“I toured a doggie daycare with 60+ dogs in rooms with no windows and shut doors. No sight lines. The dogs went potty inside. There was one human in the building. No humans playing with the animals. The building smelled like bleach. I don’t feel like I need to say it, but for those wondering — this is not the way you socialize dogs.
Dogs going potty indoors have accidents at home and one human cannot properly watch 60+ dogs. If you are looking for boarding or doggy daycare, please tour the property and ask questions. Find out their dog-to-human ratio, ask what your dog will be doing all day and how long they will kennel your dog, make sure your dog has outside access, and find out if they monitor with humans or just video cameras.”
We encourage you to ask a lot of questions during your tour of any dog facility. For instance, how do they introduce dogs and keep them safe? What training do they have? Will your dog stay in the kennel 24/7 and pee/poop there too? Does the daytime staff leave at 6pm and come back at 6am?
This is sadly the typical boarding experience. As a dog lover, it was devastating to see. I toured one facility here in Tucson and the conditions I saw still make me cringe – the above quote is what I shared to social media that day June 23rd, 2023.
The bleach smell hit you in the face when walking in and when seeing only one person onsite, the owner normalized that by talking about how hard it is to find good help. He also told us that all dogs are picked up and dropped off curbside so owners are not coming inside. Let me say that again, another way — the bleach smell was because of my scheduled tour, cleaning up beforehand, and the owners don’t know about the poop and pee in the play room or that during boarding, the dog literally has to live with their pee and poop.
The worst part was seeing this one dog with 3 piles of poop and multiple wet spots on the floor in his room. The room was a good sized space, but he was completely separate from the other dogs, he was dirty and his hair matted. Apparently, he was almost done with a month long stay and the owner was brushing it off as normal, and that he would get a bath and get his hair cut before going home in a few days. This dog’s hair was grey and filthy, it was matted and would need shaving. You could not touch him without feeling the grime and filth. How long did this good boy go without feeling the love of a human?
It is not that the people working in these facilities don’t love dogs. I believe some do. However, when you have 100+ kenneled dogs, it is hard to give any individual time, attention, and care
Situations like this one are a reminder of why we started Dogs of Tucson. We’re different than any other dog boarding facility, because of our: approach, small human to dog ratio, 24/7 human companionship, outdoor potty times, plenty of playtime with other dogs, and individual time, attention, and love.
When we say we have a human on-site, we mean it. Your dog will have a caring and professional team member to provide cuddles and help your dog settle in for the night. They will be kept happy and comfortable by people that have studied dog behavior and know how to read their body language. We supervise any dog interactions to ensure all dogs are happy and safe– and we know when to give them breaks to relax and even nap! Your dog will have plenty of space, including a comfortable place to sleep and room to take a break from other dogs if wanted. They’ll have the chance to attend dog daycare during the day and unwind with some great one-on-one time at night– with no other dogs barking in 100s of kennels.
We hate the safety concerns we’ve been at other facilities and we want you to feel assured that we do everything in our power to keep our dogs happy, healthy, safe, and relaxed during their stay with us.
If you see me at the park (ie Dogs of Tucson), you know I have a relationship with every single dog who comes in. They check in with me. I check in with them. We share lots of good touches and eye contact. They know I am to be trusted and I am a safe place. This is the same for my team. We create a safe space for dogs to be dogs, where they can join in a pack and truly be able to share their personality and have fun.
Let’s talk about how Dogs of Tucson is different! https://dogsoftucson.com/
