One of the major decisions for parents that are involved with child rearing is deciding upon which daycare center can become the guardian of their precious bundle. So it is the same with a puppy owner. Finding the right doggie daycare, or overnight kenneling, can be time consuming in conducting research and getting references from friends on where they have boarded their dog. It is a task that a responsible pet owner cannot take lightly. You want to be reassured that you have made the right decision when you place your puppy in the hands of another, and it was my task to find a reputable doggy daycare for Chloe in advance of having work that would be done at our house.
A cocker spaniel is nosey by instinct, and there was
just no way that she wouldn’t become involved in the contractor’s work if we
were to have kept her at home during this period. Locking a cocker in a
separate room was also not going to solve the issue, since they are social dogs
by nature, and they would howl until they were let out to investigate the
housework going on. For Chloe’s safety, and our peace-of-mind it was better to
go through the process of finding the right daycare center.
Being an Architect, where researching an issue is second
nature, I began reading numerous online Internet reviews written from people’s
experiences of boarding kennels in the Albuquerque area. Most reviews appeared
to be positive, with a sprinkling of very specific dislikes of certain kennels
and their procedures. Sanitary conditions, pet handling, and the kennel’s staff
experience were the most frequently written about attributes. Armed with this
information and wanting to find a kennel location that was also nearby our
home, particularly since Chloe doesn’t like long car rides, I finally decided
to put our trust in a facility called “Camp Bow Wow” (www.campbowwow.com).
Yes, the name is a little “campy” (no pun intended)
but they did appear to explain with a sense of knowledge and purpose of how
they handled doggy daycare and overnight boarding. In short, the philosophy of
Camp Bow Wow is to have the dogs interact socially all day by playing in a
visually supervised interior/exterior fenced yard. Their motto is simply
“…where a dog can be a dog”. Allowing dogs to interact, does in fact allow your
pet to become more socialized with their own kind, and from what I have read
about dog training, this is a very beneficial experience that makes for an
overall better behaved and well rounded pet. This interaction also provides plenty
of exercise for your dog, which by the end of the day gives your pet a very
good and healthy workout.
As a cocker owner, my attitude has been when your dog
is given plenty of activity, they will do less destructive chewing, they will
sleep longer at night, and they will be an overall better companion to you and
the rest of the family. That is how I trained Chloe, and from what I can
see this advice seems to have paid off in a well-adjusted puppy. Of course, Chloe is not perfect, and she still
occasionally will chew on my sock …particularly when my foot is still in the sock.
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| Logo | Courtesy of Camp Bow Wow |
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