How to choose dog boarding or day care in Harrogate
Twenty-four dog boarders, day cares and kennels are listed for Harrogate, across five areas: Harrogate town centre & Knaresborough and Ripon & Pateley Bridge each have six, Easingwold & Boroughbridge has six, Thirsk & Northallerton has four, and Malton & Pickering has two — the thinnest area on this page, so a search there may turn up a licensed business not yet recorded here as well as the two listed. Twelve run boarding kennels, eight are home boarders, and four run day care from a dedicated site; seven of the twelve kennels also board cats. What matters most when choosing depends on which of the three you need.
Home boarding, day care or kennels
Eight businesses board dogs in the boarder's own home rather than a kennel block: FlowerDown, The Walkabout Company and Maddie's Retreat in the Harrogate town centre & Knaresborough area; Harry & Co. Canine Solutions in Ripon & Pateley Bridge; Cutters Canines & Equines and Paws 4 Walkies in Malton & Pickering; and The Easingwold Waggy Dog Walker and Dog Tired in Easingwold & Boroughbridge. A home boarder usually takes far fewer dogs at a time than a kennel, so ask how many other dogs will be in the house during your dates, and whether they are all from one family or several. Tatty & Tilly's, CenterBarks Dog Daycare, DogSmith of Thirsk and Just For Dogs Day Care run day care from a dedicated site rather than a home. The remaining twelve — Harlow Kennels & Cattery, Mucky Paws Boarding Kennels, Petties Paws, Sutton Grange Boarding Kennels, Wilderbrook Kennels & Secret Garden Cattery, Brackenfarg Kennels, Moor View Kennels & Cattery, Romanby Kennels, Abbotsway Kennels, Low Shires Boarding Kennels, Derrings Kennels and Studforth Kennels — run boarding kennels for overnight stays, several of them alongside a cattery.
What North Yorkshire Council's licence shows here
Every business listed is licensed by North Yorkshire Council, the unitary authority covering the whole of this page since 1 April 2023. The council's own website publishes no searchable register, so the register used to check these licences is a county-wide public list run by a third party, animal-licensing.uk, rather than a page North Yorkshire Council runs or has adopted as its own. That list gives a licence type and a star rating for each business, but because it is not the council's own register, no star rating is shown on any listing on this page — only the licence type, and a licence number where the business's own site happens to publish one. A licence, wherever it is checked, is a legal requirement in England for dog boarding, home boarding and day care, not an optional extra. Ask any business to see its current licence certificate and what the maximum number of dogs it covers is, since a licence can cap this below what the kennels or house could otherwise hold.
Questions worth asking about vaccinations, breed rules and insurance
None of these are things this directory can answer on a business's behalf; they are worth putting to the business directly 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 is medication given during a stay, and is there an extra charge for it?
- 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 licence entry, so ask rather than assume an answer either way.
Prices and extras
Six of the twenty-four businesses listed publish a price; see our Harrogate prices guide for the published figures and what they cover. Whichever type of boarding or day care you choose, ask what a second dog from the same household costs, whether bank holidays are charged at a higher rate, and whether collection is included or priced separately.