Say, if you had to go to a day-long event a long way away, and it was not appropriate to take your dog and there was no-one to leave him at home with, would you leave him at a 'day care centre'?

Say, your working hours changed and you had to be at work full time for a while, would you consider leaving your doggies at a 'day care centre' then?

How much would you expect to pay for a one-off day?

How much would you expect to pay for regular attendance? Presumably that would be less than the one-off day charge?

What would you expect the day care centre to provide? How would this sound -
A 'room' which is exclusive to your dog with either armchair or dog bed according to YOUR preference
Exercise periods, either individually or in a group (according to your dogs needs) in a secure play area
Training periods, such as that required by the KCGC scheme
Rest periods
Grooming options - just brushing/combing or full bathing

I looked at Doggy day care for my pup when I was considering going back to FT work.  The Company I looked at were very professional and carried out an hour long assessment of the dog, the building was purpose built and very clean.  They had a high number of staff (I think it was 1 person to 3 dogs), and had all the relevant insurances.  I was quoted £20 per day, but there were add ons if you need to drop off before 8.30 or collect after 5.30.  I didn't ask but I'm sure this would've been negotiable had it been an ongoing 5-day week arrangement.  Grooming was additional too.  They offered rest time in a room with sofas and TV, they also had 'play' rooms, and designated meal times for pups.  There were always staff supervising, and if play got too rough the dogs would be separated.  They wouldn't accept any dogs with known behavioural issues.  They didn't offer training, but not sure I would've liked that anyway (would dog get confused if they used different techniques to owner?). 

I think it's great for people who can afford it, and ideal for one offs if you need to go out for the day, but I should imagine to use it on a regular basis is out of the question for most. 

Thanks for your comments susieq, all advice is good advice, particularly as I shall be investing a reasonable amount of money in this if it goes ahead.

Good luck Jacey, let us know how you get on

I'm sure there is a kennels in Glasgow/Milngavie that do it for £5 per dog?

If you ran this as a business with 3 dogs to each helper, there wouldn't be any profit in it, would there? By the time you paid for premises, equipment, wages, insurance etc, there would be nothing left.
I wouldn't think you really need those ratios either, that is what you have for childminding under 4 years old, for example, whereas school age children 1 to 10 is ok, i think, which would be fine for dogs, too, i would think, especially if no behavioural issues allowed.
You could have half the dogs resting in their kennel or room, and half playing in supervised groups of up to about 5 dogs with the helper, then swap over.
I would be happy with that for my dog, and would expect to pay up to £20 a day for it.
It would be expensive for anyone doing it because they work every day, though.

RReeve - thanks for your post, and yes you're right at those ratios there wouldn't be any profit as such, it would simply cover wages for the people involved and cover costs incurred.  In the initial stages that will be all I will be looking to achieve, with the possibility of 'growing' it slightly 12 months or so on.  I think that you'd need probably one person per 5 dogs, with a minimum of two persons on the premises at any one time?  I would be looking to split the play and rest times as you suggest, and expect that maybe some dogs might need playtime away from any other dog, so that would complicate things a little, but still not be unworkable if it is organised properly.

Your thoughts and comments are much appreciated as everybody will view things differently and some will identify problems that I may be overlooking, hence my post on here to pick everybodies brains!!!

I think if I had to use a centre my first and most important question would be "How escape proof is your land/garden?" I would need to know it was competly ring fenced with dog proof fencing.
Some kennels not far from me have quite a bit of land and the dogs are regularly walked in there (On leads) however it runs along a very busy  main road and I worry that if a dog got away, pulled the lead out of the handlers hand/slipped out when kennel door opened etc.. it could easily get onto the road...stuff of nightmares!!!
Accidents do happen so I would want to see some colditz style fencing anywhere my dogs were in the care of others.
Aileen

> I'm sure there is a kennels in Glasgow/Milngavie that do it for £5 per dog?

I wouldn't touch them with a bargepole at that price.  That wouldn't even cover their insurance per day.

It's a kennel business, they do all sorts of other things etc, the normal overnight stuff - the day care is just an add-on I believe.

regularly walked in there (On leads) however it runs along a very busy  main road and I worry that if a dog got away, pulled the lead out of the handlers

the boarding kennel I use also give this service, the dogs are exercised every day in the fields they own..but the staff always use two leads..(slip leather ones)  I guess for exactly this reason.

The also have a Colditz like playground, full of toys , old tyres, and all sorts of doggy play stuff, which they also have time in.

Its expensive , but worth it, my dogs need a holiday when they come home from there..LOL!!

Thanks everybody for your responses - all thoughts/opinions/ideas/likes/dislikes are most appreciated.

I am fortunate in that I already have unused buildings that could be converted to suit, and I have a horse exercise area that would just need an extra 2-3 feet of fencing added to it to make it 6 or 7 feet tall and therefore secure.

Hello

I use a pet sitting service 2 days a week. It's not a day care centre as my dog is just part of the pet sitters house (and other dogs). I need this as 2 days a week I work a very long day. We drop her off at 7am and pick her up at 7-8pm(ish) and pay £15. She gets 3 walks a day (lots of fields nearby) and full run of the house. The lady has a big dog-proof garden so the dogs play a LOT. She runs a dog grooming business as well, so there's never a huge number of pet-sitting dogs. Before we moved we used a different lady who charged £10 a day, but who was lovely as well.

Our petsitter is police checked and we had a good long chat and she met both me and our dog before saying yes. I take her food so essentially it's almost a home away from home :). She is very confident with dogs and our dog loves and respects her.

Our dog loves it there, it's great for socialisation, and frankly we'd struggle to have a dog without it. Our dog is used to a lot of exercise and personal contact so leaving her in the house with just a dog walker once during the day would be hard on these 2 long days.

Hope this helps!

AussiesRock

Sounds like you found a gem of a sitter there.  It does take away a lot of the worry (and guilt) about leaving a dog.  To find someone as competent as you have, must not have been easy.

Hello JeanSW

You're right that it took a bit of time ... I did loads of research before we moved house ... it's like having a child and looking for a siutable nursery! :)

To the OP I'd say that dog owners vary a lot in what they expect. Some people tell me they think that £15 a day is way, way too much, but for me it's £15 well spent. I have an working-type Australian shepherd dog who isn't very happy-go-lucky and chilled. She can be quite demanding and if you give her an inch she will take a mile (or two or three). I just wouldn't leave her with someone I thought wasn't capable. I also wouldn't leave her somewhere where there were loads and loads of dogs, whereas some people are happy to have more dogs around but pay less for the pet sitting (if you see what I mean). So I think you need to research your target market a bit and make sure you're doing what suits you and your area best.

The pesitter was saying as well that it can be 'seasonal' in that she's usually busier in school holidays (I always take our dog on holidays with us so it's not a problem for me), and then she has a small number of 'regulars' during the week. She is VERY picky on which dogs she accepts as she has a small child.

Hope that's useful ...