Vaccinations, licences and what to ask in Sheffield

All 12 dog day care, home boarding and boarding kennels businesses listed for Sheffield are running a licensed activity in England, so a licence and vaccination question is worth asking wherever you book, not only where a price looks low. This guide sets out what to ask and why, rather than telling you what a good answer looks like — that is for the business to say, and for you to judge.

Ask to see the current licence

Nine of the 12 businesses here sit under Sheffield City Council; the other three — Border View Farm Kennels, Jo's Wonder Paws and Tails 'n' Trails Dronfield, all in Dronfield — fall under North East Derbyshire District Council instead. Sheffield City Council's own public register lists a licence number, holder name and expiry date, but not an address or a star rating, so asking to see the certificate itself is the only way to check what it names and covers. See our council licences guide for how each of Sheffield's 12 businesses checks against its register.

• Which council issued the licence, and when it is due to expire
• What the licence covers — day care, home boarding, boarding kennels, or more than one
• Whether a recent inspection has taken place, and what it found

Vaccinations: ask, don't assume

Ask the business what vaccinations it requires before your dog can start, and how far ahead of the booking it needs proof. Policy varies between businesses licensed under the same rules, and this directory does not set or check a vaccination requirement of its own, so there is no single answer to expect. The same goes for kennel cough: some businesses ask for cover against it and some don't, and that is a business's own policy rather than a rule this site imposes.

Group size, medication and breed policies

Life On Paws Dog Sitting states it takes three to five dogs at a time in its home-based setup, which is one example of how group size varies between a home boarder and a purpose-built kennels such as Lea Farm Kennels or Mosborough Kennels & Cattery. Ask any business how many dogs will be in with yours at once, who gives medication and how often, and whether it has any breed policies, including for an XL Bully — a boarder or day care is entitled to set its own conditions or decline a booking, and this directory cannot verify a dog's exemption paperwork on a business's behalf.

Insurance: a business's own claim

Paws to Play states it is insured through Petplan Sanctuary, and Mosborough Kennels & Cattery states dogs are insured while boarding, excluding pre-existing conditions. Treat both as the business's own statement rather than something this directory has independently checked; the same applies to any other business that tells you it holds insurance.