Boarding Your Dog
 

Hello everyone. It's been a while since I have been on the site so I hope everyone is doing well.

Me & hubby are planning on going away during the xmas season (December 26th thru 29th). It's just a little get-a-way since we have not had any sort of vacation in about 4 years and need to rest the mind & body to re-energize.

I got my Junebug in June (alas the name Junebug) and being a puppy mill rescue, I was having second thoughts of boarding him and making him feel that he is being abandoned. It is hard because some of these animals that were subject to such horrible conditions do, in fact, suffer and go backwards. He has come a long way and I am afraid he will have a "flashback" and go back to his normal behavior afterwards. And those cages they are kept in would be scary for him. One of the ladies at the rescue said she had a smaller Maltese mix and after 3 days in a kennel was a totally different dog after coming home (in a negative way).

I have no family and do not have neighbors I trust enough to take care of my baby. The rescue is no help because their job is to find permanent, loving homes for these animals and not become a sit-in mom or a kennel when their adopters need to go on vacation, busniess trips, etc. We did check out the pet-motel through our local Petsmart and looks very roomy (even with each dog having their own tv and a larger room). Any thoughts would be appreciated.

In the meantime, I will continue to brainstorm on my own.

Hello! And welcome back! :)

I realise I'm from a totally different part of the world - but I, personally, wouldn't be able to bear the thought of Harry (or Junebug!) being put back in a cage, any size or kind of cage, again. I don't think it would be worth the thought of regression - and I'm sure you wouldn't enjoy your time away with the worry of it all! :)

You've got quite a while, so plenty of time for research. Does your Vet know of any 'house-sitters' that are registered and insured, that might be able to come and stay at yours, so that little Junebug is in his own environment?

What I did was to advertise for a dog-sitter to look after Harry in their own home. I interviewed at least a dozen ladies, visited their homes, saw how Harry interacted, checked out references....and then, once I'd found 'the one', I left him with her for just a day. Then a couple of weeks later, left him with her for an overnighter. It worked out absolutely perfectly - now he loves Lisa as much as he loves me! :D

I'll keep thinking - and good luck with whatever you decide! :) Sally + Harry :aimeeyork x

Dogvacay.com
I just found out about this site, and it seems like a great idea! The dog stays at someones house (majority of the people I've found work from home, so your dog isn't left for hours during the day. You can check out reviews of the "sitter" when you click their link. It's worth a try.:)

I agree that I would never have the heart to put Jackson in a boarding situation - but he is very sensitive and does not like to be handled by strangers at all. He is very stressed in those types of situations. I am lucky though that I have my family to help me when I leave. If I HAD to do some kind of pet sitting situation, I would by far choose a pet sitter that comes to my house over anything else. I would have to have the sitter come over a few times first to get to know my dog, with me there, and make sure I felt comfortable with how Jax was acting, before leaving them for longer period. And if I HAD to do boarding of some kind, I would definitely pay big bucks to make sure he had a 'room' and not a cage... with a couch, TV, etc. It may sound ridiculous but that's what he is used to and I know he would be much more comfortable than a cage. He is never expected to be crated at home, and is not crate trained.

I would love to talk to you about keeping him while you are away. Depending on where in PA you live we could be almost neighbors, as I'm in northeastern MD. If we are close, we could meet a few times before you go away so he could get to know me. Let me know what you think!
I totally understand your reluctance to board him somewhere-I feel the same way!
Shannon

My friend recommended using Dog Boarding Just Got Awesome! | DogVacay as well. I looked into the site and found various choices of dog sitters. She said she had great experience with the dog sitter she found from the site and have used her services many times.

I hope you find a good sitter... :)

Most boarding places are really nice. If you have no family or trusted friends then I would kennel him.

Like you said most of them let you bring your own beds, have T.v's comfy couches, play time ( you can buy xtra play time) they have cams so you can check in on him, etc. Now a days they are really nice. Some more than others.

I'm not sure I would use Petsmart, I would try to find more of a private one. Privately owned VS Corporate. Most of the places have tours as well, you can see how clean they keep it, how happy the dogs are etc..

Peanut has a really nice kennel. He will always stay with my Mom however he stayed there one time for a half day. He had his own little suite, tons of play time and he just loved it. I checked on him through the cam!!

It's a hard decision to make, however I'm sure if Junebug is treated well he will enjoy the kennel. I think it is always nice to have a place he has been and done well at lined up. You never know what emergency is going to come up.

P.S If you find one you like you can do a tour and take Junebug with you... if you end up wanting to try it you can always do a half day to see how he likes it!! At least if he has a bad experience you know you will have to start finding plan B.

Does your vet have a board at his office...you know the kind where people tack business cards & advertisements for upcoming events like dog walks, rescue fundraisers, etc?

If so, I'd put the ad on the vet's board looking for a fellow dog owner to watch Junebug.

I'd give her a shout because I am really super fortunate to have friends who love and care for my dogs that I completely trust to watch them when I won't be home.
You may just have found a permanent solution to your problem

:thumbup: And it could work both ways....!!! :D

Now - any Surrey owners fancy looking after huge, nutty Harry-Boy?!!!!? ;) :D Sally + Harry x

My dh and I usually take Tink with us on vacation. I have even taken Tink with me on work trips and my job has no problem with it as long as I pay for any extra costs involved. I am lucky though because if I absolutely had to leave her my daughter would keep her for me. I would have a hard time leaving Tink with a stranger, but I think a pet sitter would be your best option.

I would definitely check into the offer made by the member in MD.

Well, after brainstorming I contacted the animal rescue I got JB from and they recommended that I contact his foster mom. I was was like :doh:.....why didn't I think of that?

I have a call into her to see if she would be interested. She has been with Main Line Animal Rescue for years and has many dogs of her own. Plus JB knows her and the dogs already. Please say prayers as I await her answer, for this would be great!

What a great idea!

mindmyhouse.com is a great option too for anyone who needs pet care at home!

:)

Morning everyone! :D

Yep, I am grinning ear to ear because his fostermom (she says fairy godmother :angel2dl:) said YES!! We will be leaving on Sunday December 22nd and coming back on the 26th so she will have him over xmas. I think she is actually happy about it cause she said she was tempted to keep JB but just couldn't. That was her awnswer when I asked her when we went to pick him up in June.

Now the next question is...how much to pay? I know she will tell me she doesn't want anything cause it will be a joy for her to have him but I have to give something. I was going to leave her a check in an xmas card but I do not know how much AND when to give it to her (when we drop him off before xmas or when we pick him up?). Any adivse is appreciated!