Cleaning, cleaning with a little painting in between :)

This is what we do at this time of year as dogs are so destructive and messy. We do, of course, on a daily basis clean but a deep clean is what will stop our kennels ever harbouring diseases or becoming smelly. We use a specialist detergent called Virkon too

We are quiet at the moment so it"s preparation for our next busy time which will be Christmas now

We are open 365 days a year and have quite a few pets to care for over the Christmas period as people go away or have family visiting so we get to care for their pets. 

What ever the reason we don't mind. The pets have a nice time and all are lovely and snug, the dogs have under floor heating the cats heat pads and they all get a Christmas treat too

Summer worked well with the extra dog runs. We now have 14 separate exercise areas which means we can have a lot of dogs out at the same time but not together. We have very strict policies as to who can safely go out with who so no one is put in any danger of having a fight. It also means all dogs in our care have a long period, twice a day to be out in a run playing, doing their business or what ever they like but not sat in solitary confinement  24/7

We do have a few small groups who will get along well together and it is so lovely watching them, having total freedom to run, play and wrestle then when they are back in their own unit they are quiet as tired. It makes the job worth while especially if we have had one in who starts off a little nervous but after time spent comes out of its shell and joins in the fun and goes home shattered

Phew!

Summer madness is almost over and we have been busy with lots of new and happy customers at the same time we maintain our standards and ensure our existing customers are happy too.

We have had a couple of tricky dogs in this year but it hasn't posed a problem as we now have so many different exercise areas to keep them at a safe distance from the rest and we very tight policies as to who, what breeds can go out together or need to be out alone. Even with the very sociable we never have more than 3/4 playing together and no dogs are ever left out unattended.

It has, as always been fun too. We have introduced a gold award scheme. The idea is that my staff take it in turns, on a weekly basis to award it to a dog. The usual criterion is those coming for the first time, who are quite nervous but settle well and leave having enjoyed themselves as this is important to me and my team.

At this time of year we focus on repairs and cleaning and making any improvements as necessary ready for our next busy period.

Dog fleas!!

For all we have many, many dogs in and out of our kennels we have never had any fleas.

A boarding dog came in with them recently thank goodness we have bult our kennels of materials fleas cannot live in and we have a rigorous cleaning policy as there were no fleas left behind.

The family are fumigating their house to rid there of them as well as the dog herself.

I do think the use if Frontline has made a difference as we seldom see any of the little kritters

Can you spot Missy?

Cats Whiskers, boarding for cats and small pets has an assistant, pest control officer

Missy

So, how is life down on the farm? :)

This time of year is always busy as people go on holiday. We do have a little availability for both cats and dogs having said that but I'm sure the few remaining spaces will soon be taken.

Having an additional 6 dog runs  (15 in total now) is making life so much earlier as we can get several dogs out, safely, at the same time.
As they have all had a good run around  in the outdoor runs, our kennels are very quiet as they all sleep when back in their  own unit.

I do feel quite humble as to how well our very new kennels are doing and with little advertising too. We must be doing something right :)

We have a new, assistant pest control officer and when I work out how to get photos from my phone onto here, I will show you her cuteness. Danni, our senior pest control officer has taken several weeks to accept her and has just started playing with her. Danni still loves to meet and greet all our guests, especially those for Cats Whiskers. She tends to stay up high and look down her nose at the Dogs Paws guests.

I get little time to ride in the summer but my young, at times cheeky horse is doing well. I may even fit a dressage test into life one day :)

Must go, lots to do but hope to see you soon

New runs

As summer approaches we are all prepared as now have 6 additional exercise areas.

This means we can have more dogs out, at the same time but not in the same run so they are safe. They do tend to run up and down the fencing so get oooodles of exercise.

If we have a couple of dogs who would be good together then we do mix but keep an eye on them of course.

My theory is that if the dogs have lots of time out and are well exercised then they are quiet in between and that certainly appears to be the case as we have many dogs in just now and not a sound.

Council have increased out licensed number so we still have a little availability in August

We are back

Our blog hosting system failed so we have been off line for a while but now we are back :) :)

So what is new??

The kennels are doing well with lots of bookings coming in from both existing and new customers so the word is spreading that we are good at what we do!!

Happy customers make it happen, that is both pets and their owners

I do love it when we get a dog in who is nervous and sometimes a little intimidated by kennels and with a little patience and gentle handling we bring them round, they come out, hold their head up and thoroughly enjoy the experience. Their owners arrive and they find a happy, waggy tailed dog to great them. Sooo rewarding

I am not planning on building or growing the business anymore this year as I do feel there is a limit by which you loose that personal touch and I do love to be able to let all the pet owners know just how their much loved pet has been as I have spent the time caring for them

Personal level  My eldest at age 20 has been offered a great promotion and is in a very secure position. Very proud Mum

My middle son is loving his university life, gaining great grades and has a fantastic placement lined up for his middle year  Very proud Mum

My youngest is knuckling down to his A levels and is formulating his life plan Very proud Mum

Dog milk

My boys were telling me of a study whereby the researchers gave a group of people milk to drink and asked their opinion. All said it was very nice, rich in flavour and very drinkable.

They were then informed it was dogs milk :)

Could you imagine my having a doggy milking parlour :) From Rottweiler to my little poodle

Apparently dogs milk doesn't carry the bacteria cows milk does so wouldn't need to be pasteurised and judging how incredibly quickly my puppies grow it is very rich and nutritious

I wonder if will ever take off :)

It's been sooooo long

I cannot believe I haven't blogged since September 2016

At Dogs Paws /Cats Whiskers we have been busy. As always we have been caring for a number of pets but also getting on top of maintenance jobs after Summer. Dogs really are messy but such fun.

We scrub down and re paint all of the dogs units as necessary. The cat units are all hoovered thoroughly (including the run) and we re paint the walls as needed.

All time consuming jobs but it does keep things looking good and smelling great.

Cats Whiskers is 10 years old already. Where do the years go?

The plans for this year are to establish some more dog runs. To do this I need the ground to dry out as need to bring many tonnes of stone in to lift the ground level so the dogs are not on grass/mud, which it soon becomes with a couple of dogs playing in it

Having watched how the dogs played last summer when we were very busy I will now build the runs with a good gap between them so the dogs concentrate on playing not having a pop at your neighbours :)

We have quite a number of bookings already and I am finding people book a year hence to secure their place.

I promise not to take so long before i'm on here again :)