How to choose dog boarding or day care in Barnsley

Twelve dog boarders, home boarders and boarding kennels are listed for Barnsley, all licensed by Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council, which publishes every animal-activity licence it issues, including dog boarding and home boarding, in a single PDF register rather than separate registers by area. The twelve are spread unevenly across the town's five areas: five in Penistone and Dodworth, two each in Barnsley town centre, Barnsley north and Royston, and Wombwell and Hoyland, and one in Cudworth and Grimethorpe.

Home boarding or boarding kennels

Seven of the twelve are home boarders, taking your dog into their own house rather than a kennel block: Paw Power Dog Boarding, Knuckle Dog Services and Penistone Pets in the Penistone and Dodworth area; Chapel House Hounds and Wagnificent Walkies in Barnsley north and Royston; Hopwood Hippy in Barnsley town centre; and Klass Dog Services in Wombwell and Hoyland. As with any home boarder, only the area and town are shown on the listing; the street address is given once you book, so ask how many other dogs will be in the house during your dates and whether they are all from one household. The other five run boarding kennels or a cattery from a dedicated premises: Animal Inn in Wombwell, The Cliffe Kennels and Foxholes Animal Hotel in the Penistone area, Noah's Ark Pet Holiday Home in Shafton (Cudworth and Grimethorpe), and Rob Royd Boarding Kennels & Cattery in Worsborough (Barnsley town centre).

The council licence

Every business listed here holds a current licence from Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council, a legal requirement in England for anyone running dog boarding, home boarding or day care, not something a business can opt out of. The council issues a star rating from 1 to 5 with each licence: among the twelve listed, stars range from 3 (Animal Inn, The Cliffe Kennels, Foxholes Animal Hotel and Paw Power Dog Boarding) up to 5 (Noah's Ark Pet Holiday Home, Knuckle Dog Services, Hopwood Hippy, Penistone Pets, Wagnificent Walkies and Klass Dog Services), with Chapel House Hounds at 4. A star rating is the council's own inspection score, tied to how often a licence is reinspected, and is not a customer review, so treat it the way you would a food hygiene rating rather than a Google star. The council's own register also lists a much larger number of home boarders than are published here, including a seventeen-licensee franchise network trading as Petstay (Franchise) under one name; it is not listed on this site because no single verified phone number or premises could be confirmed for any individual franchisee, so contact Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council directly if you want to reach one.

Thin areas

Cudworth and Grimethorpe has only one listed business, Noah's Ark Pet Holiday Home in Shafton, and Barnsley town centre and Barnsley north and Royston have two each. This reflects what could be independently confirmed with a working phone number at the time of research, not necessarily everything the council has licensed in those areas; if your area shows little here, it is worth checking Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council's own register directly, or asking a business further afield whether it covers your postcode.

Questions to ask before you book

• What vaccinations do you require, and how long before the stay do you need to see proof of them?
• Do you have a policy on kennel cough, and what is it?
• Do you have any breed restrictions or conditions, including for an XL Bully with a valid exemption certificate?
• Are you insured, and can you show evidence of current cover?
• How many other dogs will be there during my dates, and from how many households?
• What happens if my dog needs a vet while in your care?

None of the businesses listed here publish a vaccination schedule or a stated insurance position beyond their council licence, so these are questions to put to the business directly, not answers this directory can give on its behalf. See our Barnsley prices guide for what the four businesses that publish a price charge, and what to ask everyone else.