Jan

Kennels or Dog Hotel?

Posted by Kay Key Published in Kennels Quality & Standards

The use of words like ‘hotel’, ‘luxury’, ‘deluxe’ and even ’state-of-the-art’ are used by standard kennels, and even by the most dreadful of kennels. Naturally, this makes life very confusing for dog owners looking for better kennels via the web. Not only do you have to look through a lot more websites, but just finding something that meets the highest standards can be time-consuming.

We are here to make it easy for you to tell the difference for yourself - and once you know, you’ll never be bamboozled again!

Kennels or Dog Hotel - How can you tell the Difference?

Dog Hotels have

ROOMS

Dog Hotels have large, light ROOMS of over 8ft x 8ft (2.4m x 2.4m) with full-height, solid-built walls, and full/part glass doors, and some may also have windows. This creates a quiet, calm, balanced environment, feels secure, is spacious, and lets in lots of natural light.

Dog hotels are likely to have fewer dogs (perhaps just 5 - 15 rooms), and therefore providing a more tailored and personal service.

If a dog hotel has 15 or less rooms, you will have the benefits of more tailored and personal services, special requests and even quirks can be catered for. The lower number of dogs means much more one-to-one attention that your dog will receive (both inside and outside, perhaps with other dogs if your dog is sociable) and the atmosphere will be calm and quiet. Larger rooms mean more personal comforting items can be brought from home to help your dog settle in quickly and feel much more at home.

Rooms can also be called Suites, but it is only in the largest, most spacious accommodation,where the main building roof extends over the attached exercise area to protect and enclose it as another room (rather than an open run), that this term truly applies.

This is the closest to a home environment.

Kennels have

PENS

Kennels have partially open PENS of over 4ft x 4ft (1.2m x 1.2m) built with partial walls or panels, with mesh/bars above, and mesh/bar doors.

This creates an open environment where dogs can see, smell and hear everything, which can lead to higher stress and noise. The higher the walls, the more secure a feeling is created. Active, healthy and confident dogs will fare better in kennels. Nervous and more sensitive dogs should be boarded separately, ideally in a building or section with similar dogs in smaller numbers, or a separate kennel.

Kennels with no walls should be avoided (i.e open chainlink, wire, mesh or bars between kennels where dogs can touch or injure each other, and the risk of injury, disease and stress-induced illnesses will dramatically increase provide no privacy)

The fewer kennels there are, the lower the stress and noise. Fewer kennels (for example less than 20 kennels) means your dog will receive much more attention than larger facilities (unless they are exceptionally well staffed). We would recommend you choose suitable facilities with fewer kennels whenever possible.

Dog Prisons are

DARK, DINGY,

DEPRESSING &

DANGEROUS

A small, dark, almost totally enclosed area of 2 - 4ft (60cm - 1.2m) without windows, dog door/hatch or exercise run, with solid walls/panels/doors is not a hotel or kennels, it’s a prison.

This is the image that many dog owners have of kennels. I regularly receive emails from dog owners describing kennels as ‘concentration camps’. We hope that if nothing else, this website will show you it doesn’t have to be like that.

Nothing to look at except other barking dogs?
… It’s a prison.

Depriving dogs of a view and stimulation (other than other barking dogs) will create extremely high levels of frustration, stress, and noise, resulting in depression, lowered immune system and ultimately illness.

If dogs NEVER leave the kennels?
… It’s a prison.

Getting out, spending time with humans/other dogs, sniffing, playing, exploring - in short, being allowed to ‘be’ a dog and express natural behaviours will create more balanced, calm and happier dogs. Depriving dogs of these basic needs is appalling. If you use a kennels with such low standards you are keeping these people in business.

If the local authority aren’t doing anything about it then you can. Vote with your feet - go somewhere better, and help us stop more dogs from suffering.

Every kennels with a profile on our website is asked if dogs are taken out of the kennels for exercise. We show this, and other important information when you SEARCH for kennels, you’ll see special icons at the top of each kennels’ page on our website. For example: