I know everybody should go and 'check out' dennels before they book their dogs into stay, however today I had to take a dog to kennels for an overnight stay (not my dog, I dont 'do' kennels)  it wasnt my choice of kennels.
on the web site it sounded like they were very good kennels.  'once your dog has stayed here you wont want to leave him anywhere else' etc. 

They were awful.  although I dont put my own dogs into kennels I have in the line of my own work viewed lots of kennels, and some are alright, in the minority for most.

When booking kennels I wonder how many people actually see where they will be 'put'...I know the lady in these kennels was not for me taking the dog through to its 'place', but I insisted. no wonder. soaking wet floors, and the smell was awful. (even in the place they called reception)  surely concrete floors are porous and if uninated on the smell will impregnate?  When I asked how often the dogs were taken out to toilet, the question was awkwardly avoided being answered.

What time is first pee's and what time is last pee's is another good question.  At one kennel I went to first pee was 8.30 ish, but by the time each dog had been taken out if the kennel was full the last dog would not get out till about 10.30, I was told they would just wee in the kennel if they couldnt wait.

As I say, I know there will be lots of good ones around and I know in the area I live in we dont have much to choose from, perhaps if we had there would be more competition.

I have worked in several kennels, two were lovely to work in. In the best one the owner did the work with us and she only ever took 24 dogs at the most at one time. We would get to work at half 6 and let all the dogs out. The design made it so easy to clean and all the dogs got one to one play time and two walks a day. I still travel all the way back to this kennels when I have to go away. The other great one was run by a retired farmer, he certainly knew the value of hard work! Yet again a very early start, all owners were allowed through to the kennels and it was kept so clean you could eat off the floor. Only 30 dogs at one time there, so it was easy to give all dogs the attention they deserved. Unfortunately the last kennels I worked in was terrible, they would take up to 80 dogs at a time (more if they could fit them in!), the owners did no help whatsoever, just two kennelhands trying to clean everything in time for opening. We weren't allowed to walk the dogs, and we weren't allowed in to start before 8 as we would wake the owners up! The heating was not put on in the winter enough and we would find the dogs water bowls frozen over inside their kennels. We were told that if we wanted to walk the dogs or play we would have to do it unpaid after work and no one was allowed to take their dogs down. It was a work experience placement so we had to be there, but it was an awful place to work, I admit I did tell owners about better kennels. My advice is to never trust the websites, and check that the food they advertise as feeding is the same one that they actually feed. Also, only go for the small kennels, rather than the big money making kennels. TBH I'm surprised that the big petstore company hasn't got in on the kennel action yet.

A few weeks ago I collected a welfare dog from the kennels over Pershore way where he was boarding to transport him to his new home - what I saw of the kennel was superb. Small (a dozen good-sized kennels), the heating was good, it was spotlessly clean and dry inside (at 9.30am!), the outside runs were clean as were the securely-fenced exercise runs. So much better than others I've visited.

'once your dog has stayed here you wont want to leave him anywhere else' etc  Umm maybe that means that you really wouldn't trust another kennels again!

>maybe that means that you really wouldn't trust another kennels again!

LOL! :-D

we are really lucky the kennels our dogs stay in are fantastic, we have even picked the dogs up earlier (unexpected) than we have told them and the dogs always look great, and most importantly very happy.

love it perrodeaqua! I hadnt thought of that.

I worked briefly in kennels years ago. The dogs didn't get walked, they were put in a large exercise pen once a day. The worst thing was the fact that the owner never turned a client away, even when she was full up. She would put unknown dogs in together.........disgusting in my opinion.