Home boarding or boarding kennels in Leeds?
Home boarding and boarding kennels both mean an overnight stay away from your own house, but the setting is different. Thirteen of the 25 dog boarders listed for Leeds are home boarders, taking dogs into their own house rather than a kennel block; seven run boarding kennels, purpose-built accommodation with individual runs. Both are licensed activities in their own right by Leeds City Council.
Home boarding
A home boarder takes your dog into their own home: their sofa, their garden, their routine, usually with only one household's dogs at a time. Leeds's thirteen home boarders are spread widely, with the largest cluster in Horsforth (Cookridge Canine Care, Pedigree Pet Care Leeds, Hansons Hounds, Let's Go Mutts, Scruffs Home from Home Dog Boarding and Bark & Board Leeds) and in Garforth (Yorkshire Canine Care and Cozy Canines Services), with others in Roundhay, Morley, Leeds city centre and Pudsey. Because a home boarder is a person's own address, this directory shows home boarders by area rather than a full street.
Boarding kennels
A boarding kennel is purpose-built: an individual kennel with a bed and a run, set feeding and exercise times, and staff on site rather than one family looking after your dog alongside their own. Leeds's seven kennel businesses are concentrated in and around Garforth (Sandgate Boarding and Day Care, Acaster Luxury Boarding, K9 Manor Boarding Kennels, Hartleywood Boarding Kennels and Tucana Home from Home), with Crystal Spring Kennels in Leeds city centre and Carlton Boarding Kennels in Horsforth. Five of the seven also run a cattery alongside the dog kennels.
What actually differs
- Number of dogs on site at once: usually far fewer at a home boarder than a kennel.
- Routine: a home boarder's own household routine, versus a kennel's set feeding and exercise times.
- Space in peak weeks: a kennel with several runs more often has room in school holidays than a single-household home boarder.
- Cats and other pets: several of the kennels here also board cats; ask whether that matters to your dog.
Cats alongside dogs
Six of the 25 businesses listed for Leeds also board cats or other small pets alongside dogs: Crystal Spring Kennels, Carlton Boarding Kennels, Acaster Luxury Boarding, Hartleywood Boarding Kennels and Tucana Home from Home run a cattery alongside their kennels (Tucana also takes rabbits and guinea pigs), and New Forest Pet Care, a home boarder, takes cats and small animals as well as dogs. If you have more than one kind of pet, ask whether they can stay together or need two separate bookings.
Questions either way
Ask how many other dogs will be there during your dates, whether they're from one household or several, and what a typical day looks like. Neither setting suits every dog: a nervous dog might settle faster in a quiet home than a busy kennel block, while a very sociable dog might prefer the company a kennel's daily group time can offer.
See our Leeds council licences guide for how each type is licensed and inspected.