Dog boarding has always been pretty straight forward in the past, you put you animal into a kennel or you give it to a relative. While its pretty easy to call your nearest kennels, the price you usually pay is pretty steep. One week full board can cost upto £500 a week, ( usually the price of a holiday ). I have heard of many dog owners feeling extremely guilty at the prospect of leaving their prized pet in the hands of a complete stranger for a lot of money and hoping the dog will still be alive when you get back from you vacation. Is the pet getting any exercise? Will they feed your dog properly and use the food your dog loves? Will your animal be in a shared kennel with strange dogs with various behavior issues? Ok, I am giving you "worst case" scenarios, however, these issues and problems can happen and its always best to get recommendations long before you go on holiday. Obviously you can take your dog away with you if you are traveling from the UK to most of Europe if you have got a valid pet passport, but then again is it really a holiday if you end up taking your pet. The first couple of days may be fine but when its time to go on that trip or perhaps the beach then do you want your dog sitting next to you awaiting his ball or treat? We used to leave our animal with our uncle for a few years but recently I found out my extended family hates dogs and was only looking after it because we were family and did not want to let us down. he also did not have a clue on handling dogs and hardly never took him for a dog walk. Okay I did not pay him a fee and gave my uncle a bottle of wine as a thank you, but now I wished I had made other arrangements. Over the past few years dog boarding has indeed changed and evolved into a mish mash of the two. Home boarding where a dog stays with another family that may already own a dog and understands pets and how to look after them. Most owners visit the prospective dog adopter before an agreement is reached so he or she can check out the house where your animal is staying and make sure its safe and suitable for a dog stay for a week or two. Fees are usually about the same as a kennel, but you know your pet will not be kept in a cage or pen for days on end. Some Essex dog boarding providers even install ip-cams so you can check up on your pet and make sure he is behaving himself. home boarding seems to be a good balance and there are plenty of companies out there, many with good reviews. |