Your profile is the way you and Dogs Day Out keep track of your pet. Absolutely everything is done on your profile, so you always have a way to refer back to everything (e.g. invoices, reservations, payments, active packages, etc.). It is also used to keep all contact details up to date. Your profile (Gingr) will send you reminders about your pet’s vaccinations, bookings, and other required information, which makes your life easier as you don’t need to remember it yourself.

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The Agreements are compulsory Liability forms that need to be signed before your pet can come and visit us. These forms have some vital information for you about Dogs Day Out and the doggies we have here.

As much as we try to make grooming and spa – days relaxing and fun for your doggy, the reality is that most dogs do not like grooming in any shape or form. Most doggies get stressed by the grooming and is a little fearful of it. Our goal here at Dogs Day Out, is for your doggy to love it here so much, they jump out of your car and run inside! Therefore, we prefer to wait until your doggy reaches their ultimate relaxed selves before we expose them to anything stressful, including grooming.

Kennel Cough is a respiratory disease that typically affects dogs. It causes a dry, rasping cough with a hacking sound similar to the sound when something is stuck in the throat. Although it is normally not deadly, puppies and older or frail dogs can be killed by it. This disease spreads extremely quickly and easily as dogs contaminate each other by licking each other’s faces & mouths, sharing resources like food or water sources, toys, etc. as well as through coughing around one another or licking the same places, like trees or grass. Kennel Cough received its name due to the high outbreaks in unvaccinated kennels as there is a large concentration of dogs socializing together. This has, however, caused the misconception that Kennel Cough is only found in Kennels which is UNTRUE. Kennel Cough can, and is, mostly spread anywhere where dogs can socialize (like parks and beaches) or simply meet for a minute or two (like during walks in the street, or even dogs passing by your gate and greeting your doggy through the fence).

The short answer: Your dog probably hasn’t got it.

This is not a vaccine that is given to any dog as a standard procedure. This means you have to specifically ask your vet to give the vaccine to your dog, and you pay extra for the vaccine.

Please note that there are two methods of Kennel Cough vaccination:

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Nasal Drops are a live vaccine that is given via your dog’s nasal cavities and has a waiting period of 48 hours before your dog is sufficiently protected. Please note that some vets require a booster vaccine to be given, in which case, your doggy needs to have this booster before coming to visit us.

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Injection is a dead vaccine that is given via injection and has a waiting period of 10 days before your dog is sufficiently protected. Please note that some vets require a booster vaccine to be given, in which case, your doggy needs to have this booster before coming to visit us.

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For more info on Kennel Cough vaccination options, you can visit Teva’s website here.

There is nothing that riles up every male as much as an in-heat female. Even sterlised males immediately become possessive, aggressive, and irritable in the presence of a female in heat. This reaction towards a female in heat is not limited to the applicable playpen but affects ALL the males in the building. To protect all our doggies here from unnecessary fights, we will immediately send a dog home if it is found that she is on heat. No exceptions. Your doggy will need to stay home for a minimum of 2 weeks (14 days) before being able to return to daycare again. This is to allow enough time for the hormones to settle again, and the smell of a female in heat lingers on her long after she goes off heat again.

Due to the way our building is set up, all grooming dogs must move through the same corridors as our daycare doggies. They also use the same groom room, staff, and equipment as our daycare doggies. That means that your doggy must be as covered as our Daycare Doggies to ensure that everyone stays safe.

As much as your dog loves you, and if we are lucky, loves us too, anything can happen. Your doggy might get a fright and run into the busy industrial street. Or another doggy is being dropped off / picked up at the same time and they need to be kept apart. Or your doggy is super excited to go play, and runs into the first playpen they see, and then find themselves in a scary situation because it is not their playpen. We want to keep your doggy happy and safe – from car, to playpen and back to car again.

There are several safety concerns when it comes to using retractable leads, of which the biggest is the lack of control of your dog. If your lead is not 100% functional AND LOCKED, your dog will run through parking lots, in front of cars, not to mention around/over/under/through obstacles (and their family members) that not only makes it impossible to retract the leash, but also creates a tripping hazard for the dogs and all the humans involved. It causes cuts and burns to the dog and the humans when the leash is retracted incorrectly and will NOT bring your dog back to you – it will only make your attempts to bring your dog back under control that much harder and that much more dangerous. In fact, there are so many risks involved in using retractable leads that several vets, humane societies, animal welfares and dog trainers have written whole articles and research papers regarding these dangers. This is not even mentioning the dangers when the mechanism breaks…

Dogs are “at work” when they are with their owners. This “work” involves protecting their owners and their “property” from other humans and dogs. Even if two dogs are best friends in the playpens at Dogs Day Out, they could possibly be aggressive towards each other when on a lead and/or in the presence of their owners.

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 The dogs are also separated in their playpens according to size and temperament which means that although two dogs might look like they belong in the same playpen due to their sizes, they could possibly be in separate pens and have never met one another. 

Our number 1 concern in our building is the safety and happiness of the dogs. Whenever a “stranger” or new person enters the building we have the risk of dogs getting very upset with this person in their “house” (we are their second home) and they will want to protect it. If they cannot reach the person they will sometimes turn on each other. New staff are very carefully introduced and taught how to work with the dogs. “Reading” a dog’s body language, as well as getting to know the subtle dynamics in a group of dogs is a skill that is learnt with training, time, and a lot of patience. This skill is a vital tool that keeps all the doggies safe and happy by allowing someone to spot the danger signs of unhappy dogs which could result in a fight or a bullying situation. To keep each doggy happy and safe, our handlers are in constant training and spends hours every day with the dogs to hone this skill. Therefore, we cannot risk the safety of the doggies in our care by allowing untrained personnel to watch them. Safe doggies = happy doggies. The dogs also get to know all the staff as they are rotated every day. Volunteers and Job Shadowing is hence just not possible and is not really fair to the clients who expect us to keep their fur-babies safe.

Just like children, dogs need to be taught to learn. If they do not learn how to listen and obey basic commands at home, they display a huge variety of behaviours that poses risks to themselves, to the other dogs and even to the handlers and other clients. A basic training program that is maintained throughout the dog’s life can stop a variety of behaviours from developing - like biting dogs, biting people, running in front of cars, running away from owners, jumping on people, jumping on dogs, snapping, nipping, jealousy, overprotectiveness, being overexcited and overwhelming to dogs, creating difficult-to-impossible walking standards, fence aggression, eating random and dangerous things, approaching unknown people and dogs, etc, etc, etc.

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Most behavioural issues can be stopped, or completely avoided, by teaching the basics – you don’t even need to do classes or see a professional! Just Google how to teach the basics: Sit, Stay/Wait, No jealousy or possessiveness (especially when they act like a human belongs to them and they keep other humans and dogs away by biting, nipping, pushing, growling), Get into the car, Get out of the car when commanded (not rushing out the second the door is opened), Put the leash on, Take the leash off, putting harnesses/collars on and off while waiting patiently, etc.

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This might sound stupid or even overwhelming, but even taking 10 minutes a day with your dog allows not only teaching, but also bonding time. Your dog WANTS TO BE TRAINED – that is the only time that they get your undivided and full attention and who doesn’t want that! They want to please you and make you happy and they want to show that they are the “goodest” dog ever, so give them every opportunity to do so and you will have the strongest bond imaginable with your best buddy!

Pain medication changes your dog’s behaviour – they do not react to pain stimuli as they normally would, and this can mean that they can take things too far and get hurt. They might run too much and pull a muscle, or wrestle too rough and get a scratch mark, jump off a platform and not realize they just twisted their ankle. They might even stop showing signs of feeling ill, like not showing discomfort when vomiting or pooping and thereby masking a bigger issue.

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Calming medication also changes your doggy’s behaviour and can result in another dog taking a chance that they normally wouldn’t have. Your doggy might have stepped on another dog’s foot 3 months ago, and that dog has been waiting for the chance to get revenge, however your dog might be higher on the totem pole. If your dog suddenly comes in with a much more mellow state of mind, and not nearly as strong as they normally would be, that opportunity for revenge suddenly presents itself and might just get acted upon.

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In general, we prefer that dogs not be on pain or calming medication when attending daycare or boarding with us, but we do know that life happens and this is not always possible, so we ask that you always keep us informed of any health issues and medications that might be a part of your dog’s life – permanently or temporarily.