It’s nearly August, and therefore the holiday season is underway! I often get asked by my clients who are planning their holidays which is better; sending their dogs to dog kennels, or finding them a friend to stay with. It’s not that straight forward an answer, because it depends on the quality of care being offered in either case, and the personality of the dog that needs looking after. Ever situation will be different.

In either case, your dog will be undergoing a change in its pack, and its territory. Both of which can be a cause for concern if your dog thinks it is top dog in your pack. If it thinks it is the leader, he or she will have ‘lost’ the pack for which they are responsible, and found themselves separated from the territory in which they usually look after this pack. This is an undeniable stress. However if you dog does not see itself as the leader, then it will not worry so much about you during your absense. If you want to read more about leadership, please go to this blog.

If you decide to leave your dog with someone else (either in their home or yours), it’s important that they provide the leadership. Otherwise your dog will become the leader in that environment, and therefore when you get them home, they could potentially have grand ideas about their place in your pack; giving you a challenge to deal with! In a kennel, with numerous other dogs, your dog is more likely to choose just to keep its head down, and because there is less human interference, it could do better in this environment. I know of people who fully understand dog behaviour and board dogs in their kennels. There is nothing wrong with this, and I would suggest a dog is possibly better in an excellent kennels, than in the home of someone who is going to spoil it and give it all the wrong signals, undoing the hard work you’ve put in yourself.

These comments are just my thoughts and are subject to you having already established leadership in your pack. If you are a past client of mine and want to ask a specific question about what’s best for your dog, considering your available options, please do, because I will be able to advise you more specifically. If you aren’t a client already, and want to learn how to establish the leadership, then please get in touch!

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