New clients often have questions about our services, policies, and procedures. Here we address the most frequently asked questions that we typically receive.
Doggie daycare is a chance for your dog to socialize and play with other dogs in a structured, safe and clean environment. Dog daycare gives your dog a chance to do dog stuff all day while you’re off doing human stuff.
It is the opportunity for the dogs to learn socialization and pack skills by giving them to chance to interact with multiple people and dogs on a daily basis.
We take Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover as well as cash. We do not accept personal checks.
While it is true that staff is onsite beyond the pickup times, they are here for our overnight guests as well as the cleaning and prepping that takes place daily. We keep to our scheduled tasks and disruptions from that takes away time from the dogs that are still in our care.
Our daycare program ends at 6:30pm and our last pickup is at 7pm. We do charge a $10 late pick-up fee. If you are not going to be able to pick up your dog before our last pickup time, you will need to call ahead and let us know.
A dog not picked up by 8pm will be boarded overnight at your expense.
We do offer half-day daycare options for either our morning play session or our afternoon play session. For a half-day morning session, you can drop off between 7am – 9:30am and pick up before 2pm.
For our afternoon play session, you can drop off between 1pm and 2pm and pick up by 6:30pm.
Reservations are required for half-day sessions and the cost is $25 per half day.
Rates will convert to a full day of daycare for drop-offs and pick-ups outside of these allotted times.
We offer Daycare Packages that reduce the cost per day. You can view our pricing on our Daycare Page.
We think it is very important. We understand disruptions in schedules and have no problem rearranging a day every now and then.
We do find that dogs who come on the same day, or days, every week are more well-adjusted with their daycare experience and enjoy it more. Just like humans, dogs form friendships and look forward to seeing the same friends each time they come.
Check in & check out times are as follows:
7am - 9:30am or 12pm - 6:30pm Mon - Fri
Saturdays 8:00am - 9:30am or 12pm - 5:00pm
Sunday 12:00pm - 2:00pm or 5:00pm - 7:00pm
We do require reservations in order to schedule the appropriate staff and build balanced playgroups. Having an accurate attendance count allows us to plan for our day.
Yes! Even though we have water out at all times it is normal for them to still be thirsty after that much play.
The dogs always get excited when a new dog is brought into the park or boarding area. The same when a new human appears. Within a couple of minutes they calm down and go back to normal. To minimize these periods of high energy and excitement, we require all daycare dogs to be checked in by 9:30am
Everyone can have an “off day”. To help turn that behavior around, we utilize leads to keep the dog close to us as we help them walk it off. Sometimes a time out is just what is needed in order for them to regroup and regain their composure.
That said, daycare isn’t for every dog. Your dog should enjoy being here and sometimes stress leads to bad decisions. We take pride in getting to know each dog and its baseline behaviors. Should the time come when we need to have a conversation about behaviors, we will do our best to work with you for alternative care.
We utilize positive reinforcement with pats and cuddles to reward appropriate behaviors as well as verbal praise. For the challenging behaviors, we utilize quick time-outs to demonstrate that certain behaviors are not tolerated while playing. Resource guarding, bullying, mounting, excessive mouthing, excessive barking, etc. are all examples of behaviors that just don’t work here.
Time outs are also used to provide dogs a quick moment to calm themselves down in order to prevent over-excitement. During a time-out, dogs are placed inside a crate, on a leash, in a suite or in a time-out room.
Dogs need rest after strenuous play and stimulation. All dogs are encouraged to take mid-day naps from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM. Each pup will be housed in an individual enclosure and our guests will enjoy sharing quiet time with aromatherapy, soft music, and comfy beds mid-day with their friends. This is also the time that snacks are distributed.
7:00am – 9:30am Arrivals
Dogs are checked in, their leashes and lunches are stored and they greet their playmates in the parks.
8:00am – 11:30am Morning Playtime
Dogs participate in a number of activities including chasing, fetch, wrestling, climbing play structures, splashing in the pool, sniffing out bacon bubbles, and more!
11:30am – 1:30pm Nap Time
Yes… nap time! This is an important part of our day as the dogs have had a very active morning. It’s lights out as the dogs rest and recharge with classical music to create a calm environment. Each dog rests in one of our suites, bedrooms or crates. Snacks and lunch are also distributed at nap time.
1:30pm – 5:00pm Afternoon Playtime
Afternoon playgroup is typically at a slower pace.
5:00pm – 7:00pm
It’s dinner time for those who are sleeping over.
5:00pm – 6:30pm Pick Up Time
Dogs are prepped for pick up
We have 900 square feet of secure outdoor space for the dogs to enjoy. While the Small Park does not share direct access to this area, our group rotations allow for the “littles” to have their time in the fresh air too.
During daycare the dogs are not left alone. The Daycare Attendants constantly monitor behavior so that each dog is comfortable and having fun.
Our daycare attendants reinforce positive behaviors throughout the day. While participating in play groups, dogs are encouraged to exhibit appropriate play styles, respond to their name quickly, and practice basic obedience and manners.
Yes, they do! We have over 10,000 square feet of indoor play space and we separate our daycare groups by size, temperament and play style. Occasionally, we are able to combine the groups, but only do so when we are 100% positive that the personalities will match well. We also continually monitor dogs for changes in temperament as they age and mature.
We take Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover as well as cash. We do not accept personal checks.
We keep a schedule for our staff and our dogs. After hours and late pick ups disrupt the schedule and disrupt our settling in routine at night.
We work hard to ensure all of our dogs are comfortable here and having people come in or dogs leave after pick up time is stressful for everyone.
We strongly recommend that your dog receives an exit bath before you take them home. After 3 or more consecutive days of vigorous play, it is normal that a dog would require a bath.
We offer exit baths that include a bath and drying. We’re not groomers – just a simple bath is what we will do. Nothing fancy, just a clean dog! You may add a bath onto your reservation at the time of booking or by informing our Front Desk staff at drop off.
We take the best care of the pups when we have all of their information on hand.
Upon arrival, you will be required to fill out a Hotel Check-in form for your pup and that is your opportunity to discuss any special needs for your pup’s stay.
Yes, it is heated in the winter and has air conditioning in the summer.
We will administer oral medications at no additional charge provided they are packed in the original containers with the dispensing veterinarian’s name as well as dosage instructions.
We do not administer insulin injections or any Sub-Q fluids.
Changing a dog’s diet cold turkey can lead to digestive issues. We ask that you provide your dog’s own food to avoid stomach upset when he’s already a little stressed.
You may pre-package each meal in a container or baggie. We are not able to accept large bags of food due to limited storage space in each pup’s boarding cubby. Should your pup run out of food during their stay, we offer a house food for $4 each meal.
If you would like for your pup to get a treat at downtime or at bedtime, please pack those as well. We also offer an assortment of snacks, from stuffed frozen kongs to milk and cookies, that you can add to your pup’s reservation.
We ask that you pack lightly for your pup’s stay with us. Our standard suites are 4 x 4 and we supply a Kuranda bed and stainless steel bowls for your pup’s stay. You may bring a blanket or small item of clothing from home to help make your pup feel more comfortable. Squeak toys and any form of rawhide are not allowed.
Additionally, we are proud to offer a 10% military discount on our boarding reservations. And, as always, Adopters showing us their Adoption Contracts also receive 10% off. All discounts are applied at checkout and are not reflected as a part of your deposit or estimate.
All reservations require a non-refundable 50% deposit to secure your dog’s stay with us. We are a small boarding facility and when we reserve a spot for your pup, we are oftentimes turning away another pup.
Should you need to cancel your reservation, your deposit will be credited to your account for future stays or services.
Our overnight fees are for a 24 hour time period. For example, if you drop off your pup at 10 AM, pick up will be by 10 AM on checkout day. We understand that traveling often leaves our schedules in flux and we do provide a brief grace period for pickup. However, arriving 1 hour past your scheduled pick up time will incur a $25 late fee being applied to your balance due at pickup.
All dogs boarding in our Private Bedrooms have access to the bedroom webcams 24 x 7. Dogs that are staying with us in our Standard Suite accommodations will have access to our webcams during daycare play sessions. Pet parents will access the webcams using their Customer Portal. Cameras are only active for pet parents when their dog is checked into our facility.
Check in & check out times are as follows:
7am - 9:30am or 12pm - 6:30pm Mon - Fri
Saturdays 8:00am - 9:30am or 12pm - 5:00pm
Sunday 12:00pm - 2:00pm or 5:00pm - 7:00pm
Daycare is not suitable for every dog. If we believe your dog will not settle into our program comfortably, please do not take offense. This does NOT mean you have a ‘bad’ dog. We must ensure the well-being and safety of all dogs attending Bow chika Wow Town, including yours.
We realize some dogs are better suited and happier in alternative environments & we can recommend other suitable options if needed.
We offer ‘day boarding’ for the pup that is just not social. For this service, your pup will be able to stay with us in a Private Bedroom or suite while the other dogs play. During downtime, your pup will get one on one time with our staff and enjoy an outside walk, weather permitting.
Not every dog is a good fit for daycare. For the safety of our attendants and the other dogs, certain behaviors will not be tolerated in our daycare environment. Aggressive behavior toward people or other dogs, extreme fear or shyness, fence climbing and repeated acts of domination will not be allowed in group. If such behaviors continue after several time-outs and attempts at training, we will contact you to discuss whether or not daycare is the best option for your pup.
The Bordetella vaccine takes several days to be effective. If your dog will arrive sooner than 10 days after receiving the vaccine, we require your dog to receive only the oral or intravenous form of the vaccine and not the intranasal form.
All pets entering the facility for any of our services require a veterinary certificate providing proof that they are current on required vaccinations at least seven days prior to visiting us.
All pups must be at least 16 weeks of age and have completed all of their required vaccination boosters prior to attending daycare.
It has been our experience that intact dogs will be singled out and picked on by dominant male and female members of the pack. An intact female may release pheromones when coming into heat that would cause conflict and instability within the group.
To keep our play structured and fun and to provide a happy, healthy non-competitive environment for our guests, we cannot accept intact animals into our facility that are over 7 months of age.
For the safety and comfort of the dogs in our care, we do not do ‘back of the house’ in person tours. Our Front Desk team is more than happy to provide you with a virtual tour via our love web cams that are located throughout the facility. In addition, you can review our Facility Video
Our evals are an all-day event! Our experience has shown us that the more time we spend with a new dog, the more comfortable the dog is. You can view more information on our evaluation process at this link.
Evaluations must be scheduled. We do evaluations Monday – Friday as that is when we have a greater daycare population to provide us with an overall picture of how the pup will do in group play.
We schedule one evaluation per day to allow us to focus solely on that pup and not introduce too many new personalities to our play group all at once.
Our interview process helps us to assess the current social ability of the dog. This helps us to properly group the dog with appropriate buddies in group play.
The evaluation also helps to determine if there are behavioral tendencies present that would pose a potential safety risk to our staff or other pets in our care.
This important step in our process also serves to provide a sense of well-being with our pet parents to help them feel secure in the fact that we screen every dog entering our facility to insure the safety of all of the dogs in our care.
All dogs accepted in our daycare program must pass a behavioral evaluation prior to attending their 1st day of daycare. Additionally, dogs that have not played with us within the past 12 months must also have a behavioral evaluation.
If you need additional information after reading this page, please contact us and we will be happy to answer any questions you may have.
