Boarding for the first time

[crystalncody]

I'm going out of town Friday and will have to board Cody for about 5 days. While I trust the vet office where he will be staying since my roommate works there, but will be out of town as well, and I have met many of the other staff members on numerous occasion and quite a few of them have basenji experience, I'm still really nervous. Cody's never been boarded before. I did try to find a pet-sitter, but ultimately I think he will be safer being boarded at the vet office as none of the people I talked to had ever dealt with difficult breeds.

Although, like I said, many of them have basenji experience, I still stressed the fact that he will bolt out of any open door, will climb and jump fences, and is extremely hard to catch if he does escape. I'm taking his food, he knows a few of the people that will be working in the kennels while he is there, and although they don't normally allow it they are going to let him have his bed while he is there.

I'm a little worried because he is so easily stressed out.
Any suggestions on how to make this go smoothly or anything else?

[crystalncody]

Cody's boarding went well. He got lots of extra special attention by the people that work there. My roommate spent time with him in his run when she returned from her trip, as did a few of the other workers that know Cody. He had absolutely no problems: he ate all his meals, no diarrhea, no screaming, no climbing. Every time I called, he was laying on his blanket, which I had slept on the night before he was boarded, chewing on a toy. Since we knew that my flight would land a few minutes after they closed, my roommate brought him home when she got off work. When I walked in the door, his curly little tail was wagging so fast and he was trying to get out of his kennel. He was so happy to see me, and I know I was even more happy to see him! He slept halfway on top of me last night, and right now he is napping with his head on my lap. I missed my little butthead.

[Basenjimamma]

Wonderful…I bet it was a happy, happy, happy reunion. So glad to hear of a positive boarding situation.

[dmey]

That is really nice to hear.. Boarding freaks me out and I keep thinking about it , because I know it is imminent. believe it or not I have not been out of town' even for a day since march 5 when I got Ayo. One weekend I went to a place called Jarabacoa in the mountains but I took him with me. Ohh and another time I went to Casa de Campo for a week also took him with me. I have no idea what I am going to do. My vet has boarding but I know he is just going to sit there in a cage all the time, and I really can't leave him at anybodys house because im afraid he'll just escape. I have been thinking of trying to find someone else with a basenji that lives here, I am sure they are probably concerned as well and maybe we could board each others dogs whenever one has to travel. I used to leave Chelo ,my great Dane at my moms house, but he would just lie there watching tv with them all day. Ayo is hard to handle and my parents are older now, can't really deal with him…

[Whoalookitsme]

I love the last statement you made And glad to hear the boarding went well.
Everytime the basenji at our work is boarding she will just lay on her bed also. She is never any trouble except when someone she doesn't know is displaying some kind of threat or dominance to her(i.e one of our receptionists got bit by her because she bent over her to put a name tag collar on). I have not gained the ability to actually touch her but she does come up to smell me everytime I go to the cage. Maybe i will get to know george better when i get a basenji.
Sorry for rambling lol

[Shaye's Mom]

We are an older couple, and until the last few years, we'd never heard of crating. We'd never crated our earlier dogs, and although we tried for a couple nights with Shaye, we couldn't stand the screaming and stopped it. We had a few issues, but they are fine loose in the house when we are not here. Since my girls are not crated, I have worried greatly over boarding them when it will inevitably be needed. However, the place where they occasionally are in day care has overnight boarding, and they are only in the 4' x 8' kennels during the night and for an hour mid-day for a nap. The rest of the time, they are free in a very large open area inside which leads to another large open area outside, and they can wander in and out as they please. The girls think it's a treat when maybe once a month I bring them up there so I have a day not encumbered by walks. I left them there overnight once to see how it would go, and they were fine when I picked them up. If you board at a vet's office, are they in kennels all the time?

[crystalncody]

Well, the vet office where I boarded Cody had large runs that they were kept in. They also had suites, smaller kennels, etc. They take them out for walks and playtime, and there is the option of doggy day care during the day. Cody does not get along with strange dogs for various reasons, so I chose not to do doggy day care, and since the off-leash play area was surrounded by chain-link fencing, which Cody will climb, I opted for longer walks and indoor play. So I doubt they just sit in the kennels all day, especially if the place offers day care during the day.

[Shaye's Mom]

Sounds like your vet's office has all the right setups for boarding and for day care - my own vet's office does not have all those facilities. Wish they did! At the place where I do take them, the outside play area is covered,so climbing out is not possible, or I would worry about that as well, since our B's certainly can climb! So glad you have found a place Cody is safe and happy when boarding is necessary.