I’m an avid reader of trade magazines. Every month I read a host of materials from various veterinary schools, veterinary magazines, grooming magazines (you could call that my personal fashion fix), and of course magazines for the pet lodging industry. I rarely think of these articles as an advertisement for Pet Camp – but that’s just what a recent article in the Your Dog newsletter from the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University is – an advertisement for Pet Camp!
Dr. Linda Ross at Tufts discusses what to think about when looking for a place for your dog to stay when you’re out of town. Dr. Ross supports the notion that dogs are social creatures and that the idea of just having a pet sitter stop in few times a day to feed your dog and let him or her out is not a good idea. She stresses that this type of limited interaction could cause your dog to be destructive and she recommend pet lodging arrangements over that situation. But how to decide where to lodge your pet? Fear not, Dr. Ross has some criteria – and Pet Camp meets them all!
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Dogs Need to Play Outside
Dr. Ross suggests finding an overnight pet lodging facility with lots of outdoor space for dogs to play. Conveniently, Pet Camp has over 20,000 square feet of outdoor play space.
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Dogs Need Food
Dr. Ross points that dogs need to eat and that you want an overnight care facility that will feed your dog on the same schedule as you do at home and will let you bring in your own food (should you want to). Again – Pet Camp is up to the challenge feeding one-two-three times a day or even more at a pet parent’s direction and happy to feed our house brand or anything a pet parent brings in from home.
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You Want to Know Who’s Caring for Your Dog
Dr. Ross suggests meeting the people who will be taking care of your dog, taking a tour, asking about how the day proceeds and if there is a way to check in on your dog while you’re away. Pet Camp is all over this! Come on over, say hi and meet the counselors, take a walk around and ask any question you want. Once you’re away you can check in on your dog (who by then will be a Pet Camp Camper) on the Camper Cameos section of our web page or even by shooting us an email or the very old fashion thing called a phone call. We understand that you want to know how your “kid” is doing and while some places might charge you for a picture or an email – that doesn’t seem right to us. We’re happy to post pictures, send emails, or chat on the phone as much as you want.
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Some Dogs Have Special Needs
Dr. Ross correctly points out that some dogs have special needs – either related to medical issues or age – and that not every pet lodging facility is equipped to deal with them. We could not agree more, and frankly there are some needs that we can’t address – but if your dog has such a need we’ll be honest with you and suggest an alternative to Pet Camp. That said, every Pet Camp counselor goes through extensive training and we’re confident that we can create a customized care program for most special needs campers.
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Plan Ahead
Lastly, Dr. Ross points out that quality overnight pet lodging facilities will need to see vaccine records and often fill up. We could not agree more. Pet Camp requires proof of current vaccines before your dog can camp with us and, yes, we do fill up – so as the good Dr. says, “plan ahead.”
So what does all of this mean, besides Pet Camp getting the Tufts seal of approval (if such a thing existed)? We think it means that we’re on the right track to providing great care, and we’re glad to have the support from Tufts!
Thanks for reading!