Ya Gotta Tell Them!
I recently read an article about a Dog Day Care who had the unfortunate experience of a dog escaping the facility in the middle of the day and no one noticed. At the end of the day, the dog’s owners (brand new to this daycare) returned to pick up their dog andno dog. The article did not provide any information if there was a happy ending to the story - so we don’t know if Fido returned home. But what the article did share was that - after the fact - the owners told the day care that the dog was a fence climber. Everyone assumed the little guy (Beagle) climbed the six foot fence and was gone before anyone noticed the escape.
I used to own a boarding kennel and dog training facility. Over the Christmas holiday one year, a new family brought me their two Cocker Spaniels to board for two weeks. The wife dropped the dogs off and instructed me to clean the dog’s ears daily. Knowing that not all dogs enjoy an ear cleaning and since I was not familiar with my new guests, I questioned her how well the dogs would accept the cleaning. She assured me they would be fine. On the first attempt to clean the ears I received the worst bite of my professional career. I thought the dog crushed my finger - had it not been so painful, it was almost comical. One of those moments where the dog had my hand locked between his jaws and I had to use the other hand to pry open his mouth! He made a very strong point that he didn’t want to have his ears cleaned.
Two weeks later, the husband came to pick up the dogs. As soon as he came in the door, I told him what happened and that the dogs never got their ears cleaned. His reply”I’m so sorry you got hurt, they bite us too when we clean their ears!”
The point to my sharing these stories is this - when you take your pet to a Groomer or Vet or Kennel or where ever - PLEASE tell the pet care provider things that you know about your pet’s behavior and/or personality. Had the dog Day Care known the Beagle was a fence climber - they could have (should have) taken precautions to make sure the little guy did not escape. Had the owners of the cockers shared with me that they bite when their ears are cleaned - a quick little muzzle put on them would have kept their ears in good health and my fingers in better health! I’ve got a million more stories just like the two above - and my only guess is that some pet owners are a little bit ashamed of their pet’s behavior sometimes - so they don’t want to tell a pet professional about it! My advice to you is to get over the embarrassment and tell the pet professionals that work with you and your pet anything and everything they might need to know. This information will keep your pet safer and healthier - and allows the pet professional the means to do their job to their best ability.
On the other hand - there are many pet care providers out there that just don’t care enough. I’ve seen many of them - and I cringe when I think about the heartbreak they could cause because of their reckless or careless behavior. I wish I could tell you exactly how to avoid those type of pet professionals - but I can’t. I can however give you some suggestions from the perspective of someone who took care of pets for a living.
1. Everything in the pet business should be clean, clean, clean! I’m not kidding when I say this - my kennel and training facility was cleaner than my home. And I firmly believe that if the pet business owner doesn’t care enough about the cleanliness of the facility - what else don’t they care about? The business doesn’t have to be ’state of the art’ modern - but it should be very clean.
2. Meet the staff. Not just the person at the desk - try to meet, look in the eye, and talk with as many of the employees as you can. That’s a little difficult - especially from the business owners perspective - but those are the folks that will be caring for your baby, try your best.
3. Get references. The best information can be learned from other customers of the business. Get several references and call them.
4. In most states pet care businesses are guided by local Animal Control licensing. Call the licensing agency and the Better Business Bureau and ask about any reports of abuse or misconduct with the pet business you are considering.
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