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Dog daycare is one of the fastest growing segments of the pet industry. There are many reasons for this and I am happy that its growth in continuing. We have sent our dog to some sort of dog daycare for the last 3 years. When we first started, we got all sorts of comments from people. Most were astounded that would we pay that kind of money for “doggie daycare”. We are your classic “pet parents”. We both work all day and we decided before we got our dog that we didn’t want to keep her in the house all day by herself. Our solution was dog daycare.

Dog daycare facilities are set up in a number of ways. Check out yours carefully. We found some that sort dogs by size, small, medium and large. Others just have a big open area and all dogs play together. The costs can vary quite a bit as well so make sure yours is inline with the care they give. These questions are to help you assess three components of the dog daycare.

1. The facilities.
2. The staff.
3. Customer Service/Reliability/Recommendations.

A good way to check out a dog daycare is to approach it as you might a childcare center.

• Tour the entire facility and meet all the staff that will be around your dog, if possible.
• Does the area have an area that is indoors, outdoors or both?
• Are the dogs individually walked during the day? If not, where do the dogs relief themselves?
• Are there sufficient gates and fencing to avoid dogs escaping?
• Do they have periods of rest along with active play times?
• Is it air conditioned, heated and ventilated appropriately?
• What material do they use for the flooring?
• What vaccinations are required for dogs to attend?
• How many dogs per square feet do they allow to attend?
• What is the staff to dog ratio at all times?
• Do they have bathing facilities if they need it? Accidents happen!
• Do they have a webcam you can watch while at work?
• How long has it been open?

You should now have a good picture of the facilities after asking these questions and completing a tour. Now its time to look at the dog daycare staff.

• How well trained is the staff?
• Do they do an “interview” with each dog to make sure it will be a good candidate for dog daycare?
• Ask them what behaviors they look for when they are checking a dog for compatibility.
• Does the staff have regular full time workers that get to know the dogs? Or part time staff that rotate shifts?
• Do they have a vet tech on staff that can administer medications if needed?
• What kind of discipline or correction is given to dogs if needed?
• Do they provide any update on your dog’s activities on a daily or weekly basis?
• Do they know the names of the dogs currently at the facility?
• How long have the staff members worked there?

From these questions, you should be able to get a pretty good idea of the experience level of the staff and how stable the staff is with respect to turn over. Now lets focus on business in general. For example, you might need your dog to be picked up at your house before or after work, is that possible?

• What procedures are in place if the dog needs to be taken to a vet?
• What are their hours?
• What times can you drop off your dog or pick her up?
• What happens if you are late?
• Do they keep your dog overnight? What is the charge?
• How do they charge? Per day? Per week? Do they have half days?
• How do they control the number of dogs to staff ratio? Are you required to make a “reservation” on a daily basis?
• Can they handle young dogs/puppies? Or older, slower dogs safely?
• Is the owner ever on site and available?

Finally, get recommendations from people that use the facility. Ask your vet if your dog seems like a good candidate for the type of dog daycare they provide and if they recommend the dog daycare. Send some emails to local dog trainers and ask if they have a suggested dog daycare in the area.

Here are a couple things that have happened to us in our three years. First, we went to drop off our dog at a dog daycare facility only to find that it was closed for three days due to a kennel cough outbreak. They did not call us to tell us in advance. We had to take a “sick day” ourselves that day. Also, keep an eye on the staff and conditions as these can change. We had an excellent facility, but as time when on, the full time regular staff changed to part time high school help. There is nothing wrong with that in itself, but they had no experience, did not know who we were, who our dog was or what her name was. We stopped attending shortly after that.

Final thoughts. We love the fact that our dog is busy during the day and tired and relaxed when we get home. We also feel good that she is not in the house all day by herself. I would highly recommend it if it works for you. Alternatively, you can check out pet sitting. Have a pet sitter come to your house and take your dog out for exercise and a break. This can often times be much cheaper and just as effective as dog daycare.