Q: You've moved! Where? A: 20409 - 89a Avenue, (5-minutes from our previous location). Our phone number remains the same! (604-888-6752). Q: What time are you open? (What are your hours?) A: 6 a.m. until 8 p.m. Monday through Friday; Saturdays, 10 a.m. until 6 p.m., by reservation. Q: Are you open on Saturday? A: YES, By reservation between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.. Q: How early do I have to reserve for Saturday? (Or, how late can I reserve for care on Saturdays?) A: Call before 5 p.m., on Friday of the week you are requesting the reservation for. Q: Who can reserve for Saturday? A: Any PRE-registered dog will be eligible for reservations on Saturdays. Q: What happens if I make a reservation, and fail to keep it? A: If you call as soon as you know you will not be requiring your reservation, (and it is the first time you have failed to show up), nothing. If you do not call to cancel, your reservation privileges will be limited. You may still make reservations, however you will be required to pay in advance, with no refunds if you cancel with less than 24 hours notice. Q: How much does day care cost? A: Full-Day, (5-14 hours), $ 27.00; Short-Day, (5 hours or less), $ 18.00; including hst; REMINDER: There are no 'Short-Day' rates on Saturdays. Q: What types of payment do you accept? A: Plastic, (Visa®, MasterCard®, American Express®, Interac®), or CASH! We do NOT accept cheques. NOTE: No cash transactions after 5 p.m.. Q: What happens if I am late (after closing) when picking up my dog? A: If you are later than our normal closing times you will be charged overtime fees. Each half hour (30 minutes) OR PORTION beyond normal closing time is $6.00 If we do not hear from you within one hour after closing we will assume your dog is overnighting with us. (Please note: This can cause major space issues if we are already full with overnighters.) If your dog is forced to overnight with us (if, for whatever reason, you have not contacted us within one hour of our normal closing time) you will incur the following charges: $27.00 - The regular day rate, (If you have pre-paid for the day, or are a card holder, this will not be added to your final total.) $12.00 - The overtime rate: 2 x 30 minutes, $35.00 - The overnight fee, which will take you up to 8 p.m. of the following day when we would expect you to have returned to retrieve your dog. Should you not return, and we have not heard from you or are unable to reach any of your contacts, we will continue to treat your pet as an overnighter, with one major exception: You will be charged $48.00, per day, plus food, (as opposed to $35.00.) Food - $1.00 per cup. (If needed to be purchased, will depend on stores open, and we will purchase the smallest amount available of their/your brand (which you will be responsible to reimburse us for)) , otherwise they will be fed a supper and breakfast of Purina Adult Dog (or Puppy) Chow at the rate of $1.00 per cup, amount determined by bag label portions. (Normally 1-4 cups per feeding, depending on size/age of dog.) Q: What do I need to show so my dog can start coming? A: We need verification of your dog's vaccines. (Distemper / Adenovirus (type2) / Parainfluenza / Leptospirosis / Parvovirus / Coronavirus - note some are optional) They must be up-to-date and include the Bordaetella (Kennel or K-9 Cough) NASAL vaccine. Note: The Bordaetella vaccine must be administered by nose every SIX (6) months, and proof of compliance is required. Further note that if your Vet recommends or prefers the injectible K-9 vaccine, we will NOT turn your pet away as long as you provide proof of vaccine. Please Note: When you bring these records for verification we need to be able to see EITHER the date the vaccine(s) were administered OR the date they are due to be re-vaccinated. (Remember, if you can't see the date; we can't see the date. Check carefully before coming in.) Q: I've lost the vaccine record for my pet. Now what? A: Contact the vet you had the vaccines administered at, they can give you a copy of the record. Q: We've just moved here from Timbuktu, (& didn't bring our pet's records), how do we get our pet's records? A: Call the vet and ask them to fax it to you. Q: We can't remember the vet who did the vaccines. Now what? A: You can take your dog to a vet of your choice, and either have them re-administer the vaccines, (not recommended unless you KNOW they haven't been done in over a year), or ask them to perform a Titre (blood) Test which will show which anti-bodies your pet is still protected against, and which ones need 'boosting'. Bring the results to us as verification, along with any notes your new vet may wish to include. PLEASE be aware that the Titre Test does NOT have a standard, (and therefore cannot guarantee protection) and you need to feel comfortable that your dog is protected; discuss with your Vet any and all concerns over this test to be sure you adequately understand what it means. Q: We have a puppy who has just had their first set of vaccines. When can they start coming to day care? A: Right away. Although it is recommended that you wait until your pet has had their full (third set) series of 'puppy vaccines', we will accept your pet as long as you continue the series and you bring in proof of those updated vaccines. Also required is the Bordaetella (Kennel or K-9 Cough) vaccine, NASALLY, as early as possible, (usually with the second set of vaccines.) Please be advised that if you chose to start your puppy earlier (before their third set of vaccines), there is the chance that they will become ill due to the fact that they cannot fight off, what (to a fully vaccinated dog would be nothing), to a young puppy, can/may cause illnesses. Check with your Vet to see what THEY recommend! Q: Can my dog come even though they're not 'fixed' (ie.: spayed or neutered)? A: Yes, BUT - We prefer your pet to be "Bob Barkered" (spayed or neutered). However, some folks do not want to do this, and, so, for the present, we are still accepting un-'fixed' pets. It will be on a 'First-come' 'First-served' basis, which means that if an UN-spayed female is here, an UN-neutered male will be turned away for that day, and vice-versa. The exception is for puppies 7 months old or younger, they will not be turned away because they aren't 'fixed'. Un-fixed pets may reserve up to one week in advance, with a maximum of 3 days in any one week. Q: My puppy isn't 'house-broken' yet, can they come to day care? A: Absolutely! We will help them learn where they should be going to the bathroom, and clean up any messes they create. Q: My older dog is incontinent at times, will this be a problem? A: Not for us! As long as your pet has been checked by a Vet and has been certified healthy, they are welcome! We will clean them up and help them retain their dignity. Q: Where do the dogs go to the bathroom? A: We take them out, as needed, every hour or so to the back yard. Generally they have free access to this yard, weather permitting. Q: How many staff members do you have? A: Two full time. Q: How do you discipline the dogs? A: Depending on how many times in a given moment we have had to correct a dog, they will either be given 'the finger', (NOT what you're thinking! We wag our finger at them to let them know they've done wrong!) or they will be placed in a crate for five minutes of separation. If they continue their antics, they are separated for longer periods. For 'group' infractions we bang a stick/newspaper against a counter, or use a spray of water, both of which are equally effective in stopping the unwanted behaviour. (Mostly because they like to 'drink' the water!) Time-outs and being placed on a leash are also quite effective in correcting unwanted behaviour! Q: Do you crate the dogs? A: Yes, but only for time-outs. (Unless the dog prefers to 'hide-out' in the crate; then we'll leave the door open so they can come and go on their own.) Q: Don't the dogs fight? A: No, why should they? Some come in with an attitude which quickly gets adjusted! (Especially when they see what fun they could be having!) There have been a few spats, which have been dealt with, but by and large, the dogs just want to have fun! Q: What do you do if a dog starts a fight? A: Separate them instantly. (Then we check for injuries.) We call owners if warranted. Dogs who continually show this type of behaviour will be reassessed and we will discuss with owners what options are available. Q: What if my dog injures another dog? Or their dog injures mine? A: Everyone signs a legal form when they register agreeing to be responsible for any damages caused by their pet. So, if your dog injured another dog, you would be responsible for recompensing the other owner and vice-versa. If the situation is deemed to have been caused by a gross mismanagement on our part, we will take FULL responsibility and recompense both parties vet bills. (Should the other owner be unwilling to pay your costs, they will be released from the day care and we will cover your expenses.) Q: What emergency procedures do you have in place? A: With respect to emergency Vet care, we have Dr. Snyder, from Small Creatures Pet Clinic, 'on-call' (He will see a pet in an emergency for us during regular hours), as well as the Emergency Pet Clinic in Langley City for 'after or before' hour emergencies. We have also taken Pet First Aid, through the St. John's Ambulance staff. Also, we believe that an aware pet is a safer pet, so we regularly hold fire drills to ascertain that we can remove all the animals, quickly and safely, from the day care in the event of a fire, earthquake or flood situation. Q: I'm curious, how do you hold a fire drill for dogs? A: We gather the dogs all in one area, and start attaching leashes, (which is the reason we prefer you to bring a leash for your pet). As all the dogs are leashed, we gather the leashes and exit the building to the backyard. We call it successful if we are able to get to that point in under 5 minutes, usually we are able to do it in under 3 minutes. Q: Do you offer formal pet training classes? A: No. We do require the dogs to sit before getting their leash placed on and we work with you to assist in potty training. We will offer tips if you ask, about specific training issues, or offer names of formal trainers if you wish. And, as an added bonus, they will be leash-trained as we go for our daily walks! Q: Do you offer overnight care or boarding? A: Yes, but your dog must be a regular attendee of the day care. Q: Why? A: Because we do NOT crate or kennel dogs, and we need to be sure they will respect us and the other dogs, as well as the 4 cats we have. Plus, they will enjoy their stay more if they are already used to being in a noisy, constantly moving environment. Q: Do you allow Pit Bulls? Or other 'Bully-Breeds'? A: While we would love to say yes, unfortunately we have to say no. Insurance is just too cost prohibitive. Occasionally we may take a puppy, but for the most part we need to say no. Also any dogs who have been branded a 'dangerous dog' by the authorities are not able to attend. This is because the rules and regulations designed to restrict this type of dog's movements are beyond our financial ability to provide a safe and enjoyable experience for the animal. Q: Are you looking to hire anyone? A: No. Sorry. Not in the foreseeable future. Q: Do you take volunteers or offer work experience for students? A: No, not at present. (But keep checking!)