We recently made some major changes to the way we run our Austin Doggie Daycare and we're very happy that we did! Our new dog daycare routine is working better for the staff and the dogs.
As dog trainers, we've always known that dog daycare can be a wonderful thing for dogs or a breeding ground for problem behaviors. When you bring together large groups of dogs, the potential for dogs to become overstimulated and cranky is very high. Dogs can also learn very rough play styles or one dog may be picked on or bullied by other dogs. Because of this, we have always had a strict policy of having nap times for dogs throughout the day and we kept our play groups at about 7 dogs per group. Recently, I decided that this still wasn't good enough.
Young, exuberant dogs continued to engage in play that was too rough and, although our playgroups were small and supervised, our staff were having to time out dogs left and right or try to address problem behaviors in too many dogs at one time. We simply weren't being effective!
Last week, we made the switch to a new routine and the difference is amazing! We have continued to have nap times, but the dogs also have Kong time where they're working on stuffed Kongs, bully stick time where they get to chew on a yummy bully stick, and one-on-one time with a staff member doing tricks training or other mental stimulation games. Naturally, they still have play sessions with other dogs, but we match two to three dogs in short play sessions where one staff member is specifically helping those dogs to interact appropriately. The dogs seem to be loving the new system and so are we! Time outs are drastically reduced, our staff is more cheerful and relaxed, and the dogs get plenty of exercise, socialization, and one-on-one attention without learning poor manners or becoming overstimulated. Because of the extra snack times, we've had to have owners bring their dogs' breakfast and dinner in to daycare so that we can use their kibble for part of their Kong stuffing mixture. After all, we don't want a bunch of overweight dogs walking around! That was an easy enough change to make, though!
If you're bringing your dog to a doggy day care, take the time to ask how many play sessions your dog will have, what kind of dogs they'll be paired with, how long the play sessions will last, how poor play manners are addressed, what else the dogs will do during their day, and how many dogs will be in your dog's play group. We're a fairly small, unique daycare so you may not be able to find a dog daycare in your area that does things quite like we do, but it's worth a good hard search to find the right setting for your dog!
Cara, a much more relaxed and happy dog daycare owner!
