Nauset Kennels

Kirsten and I are on a much needed, much anticipated trip to Ireland. Kirsten has been working like crazy trying to get all her ducks in a row. My parents are staying home with the kids, and for anyone who either knows my folks or has read this blog before, you know where our animals will be while we are away – the kennel!

Hoot, Scout and Pecan are all booked into camp for the next two weeks, and while our kids are beside themselves, my parents are doing little dances around the house, happy that they don’t have those extra chores associated with the animals. As I was cleaning out the litter box, my dad looked on with disgust and said, very firmly, “Thank you. Thank you so much for not making me do that.”

It’s nice for us to know that we can go away and our kids are in good hands. It’s even better knowing that our business is in good hands. And it’s a trifecta knowing that our kids, our business, and our animals are all taken good care of while we are gone.

And for those of you who wonder, yes, our pets are treated just like everyone else’s. And in many ways, they even act like your pets. Hoot is cautious by nature, and will take a few days acclimating to the cat room. She might peek her head out. What will probably really draw her out will be when one of the girls goes into the cat room and sits patiently on the floor waiting for her to come out of hiding.

Pecan, well, Pecan is in dog heaven. He is on the dog equivalent of speed from his excitement. Give him friends to wrestle with (he really likes Ruby) and he is good to go. He’ll probably lose weight from being so amped up all the time, even though the girls will be super attentive to his eating habits, noting when he eats, how much or how little he eats, and all that.

And then there’s our special needs girl, Scout. She makes it well known how little she enjoys the kennel. Funny isn’t it? The kennel owners’ dog doesn’t like the kennel. She usually ends up making herself sick in some way. It’s as if she does it out of spite, saying to us, “Okay Mommy. If you’re not going to be here with me, then you will pay.” And by pay, Scout does mean literally and figuratively! The girls will work very hard to try to make her happy, but since Scout won’t be happy at the kennel, they will also work hard to ensure she stays healthy.

They will all have different experiences, just like your animals do. The best part is, when we get home, they will be so happy to see us! Well, Hoot and Scout will be. Pecan will be counting down the hours until he gets to go play again.

The sun came out yesterday and we were all just thrilled! I can’t speak for the dogs, but I could swear their tails were wagging just a little bit more. Some of them might have even been smiling; I know I was!

The parents of our day care crew love the pictures and I love taking them (the dogs are hams!). They don’t always sit as still as I would like, but you get the idea even if it’s a bit blurry from the motion!

It is so much fun to watch them all at play. They wrestle, dig, race around the yard, and do a lot of sniffing! Some are more laid back than others and just sit back and watch. Ozzy Pug is our referee, running around herding everyone where he wants them to go and doing the equivalent of blowing his whistle by barking at them. Some go just wild when one of us is out there, vying for our affection, while others only want to be with the dogs. 

I am off to get dirty with the pups. Enjoy the sun! We are!

Customers are always saying that they would love to watch their dogs playing at day care, particularly when we share news from the day: Shayna and Summer are best buddies; Scout and Cue shared a blanket; Hannah played well with everyone; Danzig played with two of his girls today, Stella and Lucy. The conversation then turns to the idea of webcams. Webcams are a great concept, and I will cover them in another blog. This blog is my attempt to share some videos from day care. I haven’t edited them, so you might want to keep the volume down since my voice is pretty loud coming through the mic! I hope this is just the start of sharing some of what we get to see during the course of the day. If you keep tuning in, I’ll keep working on my videographer skills!

Day Care Video 1

Day Care Video 2

Day Care Video 3

Kirsten said that when she drove past me the other day I had a grin ear to ear. She’s right. How could I not? Our new bus makes me smile, and even better, it makes other people smile.  I get to drive a bus with cute dogs on the windows and cute dogs inside in their crates. People drive by and point and smile. And I get a lot of waves from friends and customers. It’s fun! Our kids love being driven to school in the bus (Yeah, I know. They are only in preschool right now and don’t mind being seen with their parents). The first time we dropped them off in the bus, their schoolmates came over asking, “Do you have real dogs on this bus?” They were fascinated and a bit disappointed that we didn’t have any dogs yet since we hadn’t started our route!

The next time you see us, give a honk or a wave. Better yet, smile. It’s nice being part of something that is contagious in a positive way!

We’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately about pet insurance. To be honest, it’s something we should have done 9k dollars ago, before Scout drained our savings. Although we were thrilled with her care at CARE (Cape Animal Referral and Emergency), we were less than thrilled with our bills. Of course, CARE isn’t our problem and didn’t create the bills. Scout is her own biggest nemesis, and really should  have a zipper put in her stomach. (Bull Terriers should actually be bred with zippers so the vets can easily pull out all that they ingest).

Realistically, I know that pet insurance makes sense, at least in our house. We probably won’t choose the policy that includes routine care for no other reason than I can’t fathom spending so much in insurance for two dogs. The sticker shock is unsettling. I know, you’re wondering how I can possibly have sticker shock after forking over $9,000 for Scout’s last treatment, but that was spread out over the course of a week or so and how could I say no at that particular time? Admit it, they totally had me! (I remember moments of panic thinking, “What will I do when the credit card is declined?”).

Instead, we are thinking about the emergency only policy. Our local vet is actually very reasonable for routine vaccinations and for everything else it seems like we go to CARE anyway.

A friend of mine just emailed that his labrador is actually going to have more knee surgery. I believe this is the third time for this particular dog. My friend thinks we are crazy not to have pet insurance. I think if I had a dog like his I would be a believer too. Oh wait, I do have a dog like his, don’t I? He says that the policy more than pays for itself  and he wouldn’t have a dog without the insurance.

I would bet the farm, or the kennel in our case, that once this policy is in place nothing will happen to our dogs, not like I want them to use it! Maybe I shouldn’t tell the dogs though: Scout might throw caution to the wind and attempt to eat some new items she’s been eyeballing.

Although rain poured out of the sky the other day, we had about fifteen of our day care dogs looking for some fun. As we watched, each dog’s personality and actions reminded me of children on a school playground.

Some of the bolder dogs raced right through huge puddles, not caring about getting paws wet (obviously not my dogs!!!). A few stepped daintily around the puddles; you could almost hear them fussing about the mud and the wet clumping their hair.

On days when the weather is more cooperative and we have twenty or more running around the yards, it is even more fun to watch. My own dog is the one who wants to play, play, play and will run with anyone, not caring about size, breed, etc. To him, there is no such concept as too much playground time! My other dog is the kid on the playground who kind of wants to play with the others, but really doesn’t know how. She ends up annoying everyone and then sits at the gate looking sad that no one wants to be her friend. And yes, we even have the popular crowd comprised mostly of the “regulars.” They seem to be in charge on the playground, not by bullying but through that often envied, “I know what’s going on around here” mentality. Like real playgrounds, there is lots of yelling: “Hey! I want you to play with me! Yes, you! Can’t you see me over here with the stick?” The school yard bully is here too, playing just a bit too rough and almost daring us to put him or her in a time out. There are even the playground ouchies, sometimes equivalent to a skinned knee, sometimes more so. Heck, I remember as a kid throwing a rock directly at a neighbor boy (sorry Chip!). I wasn’t trying to be mean, but a total lack of common sense took over and the poor kid almost lost an eye. Dogs, and kids, sometimes have those moments, don’t they? The nice thing about a playground is that more often than not, it will very quickly return to normal.

Watching the dogs play is fun. It reminds me of my own days spent on a play ground, with mostly good days and the occasional bad day. I usually always left with a smile on my face. It seems like most of our day care dogs do too! “Great day, mom, but ready to have some dinner and rest my head!”

Happy New Year!

Once again, time has gotten away from me and I am remiss in getting all of my personal Christmas cards sent, ordering and sending the kennel holiday cards, staying on top of our blog, and any other sundry holiday to do’s. It is a tremendously busy time at the kennel and I did manage to squeeze in a last minute trip to my parents’ house in Minnesota (brrr!!!).

This is such a wonderful time to be in the kennel because we are full in all aspects of the word! Our customers are so giving; two weeks ago we were bursting at the seams with chocolates, homemade cookies and breads, coffees, and even a Yo-Yo Ma cd that a customer gave us (how did you know?!!!). Two weeks later, our pants are bursting at the seams! However, so are our smiles. Our customers are so thoughtful and generous, and it goes beyond just gifts. The wall in the office is covered with cards, some with great photos of the animals, some homemade, and some from people and pets we see once a year, and some from clients of long ago who no longer have pets, but still think of us. Almost every one is personalized with a little note to us; most of my cards at home don’t include anything personal! That’s what makes it all worth it, the connections we make with our clients, new and old.

Thank you from all of us to you.

We walk a good number of our boarding dogs daily. On our walks, we are very careful with the dogs. We choose the type of collar and leash according to the dog we are walking. We carry an animal repellent to ward off any coyotes that come a bit too close. During hunting season we wear flame orange hunting vests and put one on the dog as well. Basically, we try to control as much of the environment as we can.

What we can’t control though, are other dogs we might encounter on the way. Too often we are out walking a dog and another pooch comes bounding up, sometimes playful, sometimes not so much. Usually, the owner is a few steps behind, not always in site though, and will call out, “Don’t worry, he’s friendly!” For many of the dogs we walk, this is not a problem and a few moments of dog sniffing and frolicking will ensue. For a few of our dogs though, this is a major problem.

The dog bounding toward us might be friendly. But what about the dog we are walking on leash? There are some dogs that do not tolerate other dogs. If another dog approaches us on-leash being controlled by the owner, the environment is controlled. We tighten the leash and keep walking. If the approaching dog is off-leash, well, that is another matter. Most of the time we do the same thing: tighten the leash and briskly walk away. So far, we have been very lucky and have been able to put some distance between us and the other, unleashed dog. All it takes though is one time; one time for that other dog to get a bit too close.

It’s easy to forget that not all dogs are friendly towards others. Even in controlled environments, things happen. Keep all of our dogs safe and walk them on leashes. You never know who else might be out enjoying the day.

We finally took the plunge this past weekend. After many years (yes, years), of debate we decided to go for it started up the credit card processing machine and stuck the Visa/Mastercard sticker in our window.

Many of our customers will be surprised. Some, who are also fellow small business owners currently not accepting credit cards, often complimented our decision to remain free of credit cards. It was as if we were part of this small brotherhood of non-compliant business owners waging our own little battle against credit cards. Battle on my former brothers and sisters! I will keep you posted and let you know if you should wave the white flag with us.

Many of our customers will be thankful. Lots of us no longer carry our checkbooks with us; quite a few have resorted to carrying one or two worn at the fold checks in our wallets for those infrequent times we are informed, “Cash or check only.”

Our employees seem excited with the prospect of being able to swipe that card through and to be able to do away with the conversation about why we don’t take credit cards and yes, there is a bank just down the street and sure, we will wait for you to return. Sometimes the conversation would go like this:

Customer – You don’t take credit cards? Well, I don’t have my checkbook and we didn’t leave enough cash.

Employee -  There is a bank and a cash machine just down the street.

Customer – My bank only lets me take out a certain amount of money at a time. I can’t cover the bill today.

Employee – Well, umm.. 

(I mean, come on, what are we supposed to say here? We will hold your dog until you come up with the money?! No! So what we usually end up saying is this)  

Well. I suppose we can bill you and you can send us a check when you get home.

And that line is  what finally pushed us into accepting credit cards. Too many people were not sending in those checks once they returned home. (There are lots of you who dropped off the check or put it in the mail that same day – much appreciated!). I would like to say it is a sign of the times; however, we have been to the post office too many times over the last few years to mail the certified letter containing the bill that never got paid.

So while I continue to rail against credit cards and how people have trouble managing their money with credit cards and not understanding why we as businesses don’t stand up to the system and tell them where they can put their transaction fees, I do finally raise the white flag, reluctantly.

Please share your thoughts with me on this.

For most dogs, length of stay can be relevant if you are going away for a month or so. There are many factors to consider.

Has your dog boarded before? If not, we would definitely recommend a trial run of at least two nights. See how that goes, but remember that he or she might take few times to get used to boarding. The trial run also allows the kennel staff the opportunity to evaluate your pet, and guide you in your decision. Our first priority is the well being of your pet.

Do you feel confident in the kennel staff? We want to allay all of your fears and answer all of your questions ahead of time. We welcome a visit and look forward to sharing our information with you.

Are you going to be able to enjoy yourself on vacation? We welcome phone calls and emails from clients who are away from their babies. We are happy to email photos or updates and have even fielded international calls for our guests. Not much surprises us! In addition to finding out how you can get info about your dog while you are away, find out how the staff handles dogs that might not be boarding as well as expected. We find that, when appropriate, the dog will settle down when paired with a buddy. We will also give the dog extra time and attention, sometimes even letting the dog “hang out” with us during the day.

Overall, most dogs do very well with boarding, even for two weeks or more. If it’s feasible, extra play times or love sessions can be very beneficial. Many dogs do very well in the play yards; however, not every dog wants to play all the time. The walk guarantees exercise and one-on-one time.

Does the kennel have experience with long-term boarding? We’ve had dogs and cats that spend the winter with us while their owners are doing the snowbird thing. We have had dogs and cats who have moved in and set up shop. And then there was Harry, one of our boarders who ended up living out the rest of his years (six) with us.

One final note: there are differing opinions on whether or not pets have a concept of time. We are not here to debate this issue. However, in our experience, they will always let us know when it is time to eat and go out. After a day of doggy day care or after a month of boarding the reception will always be the same when their owners pick them up.

If only they could talk…