A first stay at a Great Yarmouth or Lowestoft boarder or day care
Booking a first stay with a Great Yarmouth, Lowestoft or Beccles & Bungay boarder or day care is easier if you know what to expect before the day itself. This guide walks through what to pack and how handover and collection usually work, using what the area's own listed businesses say about their process.
Before you book
None of the thirteen listed businesses publish a formal trial-stay policy on their own site, so ask directly whether a meet-and-greet or a short trial day is available before a longer booking, particularly for a puppy or a dog that has not boarded before.
What to pack
Most boarders and day cares ask for your dog's usual food, to avoid an upset stomach from a sudden change, plus any medication in its original packaging with clear instructions. A well-worn item such as a blanket or toy that smells of home is commonly welcomed. Cases and Canines, for instance, asks owners to supply the dog's usual food plus a vet's contact and an emergency number. Ask each business directly what it provides and what it expects you to bring, since this is not standardised across the area.
Handover day
For a kennels — Andrews Holiday Inn for Dogs and Cats and Bondi Petcare near Great Yarmouth, The Doghouse in Great Ormesby, or Noosabay Kennels & Cattery and Pineview Farm Kennels near Beccles and Bungay — handover happens at the premises itself, usually within a set daily window that is worth confirming by phone. For a home boarder — PetStay Norfolk near Great Yarmouth; Wiggley Walkers Lowestoft, Cases and Canines, Paws of Pakefield and We Love Pets East Coast in Lowestoft; or Beccles Cosy Home Dog Boarding and We Love Pets Beccles in Beccles & Bungay — the stay takes place at the boarder's own house; as with every home boarder on this site, the exact address is given once you have booked, not published here. Bondi Petcare and Noosabay Kennels & Cattery, both under the same ownership, give visiting and handover times of 9am to 11am and 4pm to 5pm, seven days a week; Pineview Farm Kennels' handover runs 9am to 10am and 4pm to 5pm. None of the other kennels or home boarders listed here publish a specific handover window, so ask directly what to expect on drop-off day.
Day care handover
The Doghouse and Cases and Canines both run day care alongside boarding, and East Point Paws (Lowestoft Canine Creche) is the area's only dedicated day care, reported to take dogs for the working day with capacity for a large group. Ask any day care what a typical drop-off and collection window looks like before your first visit.
Collection
Ask about collection times and whether early or late collection is possible, especially around a bank holiday. See our vaccinations and licences guide for what else is worth asking before your dog's first stay.