Do you board your pups? Do you use Doggievacay? Here's my story. It began with the simple idea of giving my dog fabulous play dates with other dogs, helping to mentor, socialize and train dogs, get them out of crates and give them a great time all while wearing out my resident Doberman in the process. I was doggievacaying Lincoln puppy. They got along famously. Lincoln was a very good puppy but at one point, he decided to get interested in a $2500 real fur throw I had 'put up'. You just cannot puppy proof everything, they find it. Just as you absolutely cannot watch a child every minute, you cannot watch a pup either, not at every second. And it only takes seconds for damage. Lincoln got quiet. Rhett alerted so I walked over and saw that the pup had chewed away several holes before I could grab it back from him. Another pup looked up ever so sweetly at me and then bent over and puked all over my then running Roomba that was, prior to the offending vomit, vacuuming my floor with aplomb. The same puppy also gave my boy kennel cough, which just took a few days to heal naturally, but adding insult here, the pup parent didn't even bother to rate me on the site, even when reminded a couple of times that their input was valuable. It was a 3k loss just in the fur and vacuum, which was just the tip of the damage iceberg suffered over the few years I did this. Doggievacay was not a money maker for me at all, but Rhett sure enjoyed the company! I liked that because of me and others like me, these pups had an actual home to stay in rather than a kennel. What a community service!
The issue with boarding pets, and Doggievacay is a great idea, is that it takes everyone a while to acclimate and for your individual dogs personality and proclivities to present themselves. With an actual kennel stay, your pup has little opportunity to soil or damage anything because he is either out in a yard, walked or in his crate. Your pup is going to be far happier at my house (or at some other house via Doggievacay.) But don't ever believe it was easy money for the boarder, no matter how brightly they smile at you when you pick your dog up.
No matter how well behaved you believe your pup to be, the fact is, your dog is going to act differently at my house, at least the first day or two where we set guidelines repeatedly and learn each other. The only exception is with a more mature dog because they tend to be more stoic, they've probably been kenneled some place in the past, stayed over at someones home before and know the ropes. one of my favourite old men was Haans the German Rottweiler. He was 11 and magnificent! I went up $5.00 a night on my price and I stopped seeing Haans which was sad because a nightly stay was only $40.00. As I only kept one pup at a time to allow for full hands on support, I felt my pricing was more than a bargain. But even with Haans, at first he wasn't sure what was happening or why and he waited by the front door awhile before I coaxed him away to relax and play with Rhett. They're like a child but they just cannot speak English and while dogs, if you work with them, can be bi-lingual, understand sentences that you speak, etc, everyone has different ques and it takes a while to get the communication across to them. Our Rhett knows a lot of English and can understand sentence strings. But this is when we speak to him and our habitual word formations we use. Staying elsewhere, someone may structure their words differently, and Rhett will have to think about what that now means to him. For example, rather than 'no shenanigans' which means to Rhett, 'behave' someone might say 'don't act up' or 'behave'. Rhett won't know what that means because he's been taught shenanigans. So, other than dog language which I am fairly expert at by now, we must learn how to find the human language middle ground so we fully understand one another. With repeated stays, things get better. Its exactly like locating a babysitter for your human child. When you find one that works, you really should just stick with that because its far less disruptive to all parties.
By the 2nd stay, your dog is jumping for joy as you round the corner to park at my house. He is skipping out of the car, running up my front steps because he knows the drill, doesn't sit by the front door pouting and bummed out when you leave now. No, he understands the situation, he has already grabbed the nearest toy and is rough housing with Rhett while we greet each other and I take your food, toys and supplies from you. Your pup gets it that he will be staying with me a few days, having great fun with Rhett and he is calm and happy because he understands he is loved and safe here. He knows the house rules by now so all we may need is a refresher, and he has decided I am ok too. He is far less likely to get into nervous destructive chewing because he is aware of what has taken place, that fun as this is, it is temporary and you, the adored pup parent, will be back for him.
If your 10lb dog was afraid of big dogs, he is already comfortable with our 116lb charmer of a Doberman. His socialization training continues. If your boundary pushing dog is back, he knows now who runs the show and training continues. If your dog was on a special diet or meds, I already know so you don't need to repeat yourself. This truly is a vacation for your dog while you are off and on your way!
But folks are always looking for the best 'deal' to stow their pup, they don't bring them over for a stay often enough and many many times only the once. Damage happens and there are never enough stays to equal out the damage done. In the above mentioned examples, I told neither of these pet parents what transpired. It wasn't their fault and I was hopeful they would book with me again and, over years, word of mouth, great reviews etc, I would recover the costs involved, build a loyal clientele, and Rhett would enjoy a bevy of great play dates.
When we moved, I let it all go. I still have that holy fur. No, I don't buy new fur, this was vintage fur done into a throw and sure was gorgeous. When considering boarding your pet, do look at reviews, visit the place, do the meet and greet. I was very surprised by how many folks wanted to blow that off and I refused to just keep a dog without the greeting. It is important for the pups to meet and also the humans. Your dog needs to meet my dog while you are here and can stay a few minutes. This builds confidence in your dog while he gets to know my place and my dog. I need to go over with you what to bring for your dogs stay, such as favorite blanket, something with your scent, toys, meds, as well as review habits, meds or any issues the pup may have. You need to meet me to understand my qualifications for managing your pup while you are away. Why am I worth $40.00 a day? What is the overall vibe, what does my dog look like and act like? How do I look and act? How's my house, chaotic or peaceful? Are there already 99 dogs running around because if there are, I have zero time left to invest in your pets well being. The signs you see are all clear indications of how I am going to handle and maintain your dog. Meeting me will provide you a comfort level of my expertise.
Costs are less than your typical kennel day rate. Don't cheap out on this. You do get what you pay for. Rather than putting your dog in the hands of someone that just 'loves dogs' get someone with experience, knowledge. I suggest tipping well too because finding someone good that your dog loves, and maintaining that routine for your dog is so great for him emotionally. If you travel infrequently, bring your pup over periodically for just an afternoon play date or one overnight stay. It gives you a break and maintains the routine and comfort level for your pup. I got into this when I saw how our Rhett was left in a crate basically all day. He was exercised twice a day but crated the whole rest of the time. Ouch! So the better way is, by far, DoggieVacay. Just do your due diligence and understand, respect and honor the fact your dog will, ideally, be living in someones home rather than in a crate. What a gift, please treat it that way. :)
Monday, April 18, 2016
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