Choosing a Day Care for Your Pup

Some good friends recently adopted a young rescue dog. This pup is very lucky as she is with her pack 24/7. The owners are self-employed, so their new dog, K2, is at work with them all day. They are also quite active, so K2 gets to jog, hike or play daily, plus her owners set up play dates with neighborhood dogs. K2 arrived at their house with beautiful doggie etiquette and the ability to communicate well with her other four-legged friends. This pup doesn't need doggie day care, but we did discuss how valuable it can be. There are now so many available, the question is how do you choose the one that is most appropriate for your favorite four-legged friend?

I wrote about my experience with doggie day care when Bella was a young girl. My husband and I are retired so Bella is rarely alone, but I was concerned she wasn't getting enough time with other dogs.  The first place I checked out, though less expensive and closer, didn't have a large enough people-to-dog ratio. It seemed a recipe for disaster. The place I ended up taking her I liked a lot, but with two exceptions: it was too far away and its policy for a mandatory four hour stay was inconvenient. Bella went once and that was it, although I would have continued if they were closer. She hasn't been back to a day care since.

However, if you are away from home for long stretches of time and your best buddy is on his own, doggie day care might be the perfect solution to relieve his boredom. Recently I've come across a series of articles on the Internet with guidelines for choosing day care that suits your wallet, peace of mind, and your pup's temperament. Bark Magazine has an excellent article and a great tip sheet that is definitely worth perusing if you are thinking of this activity for your pup. I feel the people-to-dog ratio is critical and Riverdog, where Bella went, was great with this—around 10-15 dogs to one person plus an office staff that was available should the need arise. In addition, they "matched" Bella's playing style with other dogs so she was neither overwhelming or overwhelmed. They also had "quiet time" interspersed in the four hour visit so dogs had an opportunity to cool their jets.

The different articles I read also encouraged prospective doggie day care-ites to watch the day care in action to see how activities and interactions are handled. If you are not allowed to observe, go elsewhere. (Many also have cameras in the rooms so you can watch how your pup is doing while you're at work.) If they have a breed exclusion policy—put on the brakes—it indicates misunderstanding the difference between behavior and breed. The facility should require all dogs be current on vaccinations, are in good health, are sociable and well-behaved. What is the training and knowledge of the staff working with your dog's group? How do they handle a medical emergency? Not all dogs are good candidates for day care. The energy level and commotion of multiple dogs running around may overwhelm your buddy. Obviously, finding the appropriate doggie day care for your pup is critical if you want your dog safe and happy!

Here are some other articles I liked:
Selecting a Dog Daycare
How to Choose a Doggie Daycare
Choosing Doggie Daycares and Kennels
Choosing a Good Dog Day Care

Good luck in your hunt; your pup will thank you for it!

Emergency!

This is a great article from the wonderful Bark magazine on how to lessen stress for yourself or your pet's caretaker in case of an emergency—and your absence. Heaven forbid this would ever be necessary, but living in a foreign country makes me very aware how critical these pointers are, especially as my Spanish is so rudimentary.

Last year my in-laws took care of Bella for a month in our absence. Luckily our mindset is similar enough that they would have done exactly as I would have in an emergency situation, But to ask anyone to make a decision for someone else to put down a dog would be gut-wrenching at best. I like the idea of using a health directive. This may not be necessary with family or friends, but would be very important if you are boarding your dog.

Having Bella with us on this particular trip still requires me to be prepared for the unthinkable. I have the name, phone and address of three different, recommended vets in the closest city. Bella is young and healthy, so her records consist of her recent shots. Yet I carry those records with me along with recent photographs of Bella from the front and side. She wears a different collar down here, both with our home information, but more importantly, the phone number of a friend who is local as we don't have a phone here.

When we were traveling with dear Lucy, who was so ill that last several years of her life, we not only brought her prescription drugs, but had backups...and again, names and numbers of locally recommended vets. (This can be found via the Internet if you don't know someone locally who can make those recommendations.)

This article offers some great advise to lessen the stress in an emergency situation. As much as you'd like to think nothing could ever happen, being prepared is insurance that a traumatic situation isn't insurmountable.