to see the full facility, this might imply the cages are too small, the building is unclean or rundown, or maybe much more than one canine is crammed into one kennel. I have seen this happen.
Usually the kennel manager will use an excuse such as, “We can’t let you back there for insurance reasons.”それはでたらめです。 If you can’t see where your canine will be, find another kennel. The owner ought to be thrilled to show off his or her business.
Just because a staff member tells you the facility holds 40 dogs, don’t believe it unless you see it. The company owner could be cramming 200 dogs in a small area, just to make much more money. count on me, I’ve seen this too.
If the staff member lists certain hours when trips are given, that is fine. It makes sense that they would want to tidy up a bit and have you visit during quieter hours.
But ideally you ought to be able to stop by anytime and someone ought to be pleased to show off their great business. By seeing where your canine will be, you will instantly have a feeling of whether or not you are comfortable leaving your canine there.
Trust your first reactions!
On your tour, here are some questions to keep in mind:
2. how clean is the canine kennel?
An area with several dogs in it is never going to smell good, or be completely clean. but are the staff members making an effort to pick up all visible canine poop? Is the ground dry?
Are there any abnormal odors, other than what you’d expect? If the ground is wet, is it because the area was recently cleaned? Does it seem like there is proper ventilation or is it wet all the time?
3. how numerous dogs are at the kennel?
Ask the staff member how numerous dogs the facility can hold, and then count for yourself how numerous are actually there. If many or all the kennels hold two or much more dogs, you ought to immediately ask why.
The staff member might tell you that dogs from multi-dog families are boarded together. but they can’t all be from multi-dog families, can they?
4. how are the dogs identified?
The dogs ought to be identified in some way, maybe with a card and photo on their kennel, or with a labeled collar.
You know what your black lab looks like, but with nine other black labs, do you think someone could get her mixed up with another dog? The answer is yes. Again, I’ve seen it happen!
You don’t want to pay for extra treats or playtime sessions, only to have them go to another canine that looks just like yours. and you don’t want your canine to get sick from eating the wrong food or receiving the wrong medications.
5. Is there a play area at the kennel?
Don’t believe there is a play area unless you see it. and don’t believe the dogs actually play in it unless you see dogs playing in it.
Ask how often the canine will be let out, and if there is any extra cost. The kennel I worked at charged an extra $4 per 15-minute play session. but because of our limited staff, there was no time to actually follow through with these “play sessions.”
何だと思う？ The canine owners were still charged, and they had no idea their dogs sat in a kennel all week other than to get out to go to the bathroom.所有者施設は顧客に嘘をつくでしょう、そして彼らは彼を信じていました。
6.どのように多くのスタッフが現場にいますか？
理想的には、私の意見では、10匹の犬10個ごとに少なくとも1人のスタッフメンバーが必要です。
それよりも少ない場合、それは良い兆候ではありません。一人がそれよりもはるかに多くの動物を正しくケアすることは不可能です。犬にできるだけ注意を払ってもらいたいです。
2人またははるかに多くの犬の間で戦いが勃発する場合、1人がそれを壊すことは必ずしも簡単ではありません。十分なスタッフがいるはずなので、その場所はきれいなままで、犬は十分な運動と愛情を抱きます。
7.私の犬に乗るのに1日あたりの費用はいくらですか？その価格には何が含まれていますか？
犬小屋が1日30ドルを請求する場合は、これに何が含まれているかを尋ねてください。
ほとんどは、食べ物、バス、遊び時間、おやつに余分な料金を請求します。固定金利がすべてまたは何かを網羅していると想定しないでください。
犬自身の食べ物を持参できるかどうか尋ねてください。良い犬小屋は、あなたの犬の通常の食べ物を持ってきて、彼女のスケジュールを可能な限り共通のルーチンに近づけることを奨励します。
あなたが何のためにお金を払っているかを知っていることを確認してください。料金は急速に増加し、休暇から家に帰り、予想よりも高い犬小屋の請求書を受け取りたくありません。
ご存知のように、合計が事前に何であるかを尋ねることをお勧めします。
8.緊急事態で何が起こりますか？
あなたの犬が病気になったらどうなりますか？連絡しますか？どの獣医が彼を見るでしょうか？現場に獣医はありますか？すべての費用を担当しますか？
あなたの犬が最初にあなたの承認なしに安楽死させるという状況はありますか？犬は病気になります。犬は戦いになります。物事は起こります。
9.できる限りの質問をすべて尋ねます。
あなたの心に何かがあるなら、それを尋ねてください。あなたはあなたが望む答えを得るために最高のものを持っています。あなたはあなたのペットと見知らぬ人を信頼しています、そしてあなたはあなたができるすべてを知る価値があります。
あなたは、彼女が安全な場所にいて、よく世話をしているという犬を快適に感じておくべきです。疑問がある場合は、別の搭乗施設に移転します。
10.犬小屋のスタッフの提案。
あなたはあなたの犬に最高の治療を受けてもらいたいですよね？さて、なぜスタッフメンバーに余分な$ 10を滑らせてみませんか？これは大いに役立ちます。彼または彼女はあなたがひっくり返されたことを覚えています、そして、それが数分間の耳の傷であろうとプレイエリアでの余分な時間であろうと、あなたの犬に少し余分な注意を与えるでしょう。
あなたがあなたの犬を拾うとき、それは再び提案をすることに害はありません。はい、それはちょっとした賄briですか？
スタッフをひっくり返すのが気まずいと感じたら、犬を降ろしたときにクッキーやドーナツの箱を持ってきてくれるような良いことをすることもできます。人々は良いジェスチャーを覚えています。
犬を搭乗犬小屋に連れて行ったことがありますか？その犬小屋についてどう思いましたか、そしてそれをどのように選びましたか？