Boarding options for aggressive dog?

[steph96]

We are looking at taking a 4 day trip in a few months and my dog situation makes me second guess going. We got her from the pound. She has fear aggression towards other dogs. We tried training, but she still has times where she snaps and tries to go after dogs. All of my family has pets, or they won't allow pets in there home (my dogs are escape artists so this is crucial). I thought about seeing if they could stop and let the dogs out, but it is a 20 minute drive for them which I couldn't possibly ask them to do 3+ times a day.

I'm nervous about taking to be boarded at the vet. I don't know if the setup might provoke pound memories and make her crazy. my vet does have some dog suites that are pretty much a cinderblock room with a glass door. I would feel safer doing this, but it is so expensive. I don't know if they would even be willing to keep my dog with her issues. I really worry about her coming in contact with another dog and I'm not sure if I trust a high school vet tech to control the situation. My dogs are calmer if they are kept together, but I doubt the vet would even consider allowing that.

I thought about having my 16 year old twin cousins house/dog sit, but they would still be in school. They live 45 minutes away so it's not a quick trip. I also don't know if they might try to invite boys over.

we thought about having a friend house/dog sit, but I don't know how much we would offer to pay. He has never met our dogs, so I'm nervous how they would react to him. We would definitely have him meet the dogs multiple times first. He lives 50 minutes away, but works close to our house. What would be a fair rate to offer?

I really don't know what to do. I feel like I can't go do anything because of her issues. I don't know if I should have my mom watch our other dog (she is okay watching him) and board our aggressive one, or if that would cause her to freak even more.

[krystee]

We board our dogs (both of whom can't tolerate doggy daycare) at the Petsmart Pet Hotel. They can stay in one "atrium" or two, and you can get individual playtime for them. That is only half an hour in the morning and half an hour at night, but it's better than being kenneled all day.

[keweenawlove]

We have a dog with a similar issue. We have boarded her before (some kennels are good about giving her a separate area) but I know she hates it. We've had friends dog sit but I try to not ask to often. We've had the best luck with a dog sitter I found on care.com. The guy we found charges $20 a day to let her out 3 times a day. I feel a lot better letting her stay in her space rather than the kennel.

[goaskalice]

Our dog is also dog aggressive, we did board him at the vet a couple times but for the past 3 years we've gone the house sitter route. We pay $30 a day for a dog and 2 cats and provide food and alcohol. I can't go back to boarding because this setup is so great. There's less stress on him since he's in the comfort of his own home.

[mrsfarmer]

DH's oldest nephew who is 16 house/dog sits for us but his mom checks up on him via phone. He knows from experience if she tries to check in on him and he doesn't answer, she may try calling us to call him or if h does not call back with a good reason, this privilege is gone. We leave food for him like frozen pizza or cooked dishes. We also pay $20/night or so.

One of DH's sisters used to do it since she was 17 and still sporadically will in a pinch. Backstory: our younger dog does not take well to strangers or scolding. If you can find someone to dog/house is who can meet the dog head of time, I would go that route.

[flygirl22]

Most boarding facilities take dogs with agression issues as long as you tell them about it. A lot will not let the dogs interact unless it is specifically noted they like playing with other dogs.

At least in my experience

[Deleted]

A dog sitter is your answer. I've found a few good people on Craigslist, including those with dog sitting "businesses" and just random college kids. I've met the people prior, checked references, etc. It's always been a good experience for us.

I too have a dog with fear aggression issues and he just doesn't get along with most other dogs. I too don't want to board him because it would be so stressful between the fear aggression and general (imagined, perhaps) PTSD from being in a shelter years ago. He's happiest at home, so that's where we leave him when we go out of town.

If you aren't comfortable with a random person, isn't there ANYONE who lives closer who can dog sit? We've had an array of local friends stay at our house and/or stop by when we're out of town. They have always been glad to help and we'd do the same for them.

[ddi741]

Ditto on the Petsmart Pets Hotel. They should be able to handle the situation and you can do anything from the standard suite to the fancy one with the TV.

[Susie]

I'm guessing your vet knows your dog's tendencies, right? You can always call and ask if they'd take him.

We have never had a dog that kennels/vets WOULD NOT take. Our worst-behaved dog (fear aggression issues), the kennel just wouldn't guarantee that they'd bathe her per usual on pickup day. Most places we've ever used have been amenable to boarding "sibling" dogs together.

[Deleted]

I've dogsat for an aggressive dog for a total of 3 weeks since moving here. I met her several times and did a practice walk with the owner and on my own before the big trip. I was paid $30/day and stayed at the owner's house (which is what I assume your friend would do). I don't know how high energy your dogs are, but given the amount of energy this dog was and how much work she was, I've decided I won't do it again because $30/day is not enough for the effort and disruption to my routine. For 2 dogs, I really think you need to offer $40/day.

[midnightmare81]

I think you are WAY over thinking this. MANY dogs are dog aggressive, so this is something most boarding places should be used to.

To me it sounds more like you don't want your dog to have flash-backs to her shelter days, which is completely understandable. In this case I would recommend a dog sitter that comes to the house. It would probably cost about the same as boarding 2 dogs, and they would be in their own environment. The company I worked for charged by visit not pet. We would usually walk the dogs if the owners requested it, but were just as happy to let the dog out and play with them in the yard. I would recommend hiring a company VS a private person however, since they will carry insurance in the event that your dog comes in contact with another dog and there is an issue or if something happens to your dog or even to the sitter. If you do hire a private person, just be aware that if something does happen, you have little to no recourse and would be fully responsible for the issue.

[chessie]

I would find a dog sitter or family member to help if they can. I had an aggressive dog and no place would ever take her due to liability reasons.

[y4m]

We have a sitter from a service come to our home. It's not cheap, but it's the only option I can deal with mentally.

[Deleted]

Most vets will not allow your pet(s) to come into contact with other dogs. There is too great of a risk and liability when animals can be so unpredictable. Also, there should be no problem with keeping your dogs together, especially if it makes them more comfortable. I would give any vet the side-eye who didn't ensure both these things. You may also want to think about asking your vet if you can bring the dogs by several times before actually boarding them. I've had newer clients with fearful dogs do weekly walk-throughs and then leave them for a few hours at a time to "ease" the pet into it and get them used to the staff and environment. This has worked really well with some dogs we were unable to even touch on the first meeting. Talk to your vet. If he/she and the staff aren't willing to try and make you comfortable with leaving them there, you should find a new vet. Good luck!

[justsam]

Call around to some kennels and ask about their policies for aggressive dogs. The one we use keeps them separate, but still allows outside play time. They just let them go out with no other dogs. Mostt kennels will take aggressive dogs.

There's also dogvacay.com. I haven't used it, but I've heard good things about it.

[aspentosh]

The easiest thing I have found is to have someone come stay at our house. It's $75 a day but they are at your house almost all day so the dogs aren't crated or alone. Worth it for our peace of mind.

[dirtyred]

I would go with a kennel.  They will "room" your dogs together, they'll be able to move around/interact with each other, and you could schedule some play time for just the two of them.

There are some kennels that are sort of full-service, meaning they also do training.  If you have one of those near you, you could have them work on the fear aggression.  I had a dog who was like that, and the boarding/training did help somewhat.

[takeonyou]

I would get a sitter. Care.com has a good setup for pet sitting.

[steph96]

Thanks for all the replies! This is such a tough decision.