Choosing the Right Kennel for Your Pets

When looking for a place to board your pets when you are away you want the best possible care for your four-legged family members. As an animal lover, mom to two dogs and a cat and having worked in the pet care industry for the past two years, I thought I would share with you some things to look for when deciding the best place to entrust with your pet.


Always take a tour of the facility before choosing the best place. A big warning sign would be any place that refuses to show you the kennel and grounds. As you walk through take notice of a few things. Do the dogs look overly agitated? Are they dirty? Of course some dogs will be excited and there will probably be a good amount of barking but I’m talking beyond that.

Does the lobby or kennel have a bad odor? If you walk in the front door and can smell urine or feces you should probably turn and walk out. Sure there will be some odors associated but for the most part a kennel should smell clean. You definitely shouldn’t smell anything bad in the lobby. This is an indicator of poor ventilation, drainage, and/or sanitation.

When walking in the kennel notice the drain system. Does it seem adequate? Is it set up for easy removal of waste?

Another big thing in my opinion is the make-up of the kennel runs. The issue of cross-contamination is an important one. There should be solid walls at least part of the way up separating runs. You don’t want gaps under run walls or open “cage” style walls. Why? Think about your dog hanging out in its run and its neighbor decides to lift his leg and urinate on the dividing wall. Where does that urine go? Into your dog’s run. Feces can be knocked into neighboring runs, as well as food, water, toys… you name it. You sent your baby’s favorite blanket with him so he’d be comfy and a section of it sticks into another run and that dog likes to chew. Say goodbye to that blanket. It’s just not safe or sanitary. Another problem these open factor runs can lead to is cage aggression. Say it’s feeding time and the dog next to yours is protective of his food. Your dog’s leg, foot, tail sticks under the wall for some reason. Maybe he decided to lay down and didn’t mean to reach across, maybe there was a morsel of food that he thought he could grab, whatever the reason that other dog gets angry and attacks your dog. Dogs can do a lot of damage to each other through cage walls. I’ve seen it happen. Now what if it happens at night? Your dog could be lying there, injured and bleeding, all night until the kennel opens up in the morning. Wouldn’t you rather rest easy knowing that there’s a more solid wall between your dog and someone else’s?

Also, do the dogs have a place to relieve themselves that is not the main compartment of their run? If not then they could potentially be spending a night lying in their own waste.

Does the kennel look organized? Is there proper food storage? Are runs labeled so that there is no confusion about who goes where, whose food and belongings go with whom? I bet a lot of you never thought that picking a kennel could be so complex. But if you are like me and think of your pets like your children then why not expect that same level of care?

What about boarding for your feline friends? Many kennels offer cat boarding. This should be done in a separate area from the dogs in a room set up for cats, a cattery if you will. Again, ask to see where your cat will be housed. Is it a cat specific room or just an afterthought? You don’t want your cat staying in a closet just so the kennel can make a few more bucks. It should be a cattery with individual cat runs, neat and clean.

If you would like to tour a kennel or two that has the right idea then check these places out:

The Big Dog House in Aubrey, TX. They are off of Hwy 377 very conveniently located near Providence Village, where I reside. This kennel has a cozy, down home, family feel. They have a very nice cattery in the main building where the lobby is located. They have 2 kennel buildings with terrific, full building length, drainage systems. They have indoor/outdoor runs with solid separating walls. These runs are kept very clean at all times and the dogs are even given turns out in the fenced yard to relieve themselves at intervals which further cuts down on mess. I highly recommend this well thought out and well maintained boarding facility. http://www.thebigdoghouse.net/. 

If Aubrey is a little far for you then check out McKee’s Pet Place in Frisco, TX located near the Dallas North Tollway off of Main Street and Kyser Way. They also have double-sided runs but the runs are all indoors. Dogs move from the “living” section to the outer section through a dog door. This encourages them to use the bathroom outside of the area where they sleep and eat. The walls are cinder block at the floor up to about two to three feet and topped with chain link. This addresses the cross-contamination issue and makes it harder for dogs to fight at the run walls. The facility has the very upscale feel that you would expect from a Frisco business and boasts a very advanced drainage system which actually runs the entire length of each bank of runs, inside the runs themselves. Very simple to clean, the slight slope causes liquids to run to the drain thus getting a good amount of it out of the way until a staff member cleans the run. The drains are connected to a flushing system which uses clean water to send waste out to the sewage system. No muss, no fuss! It is very well lit and cheery and I personally never smelled any odors unless I was standing right next to a fresh accident. They also have a luxury cat boarding area. http://www.mckeespetplace.com/.

I have worked at both of these places and truly believe they should be commended for great design and high level of care. I have only worked in three different kennels; these are the only places I would recommend out of those three. I haven’t had the privilege of touring any other DFW area kennels but if I do I would be happy to add to this editorial any facilities that meet this standard.

Keep your eyes open and your nose to the air!!