A first stay at an Ashford or Tenterden boarder or day care
Whether your dog is going into a boarding kennels, a day-care site or a home boarder's house in Ashford or Tenterden, a first stay usually starts with a shorter visit or consultation first, so both sides can see how the dog settles. Ask whether a trial is offered even where a business's own material doesn't say so.
Before you book: ask for a trial or consultation
Lizzie's Dog School and Daycare, in the Ashford Villages and Wye area, offers new clients a free 30-minute consultation before starting, which is a useful model even for businesses that don't advertise one: ask what a trial or first visit covers, and whether it's charged separately from a full booking.
What to pack
Take your dog's usual food for the length of the stay, any medication with clear written instructions, a bed or blanket that smells of home, and a lead and collar with an up-to-date tag. Haven Boarding Kennels & Cattery runs viewings 10am to 4pm, seven days a week, and answers calls evenings and weekends; check the exact hours of whichever business you choose, since these vary across Ashford and Tenterden's kennels and home boarders.
Handover on the day
Give whoever is taking your dog a clear account of feeding times, any health issues, and how your dog behaves around other dogs. Lizzie's Dog School and Daycare specialises in reactive and high-energy dogs, so if that describes yours, it's worth raising in detail at the first meeting rather than assuming a general kennels or day care will manage it the same way.
Collection, and what can add to the price
Ask what happens if you're early or late collecting. Ashford Pet Care publishes a price list that charges double its standard rate on Christmas Day, New Year and Easter, on top of its usual day and weekend rates; We Love Pets Ashford, which covers Ashford, Kingsnorth, Charing, Challock, Shadoxhurst and Pluckley, keeps its walking groups to no more than four dogs at a time. Neither charge nor policy is unusual for this kind of business, but asking about it before the stay avoids a surprise on the day you collect your dog.
Longer stays and holiday periods
A week or fortnight away is a different booking to one night, and dates matter more over a school holiday or Christmas. If you're booking over a busy period, ask early, since several of Ashford and Tenterden's home boarders and day cares only take on a limited number of dogs at a time.
Meeting a home boarder first
Because a home boarder's exact address is only given once you book, the first real look you get at where your dog will actually stay is usually at a meet-and-greet, not before. Four of the ten businesses listed here — Ashford Pet Care, Brook Farm Home Boarding, We Love Pets Ashford and By the Bridge Home Dog Boarding — are home boarders rather than kennels or a day-care site; use that first visit to see the house and garden, ask how many other dogs might be there at the same time, and find out what a typical day looks like.