minimum acceptable standards in boarding kennels?

gettingready

zaksmum wrote: »

So I'm getting a budgie next time....:mad:

LOL that is how I feel whan I have to go away.... paying £25 per day for Zara to stay at home boarding (and yes, she sleeps with the girl on her bed if she wants to, with other dogs... very spoilt all boarders LOL) and £10 per day for someone to come and see the cats twice per day. That is £35 per day on top of whatever it costs me to go away.... so I am practically housbound.. due to costs.. Budgie sounds like an excellent idea LOL

:T:T

zaksmum

Well...I went to see kennels today that had been advertised as luxury and just could NOT believe the state of them.

I went unannounced and said I was looking for kennels for my dogs in the near future, and asked if I could look around. A woman took me through to the kennel area and I was totally horrified. It was more like a dungeon. Damp, cold, smelly, cobwebbed, with wet concrete floors in each pen and a tatty roof made of perspex with broken areas. Each pen was tiny and cramped, with a small ledge at the back where the bedding was. The dogs could not see out at all, and would see only the 4 concrete walls of the pen. I said how cold it was in there, and she said the dogs were in the yard most of the time. I asked how come they had no view, no visual stimulation at all - she said it upsets them to be able to see other dogs.

To see the dogs, I had to peer over the top of each door which was about 5ft high. A little Westie crouched miserably in one pen, looking totally hopeless, and in another a beautiful Malamute howled pitifully, scrabbling desperately at the door. I asked about heating - the woman reached up and switched on an ancient looking filthy heat lamp above one of the pens that seemed to be more red bulb than heat. The pens might as well have been outdoors for all the protection the "roof" gave them. A fan in the centre of the kennels was black with grime.

In a concrete yard, some dogs walked round alone and apart from other dogs - no sign of anyone playing or interacting with them. The woman said "some dogs don't like playing"!!

So needless to say there's not a chance in hell I'd put my dogs there!!!!

But now I'm looking at my dogs, all snuggled up and warm, and I can't stop thinking about that poor little Westie or the Malamute, huddled up now in the dark, probably freezing cold and lonely.

It's enough to break your heart.

DogsBody

Blimey! It's no secret that I am the first to criticise the less than excellent care provided at the kennels where I work, but your description of that place makes us look like the Ritz!:eek:

'Indoor' pens with no attached runs would not meet the license conditions nowadays, although if this place has been running for many years the licensing authority can accept facilities that wouldn't meet the regs now but did when they were built.

The minimum temperature should (must) be maintained above 10 degrees C.

The minimum size acceptable in the 'rules' is scarily small - a 6 x 4 feet 'sleeping' area and an 8 x 4 run is enough to satisfy. I think this is fine if the staffing level is good and the inmates have something to look out at, but not otherwise.

Smell - even the best places will smell 'doggy', but you shouldn't smell pee, and the disinfectant smell shouldn't be overpowering either. A wet floor wouldn't necessarily upset me (unless it was yellow!) - when I clean the runs at ours, they are air dried and the dogs will walk water through onto the tiles when they go back in, so if you were to turn up just after cleaning it'd look pretty wet for maybe an hour (given the time of year).

The walls between dogs have to be solid up to about 4 feet (I prefer solid to the roof), but I don't like to see solid doors on the fronts even though the 'rules' are OK with that- might as well shut your dog in the cupboard

The answers you were given, and the lack of people about would worry me more than the description of the facilities (although 'luxury' seems like a stretch too far) - it's the social contact, environmental enrichment and interaction that is important to a dog in kennels (and the animal welfare act!!!) as long as the hygiene requirements are being satisfied. Your dog won't care what it looks like.

Having read your post, I may look at my boss slightly more charitably when i go in to work tomorrow!:)

PS - if you think the place you visited was in breach of the license conditions (there should have been a copy of these displayed next to the actual license in a prominent place, usually reception), please do drop you councils EH dept (or animal welfare officer, if they have one) an email to bring it to their attention (you don't have to make a complaint, in fact I'm not sure you can if you haven't had inmates there)- almost noone does this, and the licensing authority can't 'have words' or suggest improvements at the annual inspection if they think everything is fine.

zaksmum

Thanks Dogsbody. I'm still so upset at what I saw there. No way was it 10C - hubby was with me and he said it was perishing cold.

Definitely no attached run. Poor dogs would've been better off shut in a cupboard. Solid doors on the fronts except for about a foot of mesh at the top, far too high for the dogs to be able to see over. It wasn't wee I could smell, either...more just a horrible dirty smell.

The place itself is delapidated...like an old barn or something, built around mid 1800s and - literally - not touched since. Going through reception (which was a scruffy and unkempt area with prices chalked on a board) I thought things would surely improve beyond there. Instead they were far worse.

I do very strongly feel that if those conditions were in a third world country the media would be up in arms about it.

I didn't see any licence or conditions but definitely feel they must be in breach of animal welfare requirements. I am going to contact the council about it because the feeling of sadness for the poor dogs just won't go away.

minimoneysaver

Makes you wonder if the kennels is licenced or an unofficial cash cow for the owner? Definitely worth chasing up.

DogsBody

Zaksmum - the displaying of the licence (told you I couldn't spell it ) is one thing that most local authorities are s*** hot on. Deffo drop the council an email (usually environmental health have responsibility for licensing), and ask them if they can give you a list of their licensed kennels in the area. They are not allowed to recommend anyone AFAIK, but you will often find that those kennels that are good enough to license but not 'that' good will be quietly missed off the list they give you - this certainly happens in our LA area. It is against the law to operate without a license, but there usually has to be quite a noise made about it by the punters - we have an unlicensed one near(ish) to us, but noone really reports it (except my boss, all the time ) so nothing really gets done.

A decent kennels will still be pretty full at this time of year (only till Monday though;)) so if they were fairly quiet, says it all really!

Jan is usually a good time to have a look round because most places are quiet, if there is decorating/maintainance going to happen, now is the best time, there's no excuse for having the place in a tip and whoever is there should have plenty of time to answer your questions (and they shouldn't mind doing it either, these people are supposed to like dogs, no?).

As a general point - humans being very visually orientated, it is natural to want to see a 'nice' environment (my boss is very good for this, new/purpose built kennels, nice paint job, pretty gardens, tiles, pictures, shiny reception etc), but don't let appearances blind you to the actual care offered - this is far more important, even though I agree it's hard to see past a ramshackle building that hasn't seen a lick of paint in years.

Look out for how the person showing you round is with the inmates already there - they should be able to tell you something about any of them you comment on, the bulk of the inmates should be interested in saying hello to them, and it's nice to see the staff at least talking to the inmates as they go past - if you can get a 'good' feeling about how they are with the inmates, it's easier to trust them with your own dog - and ask them if they mind you ringing every day to ask after them, they shouldn't as long as it's not every 5 mins/outside 'open' hours etc.

meritaten

I used to leave my Springer spaniel in kennels during the summer (weekends and for up to a week when we had our caravan). I rang around various kennels and depending on the persons attitude shortlisted three. and went and inspected them on the owners invitations. all three looked much the same on paper but one really stood out. As the owner was taking us around I noticed she spoke to every dog, calling them by name even though no name was visible on the kennel. each kennel was clean and they ALL had a comfy bed and toys strewn around. all the dogs seemed alert and happy. the owner stressed that she asked every dog owner to bring in a favourite toy, but she had a big supply of toys and all the dogs were given a new clean toy every day. all the dogs were fed the food they had at home and I was asked what the dogs liked for treats - she said cheese was a favourite and was a bit taken aback when I said cucumber. but it wasnt a prob! the kennels was in an old farm and the dogs got walked over fields and through woods. it was quite a way to the nearest main road.......anyway, I am wittering!
I was a bit nervous about leaving my beloved Meg so she had a one night stay - and although she was delighted to see us she seemed fine.
so we left her from the Friday to Monday morning. she seemed happy enough and her reaction when we took her again the next Friday confirmed that she was happy to stay with them!
We used that kennels for years - and they eventually got a pick-up and drop your dog off at home service - except they sometimes forgot to drop her off! Meg adored them and had somehow wormed her way into the house! they often forgot she was only a guest and treated her as family! Wonderful people and I was sorry to hear they had given up the business and moved away.
Not all kennels are bad hun. if you could find a good kennel then the dog would be happy and so would you.

DogsBody

Zaksmum - have you had a look on https://www.boardingkennels.org ? You can do a local search and have a look at pics to see if you think anything in your area is worth going to visit, also they have some good tips re what to look for/ask about etc.

zaksmum

Thanks dogsbody and meritaten. I know there must be good kennels out there and I will do whatever it takes to find the right one for my dogs...I LOVE those Country club ones where the dog has a comfy bed!!

I don't know if you've ever been to a Dogs Trust Centre, but the pens there are fine. Bright, spacious, with the dogs lying on donated old sofas or armchairs - and all with views of the outdoor parkland, with a quieter sleeping area for night time.

Dogsbody, that link was helpful, but the kennel I saw wasn't on it. There was good advice though.

Meritaten, how brilliant that you could find a kennel you were happy with for Meg. I just can't believe the squalour some people are happy to pay good money to leave their dogs in. No wonder they come home ill.

I've found a dog home boarder near me tonight. I contacted her and I'm taking the dogs to meet her tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed for me that she's nice enough to leave my dogs with!!

meritaten

fingers legs and toes are crossed! honestly, If I could have found someone who had cared for Meg in their home I would have been delighted! I was lucky and found very good, caring kennels! and my dog was there so often (most weekends in the summer) they really got to know her (plus they had springer spaniels themselves). Meg would sometimes come down to the caravan with us - but we had the feeling she preferred the kennels! as soon as we turned into the lane for the kennels she became excited, and would then jump out of the car and head straight to 'her' kennel!
the other kennels were clean etc, and the animals seemed ok, but they werent PERSONAL.
if I had viewed the kennels you had - I would be upset too! didnt the owners inspect them first? i WOULD have complained to the licencing people too! thats not acceptable! and I know that I am going to have nightmares now about those poor dogs!