Views on boarding kennels/Behavior issues - Page 2

I have customers who will not ever board at the vets offices  here ..
My gsd customers bring my kids back home to me for boarding

SO not in my kennel would any thing non structural happen..MY gsd I sold are like my own and they love coming home to me

I only have 17 open kennels on concrete but only board one at a time and only once in a while I have Rito and Zoe at the same time..

I board a Maltese , my deacons personal baby, but she stays inside and I trained her for them..

SO I would never board my gsd at anyones kennel..period

I take mine with me all over usa when I did travel but now I leave them home in kennels and my daughter comes over and feeds and waters and checks on them until I return 

Safer in their own kennels because of them being working lines, I would never expect anyone to know even how to board them

One customer was ready to file charges on the vet, when he came home early and found his 14month male with ropes tied on him in three corners in kennel because the kids that feed at weekend duty were afraid of him and couldnt get into the kennel..

Customer arrived at  7:30 am next morning ,Monday , before the help could untie him...He almost went to jail that day..HIS male was very much , acting different and had shown some , I have been hit, behariour after that weekend..

SO I have kept his gsd for the last 7  years..when they are on vacation.

YR

Really depends on the kennel.  We do things totally different than alot of places locally. All of the large dogs that stay for boarding/training go for a major run in the mornings ( 2 miles is the minimum round trip) After the morning hike they are placed in " play groups" according to age, size temperment etc.  ( this is the time of day when i can sit on the computer and have a coffee.  I'm watching the lil monkeys as i sit here.  Then everyone has breakfast and goes to bed til noon.  Not one peep usually as most of the dogs are not used to this type of outdoor excersise.  Barkers are put in a seperate area for nap time. No other dogs want to listen to this sillyness and I really dont want to either.  It honestly depends on the staff and type of program offered when you kennel your pooch.  Some kennels just take the dogs and put them in a run until your return.  It depends on what is available in your area.  Like Judy P says a good kennel will give your pooch the extra lovins they need....

Completely depends on the disposition of the dog to begin with - if the dog is stable, calm in general, doesn't stress easily, adjustable, then it will most likely settle down after the initial excitement/stress of coming into the kennel environment, and do perfectly fine being boarded.  If the dog is hyperactive, nervous, neurotic or so spoiled rotten that it works itself up into a frenzy whenever it's apart from it's home environment, it probably will stress in the kennel.  I get all kinds, yes the more "outside time" and exercise the better, stuff to chew on, toys in the kennel, chew treats, will help.  In the end if the kennel is secure, safe, comfortable and warm the dog will survive the boarding experience and not be affected negatively.

molly

What I find is the yappy dogs usually settle in once they get used to the place. We have two sets of terriers in right now that drove us nuts the first few days. They still bark when outside, but now as soon as I bring them in they settle right down. Same with the yappy American Eskimo pup that came in a few days ago. And nope, haven't needed the squirt bottle for any of them! 

But the more dogs in a place, the more barking there will be, as a rule. They 'feed' off of each other.

My partner was telling me about a large boarding kennel in the Toronto area where she used to do grooming. It was HUGE, did a lot of advertising, and charged top dollar for boarding.

Inside, it was a nightmare. The cages were stacked on top of each other, and were the sort of heavy-duty metal cages used in research facilities or puppy mills. They had wire floors, and a pan that slid out to clean up after the dogs. The kennel workers had to wear ear protection, because the barking was pretty much non-stop.

All I can say is CHECK THE PLACE OUT if you have to board your dog!

There's another local place here that is very busy. They do grooming, daycare and overnight boarding. Someone sleeps there with the dogs. They are a cage-free facility, and the dogs have the run of a large open room. which is divided in two to separate small dogs from large. However, they have NO area for turnout, and the dogs are constantly pooping and peeing on the floor. They have a van that employees use to drive the dogs to a park several times a day so they can relieve themselves. Here's the facility: http://www.k9to5.ca/home.swf 

This place is SO popular that they have a month-long wait for grooming! It's right on the mainstreet of town, so that's one of the reasons it has the edge over my facility, which is out in the country. Also, my place has been a kennel for about 50 years, and was allowed to run down quite badly by the previous owners. Chain link and wire cages just can't compete with the more modern facilities that offer a more home-style environment, like this one: http://royalpetshotel.rtrk.com/?scid=2258157&kw=38872:15582&pub_cr_id=10803225237  

It will be a couple more years before I can afford to fix it up the way I'd like it to be. So far, I've put over $60,000 into repairs and improvements! 

We used to board Senta at a place very similiar to the Royal Pets Hotel but she always came back to us as a skeleton with hair from a hunger strike and constantly pacing her wire run. We now drive an hour to the middle of nowhere to board her at a small kennel that is very old school but the owner has several GSDs of her own. The kennel owner doesn't have an issue with raw feeding. Senta is returned to us exactly as she was when we dropped her off. With your permission, the kennel owner pairs your dog up with a suitable match and they can play together in huge outdoor areas. Senta is usually paired with another GSD or a border collie. Senta is very social so this works for her; I understand that this wouldn't work if your dog was dog aggressive. Interestingly, the kennel owner lets you know if you can bring your dog back after your first stay. I don't know what her criteria is for acceptance since she is set up to handle difficult dogs (eg. guillotine kennel doors, roofed outdoor runs for jumpers, etc.). Anyway, an ultramodern kennel isn't always the way to go. :)

I'll add one last thing- we usually bring Senta with us when we travel - the Red Roof Inn hotel chain allows dogs without any extra fee or small dog weight restriction (often capped at 25lbs). I also use www.bringfido.com/ to locate dog friendly hotels in the US and Canada.

Your words make me feel better, Laura! Now, if only I can get this place into the black every month!   With the number of things that still need fixing, that's not an easy thing to do!

Latest thing to happen? My 22 year old snowblower took a nervous breakdown when asked to do 5" of really wet, heavy snow last week. They say they can fix it (WHEW!) but it's going to cost $300-400. God bless the family across the road, whose 2 kids came and shoveled the driveway by hand!

Laura, does the kennel charge extra for the playtime? I'm trying to decide what to do about our prices for the new year. Right now we don't charge extra. The advantage to that is it leaves us free to chose NOT to do it if the weather's bad (-22 C today!) or if we are really busy.

Boarding is a flat $18 per day; there's a $2.25 fee per day if your food preparation is very complicated. The dogs spend the majority of the day outside - I think there are 9 fenced areas plus your dog has an indoor/outdoor run. The exercise yards have shade trees and pools. It's a great set-up for GSDs or other active working breed dog (ie. well worth the drive for us since I don't have to worry about her while we're away).

I can PM you the name of the kennel if you'd like more information. I think the kennel owner is interested in discussing kennel rates since she asked my husband a bunch of questions about our previous kennel.

Wow, that's cheap! We're one of the less expensive kennels in the area, and we charge $20 to $26 per day, depending on the size of dog! The only extra we charge for is medication, and that's only if the dog won't eat the pill with its food, and has to be hand-fed it. (Most of them do scarf it down with their kibble, or with a bit of moist food.)

Does she have a website you could give me the link for?

We too, accept raw fed dogs, dogs in heat/un altered and give discounts on long term boards (usually people being deployed or LE) :) Very very soon we will be moving and finishing my dream kennels..... 4 10X 30 large outdoor runs, 2 5X 30 outdoor runs (for smaller dogs) that run into a building and the inside space for each dog is 10X15, except the 2 smaller one which are 5X15 and the one for my Nero which is 10X20. We'll be putting in gates at the end of the runs and enclosing a VERY large yard (50X50 maybe??) for turn out time and secure fetch etc... PLUS we're fencing in another area on the property and setting up agility equipment. When we pour concrete for the outdoor runs (indoor runs are already finished :) I'm putting in heat to keep it from freezing in the winter and make snow removal a sinch. All kennels will be welded wire (I have a chain link escape artist, even the 9 gague) and a fan/mist system for the summer. Ahhh... I can't wait :) It also has a 10X15 area for my giant deep freezer, sink, food, bowls and equipment too!

Melissa