Petite Pooch Dog Blog

Channel 11 just did an evening news report on a local Dallas boarding facility. The story was about a dog who apparently sustained injuries to her neck from a “no bark” collar which was used on her while she was boarding at that facility. I wish every pet parent would do their homework prior to using any boarding facility. No place is absolutely perfect…as “Murphy’s Law” prevails in every business…however, a pet parent can undertake some activities to ensure that their boarding facility is using best practices. Utilizing best practices assists in reducing and minimizing the “margin of error” which might occur even when a boarding facility is doing their very best.

Using “no bark” collars does not fall into any best practices category…neither are cages/crates which are stacked one upon another in a crowded area to house boarding guests.

I want to encourage every pet parent to select a boarding facility on facts and not on ease. Don’t select a boarding facility just because it’s close to your home.

Do select a boarding facility after you’ve done the following research:

Ask your veterinarian, friends, work associates, people you meet at the dog park, etc. for recommendations for boarding facilities and make time to visit those that interest you.

Tour a number of boarding facilities…ensure that the facility allows tours throughout the day during each day that it is open for business without having to make an appointment.

Read the Service Agreement…ask questions, if you don’t agree with the policies/procedures, move on.

Inspect the facility…make sure it’s CLEAN….CLEAN…CLEAN! Ensure that they have a procedure in place to check that vaccinations on each canine guest is documented and current.

Meet the staff…do they demonstrate a desire and eagerness to make you and your pooch comfortable? Are they polite? Are they informative and helpful?

Spend a reasonable amount of time there…ensure that you know where your dogs will sleep, where/when they will socialize & exercise, inspect their water and food bowls…take a reasonable amount of time to interview the staff without disrupting the flow of business.

If your pooches must have precise dosages of medications/food or must be monitored medically…consider boarding at a veterinarian clinic. You should still do your homework because the above should still apply when you’re looking for boarding services for your pet.

Pet parents should enjoy their vacations…but so should their special friends. “No bark” collars aren’t used in any vacation resorts I’ve ever been to…these things shouldn’t be used at any boarding resorts your pet goes to either. 

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This entry was posted on Thursday, August 9th, 2007 at 10:21 pm and is filed under Uncategorized, Dog Care, Dog boarding. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.