Tell me how doggy day care works

[Deleted]

I'm contemplating putting Betty in doggy day care, at least during the fall/winter. She hates the rain and won't walk in it for very long. I'm concerned that she's not going to get enough exercise.

She's a little afraid of big dogs, especially the ones that lung at her. She's not a pack leader, but likes to run on the edges of the pack at the dog park.

What are the going ons like at doggy day care? TIA!

[dawnyp]

We currently use downtown dog lounge for Paddy. She goes about once a week to get exercise and socialization. There are cameras there for parents to look in on the animals during the day. Most places will have a section that's seperate for older dogs or dogs that want to just chill and be away from the chaos.

[emyinpink]

dawnyp, how do you like the downtown dog lounge? since we moved downtown we haven't found a good daycare option for Link.

[BlackCanary]

UW- I work at one, feel free to ask anything! I only know about PetSmart's day camp though, so take it with a grain of salt.

PetSmart's day camp starts at 9, hour break at noon and then camp again from 1-5. Abby loves it and she is worn out at the end of it so she sleeps at night.

Edit: There is always an employee in the camp and we make sure the dogs get attention and plenty of running around! Betty would be with the small dogs, they generally aren't too crazy like large dog camp is. Those dogs be CRAZY! ;D

[InBetweenDays]

We have used both Fuzzy Buddy's (when it was just off 85th in Greenwood) and Bone-a-Fide. Fuzzy Buddy's was like 10 years ago so maybe it has changed, but I wasn't terribly impressed. There was a shiba inu there that kept harassing our dog, and their recommendation was for us to send him on a day the shiba inu wasn't there. Which was one day. Yeah, thanks.

We LOVED Bone-a-fide and have used them for boarding and daycare. They actually have vans and do door-to-door service for many areas. It's pretty much all outside (or in a big barn) play so it really depends on Betty's personality but our dogs loved it. The only reason we stopped doing it was because I dropped down to part-time work after having DD, and our dogs are old enough that they don't need as much exercise.

[fiddles]

We take Wrig's to PetSmart in Tukwila. He's been going there since about April and has loved it. They break the dogs into groups based on their size. They would never put Betty into a group with dogs as big as Wrigley. They don't mind if you call and check on your dog. At the end of the day when you pick them up you get a pawgress report. I really feel like they care about Wrigley. I can tell he loves going there because he is always so happy once we turn into the parking lot.

They are pretty flexible with their hours if you do full day camp. They also have day care where they do smaller play times.

[BlackCanary]

Oct 15, 2012 15:42:29 GMT -5 fiddles said:

We take Wrig's to PetSmart in Tukwila. He's been going there since about April and has loved it. They break the dogs into groups based on their size. They would never put Betty into a group with dogs as big as Wrigley. They don't mind if you call and check on your dog. At the end of the day when you pick them up you get a pawgress report. I really feel like they care about Wrigley. I can tell he loves going there because he is always so happy once we turn into the parking lot.

They are pretty flexible with their hours if you do full day camp. They also have day care where they do smaller play times.

I love PetSmart. And they are awesome to work for. I get to play with puppies all day!

[fiddles]

BlackCanary I am so jealous of you. I would LOVE to work at PetSmart in the PetsHotel. I applied once but never even got a call ha.

[BlackCanary]

Oct 15, 2012 16:11:23 GMT -5 fiddles said:

BlackCanary I am so jealous of you. I would LOVE to work at PetSmart in the PetsHotel. I applied once but never even got a call ha.

Lame!

I'm sure they're looking for holiday help, maybe try again?

[Deleted]

Ok, I know I'm being crazy right now, so bear with me. I called around to a few dog day cares today and I'm kind of feeling anxious leaving betty somewhere. At a lot of places the groups seem too big (10+ dogs) and the staff ratio seems too small (1 to 10).

There's a place near work that a few people use that I might check out. I could walk over there mid day and see her. Id have to drive those days and pay for parking on top of the day care fees ($50ish total, ugh).

This might require visiting a few places before I settle on one. I feel like a crazy person since I feel like some parents (no one here, obvs) of human children don't put this much work into the care of their kids and betty is a dog.

[BlackCanary]

Oct 15, 2012 18:25:48 GMT -5 @uwhuskygirl said:

Ok, I know I'm being crazy right now, so bear with me. I called around to a few dog day cares today and I'm kind of feeling anxious leaving betty somewhere. At a lot of places the groups seem too big (10+ dogs) and the staff ratio seems too small (1 to 10).

There's a place near work that a few people use that I might check out. I could walk over there mid day and see her. Id have to drive those days and pay for parking on top of the day care fees ($50ish total, ugh).

This might require visiting a few places before I settle on one. I feel like a crazy person since I feel like some parents (no one here, obvs) of human children don't put this much work into the care of their kids and betty is a dog.

Definitely check out places! Don't feel like a crazy person, I would be the same way.

PetSmart is 1 person to at most 17 dogs in small camp. We don't try and ignore any dog. Some are pretty mellow, so they don't need a ton of attention. And price is $20 a day.

I'm sorry I keep pushing PetSmart, I just love it! ;D

[dawnyp]

Oct 15, 2012 15:16:01 GMT -5 @emyinpink said:

dawnyp, how do you like the downtown dog lounge? since we moved downtown we haven't found a good daycare option for Link.

We like it there and Paddy loves it. She always is so excited when we pull in. The rates are a little on the more expensive side but they are flexible which is good. They have an after hour pick up drop off if we need it and we don't need an appointment for day care. Boarding we always make an appointment.

[mkate710]

Oct 15, 2012 18:25:48 GMT -5 @uwhuskygirl said:

Ok, I know I'm being crazy right now, so bear with me. I called around to a few dog day cares today and I'm kind of feeling anxious leaving betty somewhere. At a lot of places the groups seem too big (10+ dogs) and the staff ratio seems too small (1 to 10).

There's a place near work that a few people use that I might check out. I could walk over there mid day and see her. Id have to drive those days and pay for parking on top of the day care fees ($50ish total, ugh).

This might require visiting a few places before I settle on one. I feel like a crazy person since I feel like some parents (no one here, obvs) of human children don't put this much work into the care of their kids and betty is a dog.

You're not being crazy. Betty is part of your family and you are trying to do what's best for her.