While you may want to bring your dog with you all the time, there are instances where you can’t. While it can be heartbreaking to leave your dog while you go away for a trip, or on a vacation, you can still allow your pet to have a luxurious and comfortable stay at a dog hotel. If there is a dog park near, the better for the dog.
A dog hotel is an establishment where you can check in your dogs for a certain number of days and the staff will take good care of your pooch under their supervision. They’ll be feeding them right on schedule, may give them treats, take them out for their daily walks, let them drink any medications, if necessary, and allow your pets to sleep in their private, comfortable dog beds. Even some may have dog kennels with soft mats for a good rest and other amenities that can make the pooch comfortable when you are out of town.
It’s not easy finding a good dog boarding for your pet when you’re traveling or on a family vacation. There are many factors to consider, like the size of the pet, whether or not they have any allergies, how long they will be staying at the hotel, and so on. But it doesn’t have to be difficult!
While those sounds impressive, listed below are the essential tips when choosing the best dog hotel for your furry friend:
1. Choose Near Dog Hotels
You’d be surprised to find out that there are plenty of dog hotels in your area. With that, it’ll be best if you could choose a dog hotel near me so you can cut off any travel time as you drop your pal off and pick them up from the dog boarding.
While going for a pooch hotel near the place where you’ll be staying for your trip is an option, it may not be the best choice for your dogs since you’ll be bringing them with you for long hours on a road trip, which they might not enjoy being in. Remember, dogs may get sick on long car rides.
2. Visit The Dog Hotel
Every pooch hotel that you see on the internet is supposed to look fantastic and fabulous. While you may want to trust their photos, it’ll be best if you could visit the place and see the appearance for yourself.
As you visit the hotel, you’ll be able to determine if the whole place is well-taken care of or has the necessary facilities and service, etc. The hotel for your best friend should look luxurious and neat with a dog bed, bottled water, disinfected water bowl, water, and also what the hotels charge for the stay and if they would charge any additional fee. All these factors should be considered before booking.
Moreover, you can also communicate with people running the pooch hotel and have a little chat with them. If you feel that there’s something off about the boarding, you should trust your instinct and look for other hotels instead.
By visiting the dog hotel, you can imagine your dog’s situation while you’re out on your trip and it’ll also prevent you from paying a high price for an awful facility and service.
3. Ask About Their Dog Routine
Additionally, visiting the dog hotel is the perfect time to ask about how they’re going to take care of the dogs that are residing.
Ideally, you should ask about the feeding hours and what foods they’re going to feed your pooch. If your dog has a specific food diet, you should inform the boarding management right away. Also, you can hand them your dog food so they’ll be able to feed your dog in accordance with their diet.
You should also ask when they take the dogs out for a walk and for how long. If there is a dog park around where they can provide dog runs as and when required, both for small dogs and big dogs. You can also ask how many dogs they walk at a time. This is a great question to ask as you’ll never know if your furry friend would be walking with an aggressive dog, which can put your pup’s life at risk.
You could also ask if they offer playtime with dogs, in which they allow certain breeds to play together to keep them entertained while you’re gone. You should confirm if they’ll supervise the pups during these hours or let them have a good time alone. Ideally, they should provide full-time supervision to prevent any fights and accidents.
Apart from their daily routine, you should also ask about their nighttime routine, like how they help put your dog in a dog bed and are included in your dog’s room to help them have a comfortable sleep.
4. Confirm If There’s A Veterinarian On Call
Accidents can happen all the time. With that, you should always be on the lookout for your dog’s health and safety. If something happens to your pet due to health or physical concerns while you’re gone, a dog hotel should have an on-call veterinarian who can examine the condition of your furry friend and provide appropriate action and treatment. In this way, you can guarantee that your dog is in good hands 24/7.
You can also ask if their veterinarian has a specific working hour or whether they can immediately give them a ring any time of the day. With a full-time veterinarian, you’ll have a peaceful trip since you don’t have to constantly worry about your dog’s condition. Constantly worrying about your dog may prevent you from having a good time.
5. Check Health Requirements
Before you check in your dog at a dog hotel, you should submit your dog’s vaccination records so the hotel can confirm that your pal is protected and won’t develop any problems during their stay. If a hotel didn’t ask for any health requirements, you might want to consider looking for a different place as they might be accepting any kind of dogs without proper vaccination, which can put your pup at risk.
Of course, you’d want your dog to be around pets who are vaccinated and healthy so that they won’t be leaving the dog boarding feeling sick and out of sorts. That’s why it’s important that you confirm with the dog hotel about their health requirements for every dog that’ll enter their facility.
6. Ask For Special Services
A dog hotel is luxurious for a reason. Apart from quality pet beds and temperature-controlled rooms, some such hotels also offer excellent special services, allowing your pet to feel pampered while you’re away. Meaning the place is really dog-friendly.
Ideally, the pet parents should confirm with the hotel if they offer a special service, which you can add to your total bill. A special service can include a complete grooming session or a doggie spa treatment wherein they’ll give your dog a unique and relaxing massage that can help put their stress and worries away.
With special services, you can rest assured that your dog is given a comfortable and enjoyable time while you’re away. While the added cost may seem unnecessary, it’ll be a rare experience that they’ll surely appreciate and enjoy.
7. Confirm How They Disinfect The Dog Hotel
Of course, you’d like to leave your dog in a clean facility to ensure their health and hygiene. You don’t want your dog to stay in a room that’s full of the previous dog’s pee.
Confirm with the staff members regarding how they disinfect the place after each use. If they simply mop and wipe the floor and bed, you might want to reconsider your hotel and look for a different alternative. Ideally, a dog boarding should thoroughly clean every corner of the room and provide proper disinfection to kill any bacteria that may linger. They should also wash the bed after the departure of every dog. In this way, you can ensure that your dog is sleeping on a freshly cleaned bed rather than a filthy bed from a different dog.
You should also confirm how often they clean the dog bowls. Ideally, they should wash them after every meal to keep every bowl sanitized. This means that your dog won’t get any stomach ache due to bacteria found in the dog bowl.
8. Check For Reviews
No matter how great a hotel for the dog looks and feels, some might offer a different service than promised once you check your dogs in. If you want to get the service that you expect, you should consider reading the reviews upon checking in.
In the modern world today, you can stumble upon plenty of online reviews about a specific pooch hotel that you’re eyeing. Ideally, you should check individual reviews and avoid in-house testimonials as the company usually pre-selects them.
You’d want to get an honest review about how a particular dog hotel performs and if they can live up to their promise. Ideally, you should go for a boarding that has good ratings coming from many people.
If you’re not too confident with reading online reviews, you might want to ask a few family members or friends around who’ve previously checked their dogs in that specific hotel for pets. In this way, you can have an honest and trusted opinion about the establishment. Then, you can gauge if you’re still comfortable with checking your dogs in.
Conclusion
Your dog’s safety and comfort are always your number one priority as you look for a pet hotel. Since you cannot bring your dog with you during your trips, checking them in at a dog boarding would be the best way to make your pet feel comfortable while you’re gone. The most important thing is that the place should be dog friendly where the dog enjoys every moment of its stay.
Ensure that you look for a pet hotel that provides the most outstanding service and their location is near your home so you won’t have any trouble dropping your dog off and then picking them up.
Lastly, to bring home the hotel experience, you might want to consider purchasing a quality dog bed for your furry friend for a good rest and peaceful sleep.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) that may be in your mind
What is the best dog hotel?
It’s the best time of year for vacations, but are you traveling with your pet? If so, make sure to research dog-friendly hotels! There is nothing worse than finding out after booking a hotel that it doesn’t allow pets. It can be difficult to find just the right place for your furry friend too. Hopefully, this helps you find the best dog hotel while avoiding any potential pitfalls in advance!
How to find the best dog-friendly hotel?
The best way to find out which hotels allow pets is by doing an online search of “dog-friendly hotels”. Many apps like Dog Vacay and Rover also list pet-friendly accommodations around the world. The best place to start though is by looking at Airbnb listings as they often include this information on their website! If these are not helpful enough there’s always Google Maps where users can search for businesses that accept animals nearby.
What is the most pet-friendly hotel chain?
It’s a question that many pet owners ask themselves: where should they leave their furry friend on vacation, without breaking the bank or feeling guilty about leaving them behind? One solution for those looking for hotels that accommodate pets is Airbnb rentals; these can be cheaper than traditional lodging and allow you to make sure your home matches an animal’s needs. At many airports, they provide listings of Airbnb properties all around the world and their pet policies so you know what to expect before booking a trip! Other options include joining one of the various global networks which offer discounts on accommodations if they have contact.
Which hotels do not charge pets?
Many hotels around the world are pet-friendly and don’t charge a fee for your four-legged friend to stay with you. Pets might be restricted from certain areas of the hotel, but they can still enjoy the comforts of their own bed while out exploring new places!
Can you leave a dog unattended in a hotel room?
Experts and many owners are of the view that a dog should not be kept unattended in a place where it is new to its surroundings. In this context, the daycare center and hotels for pooches have gained so much importance over the years.
