Boarding while on vacation.

[Terri, Murfee & Emily]

Hi all, 

I am leaving on vacation for 12 days at the end of the month. I have a choice to board Murfee (he will be 1 year old next week) and his sister at an excellent resort. I have used them in the past and never thought I had any issues until I picked them up the last time. This resort offers a minimum 6 hours of outside play and in the warmer months swimming in a large pond that the water has been treated for the dogs. Murfee is a huge swimmer, so that is a big draw in the summer .

Here is my question. The last time I picked them up I had taken my own beds for them. They stated that Murfee had soiled his bed, but that they washed it. It was then that I discovered that they are in their suites from 6pm until the staff comes in at 7:00 am. I just had a conversation with the owner and he stated that yes, puppies will have accidents, and that is why they use the raised beds. He says that now that Murfee is turning 1, he should be able to hold it for longer. The fact that they are outside for most of the day, negates the need for the last pee. He used to do a late night as he lives on property) and very few of the dogs actually peed. All that was accomplished is that they stirred up all the dogs and found it just wasn't necessary. Is it cruel to board a dog and ask them to hold it for 12-13 hours, or will he adopt to the schedule of the resort (as the owner states that they do)?  Thanks for reading this long post. I will appreciate your candid thoughts.

PS I have attached a picture of Murfee at camp

[Abby Christos]

6pm to 7am does seen like a long time, but maybe not if they are truly getting exercise for 6 hours. When Bob plays with a friend of mine's dog for a few hours, we will usually crash for 12 hours.

Also, sometimes on weekends I'll put Bob to bed at 9:30 and he will be in his crate until we get up around 9:30 the next morning.

[Kris and Sawyer]

Is that the only boarding place you've found? We left for the holidays for 14 days and I found a great place. She is a dog trainer, she only boards a handful of dogs at a time. They stay in the house with her and she lives on a fenced acre. She has one room with 5 crates in it. But Sawyer had such good house manners that he just stayed out the whole time unless she had to go to the store. He slept in the family room. She texted me pics and you could tell from those that he was sooo happy. And as happy as he was to see me when I picked him up, he also jumped in the back seat and leaned over the seat tops, staring at her house as we pulled away. She was a little more expensive but well worth it for peace of mind. She also bathed him too! My suggestion would be to do some investigating in your area and see what else is out there...

[Brittney & Cally]

Have you ever considered Dogvacay.com We have used that and the person we have found is wonderful. They get to stay in a home environment and be able to stay on somewhat of a normal schedule! Or even Care.com has a pet sitter section I believe. That is how our really nice resort is so I stick to only using daycare from those types of places.  I either have someone come to my home or take them to someones home if it is for longer than a day because I just do not see how a dog is suppose to hold it that long.

[Dynamite & Doodle]

I think it depends on the dog and the breed as well. My puppy is almost 10 months old and he routinely holds it overnight for 12 hours, no problem. He is with me 95% of the time during the day, we go for walks, play outside etc and he has his last pee outside around 8:30 pm. After that he cuddles up while we read to the kids at bedtime and he's out for the night. I slip him into the crate when I go to bed. At about 7am our youngest wakes up and then I get up and let the puppy come and cuddle up in the big bed and sleep until whenever we get up. He is never in a hurry to go out and pee. On the weekends it's easy to go back to sleep until 9.

On the other hand, a few of my friends have small breed dogs and they really can't hold it that long..

[Jen W]

My 15-month old dog holds it for 12+ hours every night.  So I think they can, especially when they're sleeping and not running around.  I'm still not comfortable with my dog being alone overnight though, even though she can hold it.  I use a place that has staff on site overnight so the dogs are never alone.  After hearing about the fire at the dog kennel in Canada I don't think I would ever do it differently.

[Lori, Daphne, Lucy & Pippa]

Its not the 12 hours that bother me so much as the timing of the 12. 6pm is awfully early for a puppy to be put away for the night if that puppy has not been used to that schedule. I have no doubt he would soil his bed again. I know my girls CAN hold it for 12 hours but they shouldn't HAVE to. We stay up late so we take them out for the last pee around 11pm. Then they go out in morning around 8am. But that is the schedule they are used to. If they were to stay somewhere else and not get to go out late, they may very well have an issue. Your dog is on a schedule and doesn't know it is going to change drastically. So therefore he will be expecting to be let out after 6pm. I would look for another place to board or look for a loving person who will care for them. There are many other Doodle owners who would volunteer. I definitely would if we were close to where you were or where you were going. You could post a discussion on the front page and ask for boarding help. There are several members in or near Charlotte.
Also, I just want to let you know that you can add pictures to your discussion so that we can see them without having to go to the attachment. You just use the icon right above the text box where you write. Its the 2nd one from the left and when you put your mouse over it, it says"image".

[Kelly & Zoe]

My understanding is that adult dogs (well, dogs over 8-9 months) are supposed to be able to hold it for 10-12 hours.  But I agree with you that leaving the dog alone from 6pm-7 am seems like a *really* long time.  The 2 boarders we're considering (we haven't boarded Zoe  yet, but our friends have boarded at the 2 we're considering and they come highly recommended), have a schedule like this - This to me is an ideal schedule.

6-6:30am:	Breakfast time!
7am:	Daycare dogs begin to arrive, ready to play
7am-12pm:	Open play time - romping, sniffing and lounging
12-2pm:	A well-deserved nap
2-7pm	More play with best furry friends
7-8pm	Dinner time after the daycare dogs have gone home
8-9:30pm	Relaxing play time
9:30-10pm	Final potty break and tucked in for bed BTW, adorable picture of Murfee!!!

[Rosemary (Ro) and Enzo]

I would agree, it's not the length of time being able to hold it, but just the fact of being put up for the night. Our boarding facility has around the clock techs. And granted, I am sure they are not going out with every dog around the clock, but my understanding was, a walk outside to go one last time at 10pm. Enzo usually falls asleep around 7 and would not get up unless I woke her up to go out one last time..
When we were in Hawaii, I got constant texts from the Tech assigned to her, keeping me updated. One pic was taken at midnight with a pic of Enzo sprawled in his lap.

[Terri, Murfee & Emily]

Thank you everyone for your great suggestions. I decided against boarding him this trip. My 2 neighbors has agreed to take care of them. One is a dog trainer and the other is his Auntie 'M". so I know Murf and his sister will be well taken care of. 

Lori, thanks for the heads up on posting pics. I am going to try it right now. Murfee turned 1 yesterday and we had a great party. 

Stay warm everyone. 

Terri

[Rosemary (Ro) and Enzo]

Sounds perfect! Enjoy your trip!